How to Choose an Egg Donation Agency
Approximately 1.6% of children born every year in the United States are born using egg donation and surrogacy. Nowadays, more and more women are willing to donate their eggs, and that is a good thing for couples and individuals searching for the ideal match to assist them in their family-building journey. However, this also makes choosing your perfect egg donor challenging and that is where an egg donation agency comes in.
There are plenty of options for Intended Parents looking for Donor Eggs and women looking to donate eggs in California, New York, and other places in the US. Hence, choosing an egg donor agency to work with can be a little confusing.
For many prospective egg donors, this decision boils down to trusting an agency with vast experience in the fertility industry and a reputation for offering continuous support all through the entire process. And for hopeful parents, a lot of questions will come up during the egg donation process, such as – medical questions, legal questions, and accounting questions.
Worry not! Our expert team at Coastal Fertility Medical Center will be there to answer all your queries.
In the following piece, we look at the most important factors you need to consider when looking for an agency to work with as an Intended Parent or Egg Donor. Some of these factors are:
- Screening process
- Database
- Reputation
- Case management
- Matching services
- Follow-up care
- Fees
- Experience
- Anonymous egg donation
Egg Donor screening process
The screening process varies from one egg donor agency to the other. Some programs are also more comprehensive than others. So, it is important to ask your potential agencies about their Egg Donor selection criteria:
- Donors aged 21 to 29
- Non-smokers
- Healthy weight and lifestyle
- Have a BMI in the range of 19 and 25
- Have regular periods
- Haven’t been to a Zika-affected country in the past six months
- Have two functioning ovaries
Medical screening standards (for matched donors):
- Comprehensive medical histories
- Physical examination
- Fertility evaluation to verify egg production
- Medical screening for:
- Genetic diseases or abnormalities
- Blood type
- Sexually transmitted infections
- Drug usage
- Partner screening (husband, spouse, boyfriend, etc).
Psychological screening standards (for matched donors)
- Evaluate the reasons for donating eggs
- Check for illnesses, disorders, emotional issues
- Verity that egg donors know the risks and commitments
We also interview our egg donors for:
- Commitment
- General demeanor
- Pleasant personality
We also carry out a background check for legal problems on donors.
Egg Donor database
A good donor database starts with a thorough screening process, but it also depends on several other factors like:
- The size of the database
- Diverse Egg Donors (different ethnicities, religions, physical features)
- Local donor candidates (using donors in locality lowers travel costs for Intended Parents)
- Updated database (standardized phone calls or email check-ins help prevent false match scenarios)
Egg Donor agency reputation
We are now in a time when people check online reviews before making any choices, from where to eat to where to purchase new designer bags and so on.
Given that selecting an egg donor agency is one of the most important personal decisions you will need to make whether you are a donor or to-be-parent, conduct a thorough search about their reputation. Learn what past egg donors have said about the process and their experiences with the agency.
Some prospective donors also wish to donate directly to eggs banks. However, note that these banks don’t work the same way as agencies.
For instance, egg banks are established with the sole aim of offering known egg donation, and the success rate is usually not as high as when working with an agency.
A good egg donor agency will comply with all the necessary regulations and have great working relationships with various fertility and IVF clinics.
