Shady Grove Fertility

We decided to give SGF a shot despite hearing some negative reviews from friends. I had a fairly positive impression at first — our doctor (Dr. Nair at the K St. facility) seemed caring and invested and they really seemed to know what they were doing. Things started to go wrong when I began my routine testing. The Physician’s Assistant who did my HSG test (at the Rockville location) was extremely rude. The test was very painful for me, but she kept snapping at me that «it shouldn’t hurt.» Finally, as I was in tears because of the pain, she asked if I wanted her to stop the test or keep going. As I was literally taking a breath before answering her, she shouted, «I need an answer NOW!» Thank the heavens the results on that test were normal, because they share them with you right there and I would not have wanted to receive bad news from her.
Everything was essentially downhill from there. During my day 3 ultrasound, the technician suddenly got very quiet and solemn when she got to my left ovary. I was concerned, but the next day our nurse called and said everything looked great. I was happy to hear it looked like I had just been imagining things. However, at my follow-​up appointment several weeks later, I asked our doctor to just confirm everything was normal with the left ovary because the ultrasound tech had seemed a little concerned. Turns out I had a complex 4 cm ovarian cyst and they weren’t even going to mention it because it was «probably nothing.» Okay… I understand not wanting to make something out of nothing, but complex cysts are the more serious type and do not tend to go away on their own. Why not just tell me it was there and THEN say it was probably nothing to worry about?
When I expressed concern, I was told rather condescendingly that I could have the cyst rechecked in two months «if it would make me feel better.» I did, and it had not gone away. An MRI and an OB/​GYN visit later, I found out I had a dermoid cyst, and the OB/​GYN said it was a «no-​brainer» that it should be removed. I also found out around 1−2% of these cysts turn out to be malignant. I realize that is a tiny percentage, but what if I had been one of those women? I would have lost months of valuable treatment time, all because SGF was not even going to mention the existence of the cyst.
I have had it taken care of and am ready to resume fertility treatment, but we won’t be returning to SGF. It just made me wonder what else they don’t feel the need to tell you. I’m sure they have provided great service to lots of people, but I don’t trust them with my health care after this experience.

I just called to inquire about using them to have my next baby using embryos we already have frozen from an IVF we did in prior to moving to the DC area (we used donor egg with my husband’s sperm). The lady literally told me that they might not agree to using those embryos and they might make me start over with Shady Grove. Um no! Seriously?! I should add, we already have a baby from the same IVF cycle. Are they suggesting that we throw my embryos out and also not have a full sibling for our daughter? The lady also has the nerve to ask me if there was a reason we would not be working with our last fertility clinic (in a different state). She doesn’t even know me! They need new people answering the phones there! I will definitely not be giving them my business!

We are here right now at our first visit. I figured I’d take the time to write the review now, because they are closed for lunch for the next 10 minutes (would’ve been nice had they mentioned that before sending us down here.)
In short, the last three hours has taught me that «Shady Grove Fertility» is just a franchise that lets people use the name without any regard for quality assurance or standardization of processes.
Each person has been pleasant enough, but the lack of coordination has made today a real disappointment. The first visit is just for general information and they’ll tell you what testing you need to have done. The specifics don’t come until your follow up visit, but they’re not clear about either of those things. We had to keep asking about the timeline and tests to figure that out. Turns out we could get bloodwork done today, and we could have left a sample had they just informed us in advance.
The bloodwork has to be done in two separate offices– one is the SGF office on the first floor, one at LabCorp across the hall. We head to LabCorp which takes about 45 minutes. Seems like it would’ve been easy enough to contact us in advance of our appointment to either make a LabCorp appointment for us or let us know to make an appointment.
The other bloodwork is drawn in their office, we head down there at 12:45 after the LapCorp appointment. The door is open, there’s no sign, no bell, absolutely nobody around, yet there is a bag with 3 vials of blood sitting on the counter. We wander back and halfway through the suite find someone who works with another organization. She says people I’ll be a few minutes. My husband calls SGF and gets a recording that they’re closed from 12 – 1 for lunch. I find it absolutely ridiculous that the people upstairs wouldn’t have mentioned that when sending us off.
The paperwork is equally as disjointed– you get lots of sheets of paper but it’s not organized into any folder, there’s no SGF headers or anything that makes it easily sortable into the various types of testing you need it all for.
On the way out, we wanted to make an appointment just to drop off a sample, but nothing is available for two weeks. To drop something off.
Overall, a 3 ½ hour process that could have been streamlined and required less work on our part of navigate everything. Simple changes would go a long way. Not really impressed, and honestly does not give me confidence in what to expect from this office or possibly another SGF location for that matter.

