Everyday at Fertility Associates we see women and couples who are hoping to have a baby of their own but, after working through all the options, need the help of an amazing egg donor. Being a parent can be the best feeling in the world. Imagine being able to
Commonly asked questions Do I need to have completed my family before being a donor?
Does it matter if I have a Mirena, IUCD, Jadelle implant or are on the oral contraceptive pill?
No, we are getting more enquiries from younger women before starting a family. If you have had children your fertility is proven.
Usually not, depending on the type of contraceptive used, the doctor will discuss with you when you would need to stop and use alternative methods of contraception. This would only be required for a short time.
Can I be an egg donor if I have had my tubes tied or had a hysterectomy? Yes, egg donation treatment involves the ovaries.
Do my eggs all go to the same couple? This depends on the type of donor you are, if you are an FA Egg Bank Donor, your eggs may help more than one recipient. If you are donating as a One-To-One Egg Donor you will donate to one recipient family per cycle.
Will there be any cost to me? No, any expenses involved are minimal and covered by the Donor Reimbursement provided after egg collection. Appointments and treatment are covered by the recipient couple.
Does my husband/partner need to be involved? Yes, your partner needs to be supportive of your decision and attend counselling with you.
give that experience to a hopeful family.
What if a child from a donor cycle wants to contact me? The law in New Zealand protects the rights of the child. From 18 years, they have access to your information which is kept on record at the clinic and with Births, Deaths and Marriages. This information can be accessed through Births, Deaths and Marriages or through our counsellors within the clinic. Parents can access this information any time after birth.
Can I donate more than once? Yes. We are happy to accept previous donors back for further cycles. If this is of interest you may want to discuss the clinic egg bank for your first cycle. With this option, we freeze eggs which can then be fertilised at a later date for a recipient couple and if more eggs are available then you can potentially help more than one family.
What are the risks involved, and could my fertility be affected. As with any medical procedure there are risks, however these are few and rare. Your doctor will discuss risks with you at your first consultation. You can also refer to the IVF section in our Pathways to a Child book.
Information for egg donors
How many visits to the clinic will be required? You will be required to attend a main Fertility Associates clinic approximately 6-8 times. If you have a partner, they will also need to attend your first counselling appointment.
Could that be you?
Commonly asked questions (cont.)
What is the difference between a clinic recuited donor and a personal donor?
Are there any side effects to the medication used during my egg donation cycle? You may feel a little more tired than normal and perhaps more sensitive, but there should be no other relevant side effects. Your doctor will discuss this fully with you at your consultation.
A clinic donor is recruited by the clinic and is available to recipients. A personal donor is referred to the clinic by their recipient and is usually a family member or a close friend. A personal donor’s eggs are allocated to their specific recipient.
Contact REF # 3115.13 - 10/19
For more information please call the egg donor co-ordinators on 0800-4-Fertility or email coordinators@fertilityassociates.co.nz
Egg donors are awesome Thank you for your interest in becoming an egg donor. Every week at Fertility Associates we see women and couples experiencing the heartbreak of not being able to conceive using their own eggs. By becoming an egg donor you can give the greatest gift possible - a chance to have a baby. “There are no words that I can use to thank our donor. She gave us the joy of our girls and changed our lives in such a memorable way. Egg donors are truly amazing.” says one of our very grateful recipients. For more information please contact our Donor Co-ordinators at coordinators@fa.co.nz
Screening & preparation
FA Egg Bank donor
ALL DONORS
One-to-One & Personal donors
There are five stages of preparation to becoming an egg donor.
PRE-TREATMENT
STAGE 1: REGISTRATION AND SCREENING
1. You may now start your treatment cycle when you are ready. First step is to decide your start date.
We will send you the following:
ALLOCATION
a screening blood test form
2. Appointment with a nurse to complete your consent forms. You will also learn about administering medications and what happens each day during the treatment cycle.
a patient registration form and a health and lifestyle declaration
3. Start taking 0.8mg folic acid daily at least one month before your cycle starts.
a donor reimbursement form a non-identifying profile to complete - this is shared with recipients in the future Information about having a smear and swabs
ONE-TO-ONE ONLY 1. We will call to advise when we are able to share a recipients non-identifying profile with you. If you accept, the recipient couple will view your non-identifying profile. If accepted, we move into the pre-treatment stage. 2. You can meet your recipient if both parties agree. This will be facilitated by our counsellor and is referred to as ‘joint counselling’. Joint counselling is mandatory for personal donations.
Our donor egg co-ordinators will hand your care over to the nursing team to manage your treatment cycle.
PRE-TREATMENT
Please email eggdonorgift@fa.co.nz when you have completed the first blood test.