Ask about the agency’s:
- Donor match rate
- History of lawsuits
- Relationship with fertility centers
- Number of years in operation
- ASRM compliance
- HIPAA compliance
- FDA compliance
- Online ratings/reviews
- Better business bureau listing
Case Managers
Often, the case managers at the egg donor agencies determine the kind of experience donors would have. Although your intuitions will be more important than any checklist, here are some things you need to consider:
- Years of experience in the reproductive industry
- Responsiveness to questions
- Attentive, compassionate care
- Ease of communication
- Convenience of office locations
Matching Services
Selecting an egg donor is one of the most crucial personal decisions you will make as Intended Parents. Does the egg donor agency offer you:
- High donor match rates
- Efficient administrative process
- Personalization (chance to meet or speak with the donor)
- Travel coordination for the screening and egg retrieval process
- Open access to contacts within the agency
- Weekly contact concerning the status of your cycle
Follow-up Care
If you conceive with a donor’s egg, it’s crucial that you are educated on any medical developments that can happen. Ask if the agency:
- Offers continued medical contact with physicians
- Has a good business model to ensure longevity
Agency Fees
Cost is one of the most important things to consider when researching fertility treatments. Are the egg donor costs and agency fees documented and well explained? Check if the agency offers:
- Reasonable fees
- Clearly defined refund policies
- Clear billing procedures
- Rematch policies (should be clearly defined)
Experience
The axiom that experience is the best teacher goes when selecting an egg donor agency to partner with.
At Coastal Fertility Medical Center, we have refined our programs to provide more support and options for Intended Parents, Egg Donors, and Surrogates.
Personal experience is also important!
Our team consists of leading industry experts who use their vast knowledge and expertise to match Intended Parents with their ideal donors and guide them through the entire process.
Anonymous egg donation
For Intended Parents
Egg donors can either be known or unknown. However, most egg donation today is anonymous, with the hopeful parents selecting their donor after partnering with egg donor agencies.
To help you choose your ideal donor, you will be provided with important information about the donors, such as
- Ethnicity
- Age
- Education
- Health history
- Family history
- Childhood or current photos, etc.
For Egg Donors
Like sperm donors, women who want to donate eggs will need to undergo a thorough screening process before they are allowed to do so. These include:
- Blood tests
- A fertility evaluation
- Genetic screening and
- Psychological screening.
The use of an egg donor agency makes the process easier since the agency conducts the initial screenings of the donors before a second screening at our fertility center.
Note that the whole egg donor cycle is coordinated between the chosen agency and our clinic to ensure the donor has a relaxing, stress-free experience.
Choosing Donor Egg IVF with Coastal Fertility
The committed relationship between Coastal Fertility and its Egg Donor agency gives you access to an extensive donor database and helps make the process of donor-egg IVF as smooth and hassle-free as possible. We work as a team to help infertile couples and individuals actualize their dream of growing a family.
Our fertility expert team is made up of dedicated fertility doctors, nurses, embryologists, psychotherapists, clinical coordinators, and administrative personnel.
Our program provides you professional services and committed care as we help you achieve your dream of becoming a parent. We take great pride in having coordinated more than 2000 donor-recipient cycles.
At Coastal Fertility, we can assist you with every aspect of an IVF cycle using egg donation.
We offer:
- Help with contractual agreements, which state the obligations and responsibilities of all parties involved.
- Handling donor expense disbursements
- Providing discrete, compassionate, and supportive handling of the process
- Coordinating all donor’s appointments and travel
- Offering an online database of pre-screened donors to make the selection process as easy and private as possible. The screening includes:
- Review of medical and genetic history by a Coastal Fertility doctor
- Psychological testing and evaluation by our certified marriage and family therapist
- Vaginal ultrasound carried out by our clinic staff
- Genetic testing
- Genetic counseling is done by a qualified genetic counselor
How Egg Donation ProcessWorks at Coastal Fertility
- Once the application is completed, donor is paired with hopeful parents.
- After the donor has been matched, she will be scheduled for a comprehensive medical and psychological screening at our facility.
- Once medically cleared to donate eggs, the donor will be assigned a lawyer who will help her review the donor contract.
- Our clinic will give the donor a calendar detailing the medical protocol for the egg donation process and information on egg retrieval.
- After the eggs have been collected, our staff will follow the donor up to make sure they are recovering well.
- The egg donation process comes to an end!
Conclusion
At Coastal Fertility, we ensure a seamless donor egg IVF journey for you by providing an all-inclusive model. Our years of experience and unparalleled expertise can be your key to becoming a parent. Schedule a consultation with our fertility experts today.