Unresponsive. Negligent. Failed to return calls or file basic insurance paperwork.
We have to repeatedly call to get information and are shuttled from person. They bring you in and then later you find they forgot to explain everything you need to do, but naturally the office closes early so you’re stuck waiting until Monday, while critical days in the cycle pass you by.

I would echo what others say — also, read the reviews that Unilocal does not automatically show as «trusted reviewers» — i.e. the ones that do not automatically pop up on Unilocal.They are detailed enough that I believe they are legit, but are uniformly negative.
Shady Grove has been a very unpleasant experience. My nurse forgot (and never apologized for forgetting) to include all required blood tests on the lab slip so I had to go back (and pay) several times. She also left twice for a week each time during my cycle, but gave no warning and left no out of office information so I was told she would «get back to me» but never told she was gone when I had questions.
I only met my doctor once (all dealing were with the nurse.) I’m not even sure if he did the retrieval as I was old cold by the time the I went into the medical procedure. My impression was that he was very hurried, spoke extremely quickly, and seemed to be watching to clock.
When I tried to switch to another clinic, Shady Grove told me it would be up to 15 days to transfer my records. Also, it costs between .50 and .80 cents per page to retrieve your records (of tests you have already paid for) and with 50+ pages or records, a very expensive to retrieve all records.
Two things I wish I had known when I signed on: 1.) t the downtown clinic doesn’t do monitoring, so you have to go to Rockville for weekend monitoring 9and for egg retrieval). And 2.) when you go for retrieval, unlike other clinics, Shady Grove requires someone to drop you off, wait for you for 3 hours and pick you up. This proved to be extremely difficult as I didn’t know when I would be going for retrieval until two days before and my companion had to request three days off work just to cover all potential days. Other clinics I spoke with only required that you have someone there to check you out and make sure you get home ok.
In short, I would absolutely not recommend Shady Grove. I read reviews prior to selecting them and came in with very low expectations, knowing it would be like a factory, but preparing to advocate for myself. What I found out is that doesn’t matter. Avoid at all costs.

Shady Grove Fertility drastically overestimated the chances of pregnancy prior to a procedure and only modified success rates (literally a fraction of what they initially claimed) after medical risks were taken and they profited from the procedure.
The procedure actually compromised our ability to have a natural childbirth via other means. Could not recommend anyone being seen by these physicians.

This review is for the SGFC fertility preservation (egg freezing) services, not IVF. I’m sad to say that my experience mirrored those undergoing IVF. The only reason I am giving two stars is because I had a good result, despite the intense emotional journey to get there.
First, the first and only time I met with my doctor was during my initial counsultation. She outlined the process, answered my (few) questions. I did not see her again during the 4-​month process. Not once. She did call a couple times, but for the most part I communicated with the nurse. She did not perform my retreival.
The K street location is not open on the weekends and, what was not explained to me until the MIDDLE of the process, was that at certain times, I would have to undergo monitoring over the weekends, which meant travel to Annapolis or Rockville. I have a car; but if you’re one of the MANY DC women who are car-​less city-​dwellers, factor in (1) expense for rental cars; (2) a two-​hour drive (sometimes twice in one weekend).
The «factory» description is apt: Each appointment I was shuttled in with little acknowledgement, and hurried out as quickly as possible. If I had questions, I was told to e-​mail my nurse. All this leaves little room for variances, which often happens during the fertility process. I twice had to get ahold of someone afterhours and this was an incredible effort — it took more than 3 hours to get someone to call me back.
Finally, I had a huge snafu with timing my retrieval. I understand that timing retrieval can be tricky: How one’s body reacts to the hormones is not an exact science. But when I asked my nurse reviewing my ultrasounds whether I would be able to travel (for business) 3 days after my retrieval date, she e-​mailed yes. Not, «let me check and get back to you.» Not, «well, you know we have this window, and I wouldn’t recommend scheduling anything because sometimes it can be pushed.» Not a word that I would trigger later than the 3-​day window. Flights were booked, meetings arranged with potential clients.
At my monitoring appointment the next day, I’m told by the nurse performing my ultrasound that it could take as long as a week for me to trigger and the eggs retrieved. I then asked to speak to the attending physician who refused to give me anything approaching a timeline. «If it were me, I’d cancel the meetings,» he said while spinning in his chair (not hyperbole). I asked that he have my physician call me that evening to discuss. I then had a complete meltdown and walked out of the office. My doctor did call me that evening, but only to lecture me on being rude to the attending doctor (in Rockville). She gave me no further information on my retreival date. I didn’t get that until a couple days later (and the date provided was 10 days after the original retreival date).
What SGFC fails to grasp is that the women undergoing fertility preservation are doing it alone and do not have the support system that might cushion these unexpected changes. And if I have the means to undergo this procedure, I’m likely a working professional that cannot absorb scheduling changes willy-​nilly. I would gladly have paid additional money for a little guidance and more humanity in the process (fortunately, I did get that through the nurses I hired through Grubb’s pharmacy). Do not go through this thinking that anyone at SGFC will hold your hand.

