During NIAW, US Fertility will provide educational resources and physician-hosted events to encourage those facing infertility to seek a fertility evaluation sooner, as early diagnosis and treatment leads to the best outcomes and highest pregnancy rates.
Rockville, MD – US Fertility recognizes National Infertility Awareness Week® (NIAW) from April 24 through April 30, 2022, and encourages those facing infertility, or those who might find becoming pregnant is taking longer than expected, to seek a fertility evaluation from a fertility specialist without delay. NIAW is a yearly initiative founded by RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association, of which US Fertility is a proud sponsor, to encourage people to act as their own fertility advocates and to educate legislators and the public about the impact of infertility within our community.
Throughout the year and especially during NIAW, US Fertility’s partner practices — Fertility Centers of Illinois (FCI), IVF Florida, Reproductive Science Center of the San Francisco Bay Area (RSC), and Shady Grove Fertility (SGF) — seek to empower patients through educational resources, physician-hosted events, and support groups all aimed at taking the fear out of fertility care and empowering patients.
“While infertility can be stressful, we encourage individuals and couples to move swiftly to keep time as much on their side as possible,” shares Louis Weckstein, M.D., a physician at RSC. “Female age is the number one factor that affects a couple’s ability to conceive, so it’s extremely important to seek an early consult and diagnosis in order to have the most options available should treatment be necessary.”
“We are here to connect with our patients and provide them with informational resources to offer support and relieve stress,” adds Dr. Weckstein. “Information and knowledge are power, so it is best to evaluate what’s going on and together develop next steps that can help people reach their family-building goals.”
In a recent national survey of 1,200 fertility patients, 70% of patients wished they had consulted a fertility specialist sooner. Many respondents delayed seeking a consultation with a fertility specialist due to uncertainty or fear of the process.
“I strongly encourage patients to learn more about their family-building options by attending our webinars, events, and support groups, so they feel empowered and informed throughout their journey,” shares Jason Bromer, M.D., a physician at SGF. “There are countless sources of misinformation and myths that surround infertility and reproductive health, which is why we devote many hours and resources to helping patients find answers and real solutions. Our webinars offer an open forum to ask questions, hear from experts, and gain access to a team who can address their follow-up questions.”
From April 25 through April 30, 2022, US Fertility partner practices will host several events for information seekers to learn more about their fertility care options:
- IVF Florida hosts a financial webinar to provide insights and answers about paying for fertility treatments
- FCI presents Instagram Lives with FCI physicians, support groups, and other informational events.
- RSC brings awareness to NIAW by organizing in-office participation and social media contests to further foster their patient community.
- SGF invites information seekers to 10 free fertility events hosted by SGF physicians.
“NIAW is an excellent opportunity to bring infertility to the forefront of conversation,” shares Christopher Sipe, M.D., managing physician at FCI. “The best thing we can do as physicians is to raise an awareness that infertility can be a problem and different options are available to assist patients with building their families. Given the technology and techniques available today, the reality is, we can help most people achieve their dream of a family.”
As family planning can be a time-sensitive endeavor, US Fertility physicians encourage patients to seek immediate help from a specialist under the following circumstances:
- Irregular or absent periods
- Prior diagnosis of endometriosis or PCOS
- Two or more miscarriages
- Known structural abnormalities of reproductive organs
- Endocrine (hormonal) disorders such as thyroid disease
- Family history of genetic disorders
- Known male-factor infertility
- Single parents by choice
- LGBTQ+ individuals or couples
US Fertility physicians recommend seeking help from a fertility specialist when a woman is:
- Under age 35 with regular cycles, unprotected intercourse, and no pregnancy after 1 year
- Age 35 to 39 with regular cycles, unprotected intercourse, and no pregnancy after 6 months
- Age 40 or over with regular cycles, unprotected intercourse, and no pregnancy after 3 months
US Fertility physicians invite others to join in the conversation with #NIAW2022 #WeCanAll. RESOLVE’s NIAW 5 Day Challenge encourages the community to spread awareness, virtually, through the collective voice of social media.
US Fertility partner practices complete 29,000+ IVF cycles and 1,000+ elective and donor egg freezing cycles annually. US Fertility celebrated 130,000 babies born and counting, as of 2021.
About US Fertility
US Fertility is the largest, physician-led, integrated network of top-tier fertility practices in the United States, offering comprehensive fertility-market-focused non-clinical, administrative, and technical platforms that help domestic and international practices improve patient outcomes and increase patient access. To learn more about partnership- or affiliate-status benefits, call 301-545-1308 or visit USFertility.com.