Getting started
STAGE 2: INITIAL TEST RESULTS
TREATMENT: DONOR EGG CYCLE
1. You may now start your treatment cycle when you are ready. First step is to decide your start date.
You will need to:
2. Appointment with a nurse to complete your consent forms. You will also learn about administering medications and what happens each day during the treatment cycle.
The donor egg co-ordinator will call you with your blood test results, they will also discuss donor pathways available and confirm your next steps. If you are happy to proceed we will arrange appointments at your local Fertility Associates clinic with a doctor and counsellor. They will also discuss donor pathways available.
1. Call the nurses at your local clinic on day 1 of your cycle (the day you wake up with bleeding).
Our donor egg co-ordinator will then send you information to take to your doctor appointment; this will include AMH results and a donor health factor questionnaire.
3. Egg collection takes place, the eggs are frozen and the treatment cycle is now complete.
STAGE 3: DOCTOR APPOINTMENT
ALLOCATION
FA EGG BANK DONOR
The doctor appointment takes approximately 30 minutes and includes an in-depth health history examination, genetic testing and a discussion about the donation process. A pelvic ultrasound is usually included. You are welcome to bring a support person/partner.
In this option eggs are collected then frozen and added to the FA Egg Bank.
1. Twelve weeks after egg collection we will contact you to complete your 2nd screening blood test, swabs and a final health and lifestyle declaration. Once we have the ‘all clear’, your eggs will be available to recipients. We will call you before allocating your eggs.
STAGE 4: COUNSELLING
Once in the frozen bank, eggs are ready to be allocated. A donor may help more than one family, depending on the number of eggs collected.
The counselling appointment takes one hour and is an opportunity to discuss the personal, emotional and legal aspects of being an egg donor. Clinic donors will also have the opportunity to discuss their profile and preference for donation. If you have a partner, they will also need to attend this session.
EGG DONOR OPTIONS There are 3 ways of donating eggs at Fertility Associates. Our Donor Co-ordinators, doctors and counsellors will discuss the options with you.
CLINIC RECRUITED
Meetings between an Egg Bank donor and a recipient are optional, and only take place if requested by both parties. To become an Egg Bank donor some criteria apply.
Your non-identifying profile will be available to potential recipients. The donor egg co-ordinator will be in contact the following week to confirm you are happy to continue and to answer any further questions.
ONE-TO-ONE EGG DONOR
If you are an FA Egg bank donor you will move through to pre-treatment stage. See page 3. If you are a One-To-One or Personal donor, you are now in the allocation stage. See page 4.
CLINIC RECRUITED
In this option the donated eggs are allocated to one recipient. The allocation takes place prior to treatment beginning.
STAGE 5: CONFIRM DONOR PATHWAY If you are a clinic donor, the donor co-ordinator will discuss your options, either an FA Egg Bank donor or a One-To-One egg donor.
1. Call the nursing team at your local clinic on day 1 of your cycle (the day you wake up with bleeding). 2. Follow their instructions with set dates. A treatment cycle is usually completed within 2 weeks. You will need to be available for blood tests and scans on any day during this time.
2. You can choose to meet your recipient, this is optional. If both parties wish to meet we will arrange a ‘joint counselling’ meeting.
3. Egg collection takes place and the treatment cycle is now complete. 4. 12 weeks after egg collection you will need to have final screening bloods. Once we have the all clear, your recipient will be able to use the embryos.
Donor process... ALL DONORS Preparation and screening
Complete profile
Test results
Doctor Appointment
Choose donor pathway
FA EGG BANK Start treatment DONOR
DONOR REIMBURSEMENT - ALL DONORS
2
3
Egg collection & freeze
12 weeks quarantine
Final blood test
Allocation
Counselling
PERSONAL DONOR
A set fee is in place to reimburse donor expenses incurred during the act of egg donation, costs such as mileage, childcare and parking. Please ask our donor co-ordinators if you would like to know more.
Ovarian stimulation
- - - - ONE-TO-ONE Allocation DONOR
PERSONALLY RECRUITED
1
Our donor egg co-ordinators will hand your care over to the nursing team to manage your treatment cycle.
TREATMENT: DONOR EGG CYCLE
PERSONAL EGG DONOR In this option the donor is referred to the clinic by the recipient and is usually a family member or a close friend. A personal donor’s eggs are allocated to their specific recipient.
3. Start taking 0.8mg folic acid daily at least one month before cycle start.
2. Follow their instructions with set dates. You will need to be available for blood tests and scans during this time. A cycle usually takes 2 weeks to complete.
Start treatment
Start treatment
Ovarian stimulation
Egg collection
12 weeks quarantine
Ovarian stimulation
Egg collection
12 weeks quarantine
Final blood test
4
Final blood test