If it was possible to give zero stars, that would be a more accurate rating. Please spare yourself the financial and emotional investment, and please chose another fertility center. The nursing staff are cold as ice, not clear and communicative about the process, and hard to reach by phone or email even when the matter is urgent and crucial (such as clarifying a medication dose to be taken that evening.) Some of the nurses have exuded a ‘pissed off’ attitude just when trying to meet with them. Here are a few examples. When I first visited, they ask you to use the bathroom before doing an ultrasound. One of the nurses mocked me very openly and loudly for taking what she felt was too much time in the bathroom. When I needed to get my daily medication instructions, my nurse would call just before their offices were closing (4pm) for the day such that I could not reach her if I called the office back. I never saw my doctor during the entire period of my treatment. The medical staff seriously under-​estimate and downplay the impact of the medication on patients — the side-​effects can be very strong but the nursing staff act like there will be almost no effect. In my opinion, this constitutes a type of medical malpractice or lying. I was passed among multiple doctors and nurses who were not up on my case and who, as a result, mishandled communications and decision-​making processes. For example, on Day 7 of the treatment, Doctor A told me that on Day 9 of the treatment I should speak with the doctor on call that day to decide whether or not to continue with the treatment. On Day 9, Doctor B told me that morning at 7:30am that the treatment should definitely be continued. Then Doctor B called my cell phone at 8:30am after I had left their offices to let me know that she had reversed her decision and the treatment should be discontinued. At 10:30 am, I spoke with Doctor B by phone and she said that the treatment should be discontinued. The same day, Doctor B called back at 2:30pm and said she had reversed her decision again and the treatment should be continued. This treatment of a patient is irresponsible. The place is a factory; you may be treated inhumanely. If your case does not fit into their perfect mold of what they know how to do at a ‘mass-​production’ level, they will not help you. In a given day, they perform ~30 IVF or other surgical procedures at their Rockville office. You are one of thousands that they are churning through their system. Most importantly, in one-​on-​one conversations, the doctors promised a positive outcome. However, all of the paperwork that they have you sign basically covers Shady Grove against liability if there is not a positive outcome. In practice, the outcome that they effectively verbally promised was in no way met. The outcome was effectively no positive movement towards having a child in the future. They will also rob you blind. The estimates that they give you for medication can be double the estimates of what you pay. They quoted $ 4000 in out of pocket expenses for medication. In practice, the medication costs were $ 7,500. The medical procedures were an additional several thousand dollars. One could easily spend 30K out-​of-​pocket there with no positive movement towards having a child. Please consider saving your time, emotional energy, and finances and please consider choosing another approach.

I’m not one to write a review under most circumstances. My expectations are normally minimal of most places… doctors, restaurants, anything… therefore bad experiences don’t provoke me to write a review so that I can be heard. This review is for all of the women, beginning the tough, unfortunate, and confusing journey of infertility, and are considering Shady Grove for evaluation and treatment.
My journey began 3 years ago with Shady Grove. During this time, I’ve spoken to my doctor only 3 times. Most of my conversations were with nurses and technicians who were annoyed with me everytime I had a question or required a little more clarity. Each time I spoke with someone, I had to remind them of how long I had been receiving treatment and what my status was. I would often have to ask them to read my chart, as the advice they were giving was for medications and treatments that I hadn’t even received. The monitoring is extensive and seems more for letigation protection than to assist you in having a baby. Shady Grove is by far, the worst medical care that I’ve ever received. Their cookie cutter process was not for me, and unfortunately, it took 3 years along with emotional and financial drainage for me to realize it.
This time in a womans life is too difficult as it is to attend a clinic that treats you with no specific care or warmth. Every womens issues are not the same and it seems that Shady Grove applies their factory-​like process to everyone that comes in the door. All of the previous negative reviews are accurate. I’m sure that their success rate comes from luck as there are no expertise being conveyed in any interaction. I strongly advise for anyone with fertility issues to seek help at any practice other than Shady Grove. I’ve recently made an appointment with a new practice and my experience is already significantly more positive. Best of luck to you on your journey.

K St. Office
I usually go to the Sibley office (another Shady Grove clinic in the same network), and I’ve been up to Rockville for weekend monitoring when Sibley is closed, but today was my first time going to the K St Office. It will definitely be my last. I came for a simple injection class, and based off my experience I would never come here for actual monitoring or a procedure.

