RSC’s mission and practice supports honesty and integrity in all ways,especially when it comes to the handling of patients’ precious gametes and embryos. RSC’s IVF Lab staff is among the most experienced in the country. The embryologists in our lab have close to 100 years’ combined human IVF Lab experience. The staff is not allowed to perform any procedures without documentation of excellent competency.
Please watch the short video that I narrate about the IVF Lab, "The IVF Lab Demystified," on this Web Site to learn more about the inner workings of the IVF Lab.
Chain of Custody (COC)
Years ago we established a chain of custody procedure for gametes (sperm and eggs) and embryos here at RSC. What is “chain of custody?” It is a step-by-step procedure that allows for identification of each and every person that handled those sperm, oocytes and embryos every step of the way during a patient’s IVF (or IUI) cycle, from the egg retrieval all the way to embryo freezing and disposition.
We have gone above and beyond what the American Society For Reproductive Medicine recommends for IVF practices. As a member of the IntegraMed fertility network, RSC participated in a voluntary COC review/inspection in which a lab director from another practice performed a detailed inspection of RSC’s COC protocols. We looked at each other’s protocols and tried to identify risk areas and “raise the bar” to provide the utmost in patient care and security of their gametes and embryos. This is another example of how RSC's affiliation with IntegraMed has given us additional resources to improve service and provide excellent medical care to our patients.
Verification of Identity
We have a dual verification system in the lab whereby critical identification steps are always verified by TWO embryologists BEFORE the procedure is carried out. Such critical procedures include insemination of oocytes, thawing of embryos, freezing of embryos, thawing of frozen sperm, preparation of PGD embryos for ET, and embryo transfer.
In fact, at the time of embryo transfer there are actually FIVE patient identification steps before the transfer takes place: the sonographer who rooms the patient, the physician upon entering the room and greeting the patient, the embryologist upon entering the room and greeting the patient, the physician to embryologist when he/she is ready to have the embryos loaded into the catheter, and finally the embryologist to physician when the loaded catheter is handed to the physician for the actual transfer.
At RSC we work in an environment that supports honesty and integrity when it comes to the handling of patients’ precious gametes and embryos. I am proud to have been a part of this team for many years!
Kristen A. Ivani, PhD, HCLDIVF Lab Director,
Reproductive Science Center of the San Francisco Bay Area