I could write a very long review on the negative experience I had with Shady Grove. But everything has pretty much been captured in all of the negative reviews written on the Rockville site. The thing is, most of those have been flagged so you have to go through to the 32 filtered reviews to read the negative feedback. I’d encourage you to do so, because if I had, I wouldn’t have chosen to go to Shady Grove. My doctor was terrific, but everything else was a big, confusing mess.
In a nutshell, it’s impossible to get a hold of them outside of 9 – 5 — which is extremely inconvenient. The nurses seem inexperienced, unsure of themselves and are dismissive and try to get you off the phone/won’t answer email if it’s getting close to 5pm. They really love those bankers hours at Shady Grove DC. For a place that should be running as a well-​oiled machine with the amount of volume they’re doing, it was just the opposite. There were lots of incidents of misinformation or lack of information that made the entire process extremely anxiety-​producing. Exactly what you need when you’re unable to get pregnant and/​or have had losses: extra anxiety and a sense that you’re on your own.
My advice to anyone choosing to go here would be to get in contact with someone who has had your procedure who can guide you through all of Shady Grove’s missteps. If I had a dollar for every time I was lobbed a term I didn’t understand, numbers without context of what they mean, if something was/wasn’t supposed to be refrigerated, what a drug was for. Most of the process was a mystery and I would have benefited from having a Shady Grove graduate as «sherpa» through the process to untangle all of the mysteries. But therein lies my point: if you’re going to pay good money and allegedly have a dedicated nurse and a team of receptionists, nurses et al at multiple offices… it’s a ridiculous concept to need a lay person who’s been through the process before just to help you navigate their confusing world. But I wish I had found someone and used that person as a guide nonetheless.
For those of you rolling the dice on multiples taking hCG/​gonadotropin shots — be sure to have the discussion about «reductions» (fancy term for selective abortion with higher-​order multiples to «reduce» to twins) before you take those shots. Turns out a fair amount of those fraternal IVF twins out there used to be triplets… or more. Be aware of the risks of the hcg — and that you may be faced with the decision to «reduce» — if you go that route. Shady Grove pays a little lip service (handout on a desk in the waiting area…) to the dangers of multiples, but they don’t educate you fully and certainly don’t initiate a conversation about «reductions».

I could NOT recommend this place less. A litany of tests (many clearly just to cover their liability concerns and in NO way necessary in our case), a required visit with a social services therapist (from their list, none taking insurance, $ 250 for an hour-​long chat of no particular informative value), and a nurse incapable of keeping track of the million little requirements we had to complete, despite our repeated questions – all this adds up to a spectacularly stressful experience.
I think the staff assumes you just know about all the steps involved by osmosis.
Example one: We arrive for our first IUI and have to delay it by a month because the nurse tells us AT THE CLINIC that a crucial requirement is missing. Could this not have been brought up WEEKS before as I was sending in my many test results? Or, at worst, a week before when I was scheduling the IUI appointment?
Instead, WE get a lecture that this was «on the list» we received months ago, at the overview session, when we got a stack of documents and papers. We are detail-​oriented, capable professionals – there was too much to keep track of, we are not physicians, and we are vulnerable and overwhelmed by this process. Isn’t it the nurse’s responsibility to help us keep track of the requirements, especially when I specifically ask, «please tell me, do you have everything we need?» (to say nothing of the fact at least half of the tests and requirements had nothing to do with my fertility or health status).
Example 2: It is now a week before my ovulation. We have completed «the last thing» that was necessary, and I get a call that they do not have 3 of my tests (thankfully, this was just a matter of me calling the insurance and asking them to re-​fax the results), 4 tests from my partner (tests that make absolutely no sense in our circumstances), and 3 consent forms.
The consent forms turn out to be A HEAP of papers that, if signed outside of their office, require a notary public. So – this means ANOTHER trip to the clinic? Why could this not have been done when we were at the clinic a month ago? Why was it not even mentioned? Or why can’t this be done on the same day of the insemination?
If you are at the beginning of your fertility journey, facing an IUI, this is NOT a helpful place. You will be treated with a cookie-​cutter precision of a very large factory, you will have to keep track of absolutely everything yourself (not an easy task, it turns out, with the many abbreviations for tests and procedures), and you will not be treated as an individual – you will receive phrases and answers that are prepackaged and will be forced to undergo tests and screenings that have little relevance to your actual situation and your actual needs.
With my first IUI a week away (if we are lucky, that is), I am horribly stressed – and these people are supposed to be HELPING US have a baby. Terrible.