Stephen Greenhouse, M.D.

Patient Testimonial
At no point in time did I feel hopeless and was always comforted by next steps and kind words. But Dr. Mitchell truly is extra. I felt like her only patient. I can’t speak enough to her kindness. It is my firm belief that she 100000X capable of leading someone to pregnancy success.

I had a wonderful experience with IVF at Shady Grove. The staff were incredibly friendly and supportive throughout the entire process. I am especially grateful for Dr. Sally Vitez, whose positivity and expertise made a significant difference. I couldn’t be more thankful for her and the entire team!

Dr. Davis is the sweetest doctor and Dee is so wonderful I couldn’t imagine going through this journey with any other clinic. Thank you guys so much for everything. If you thinking about doing IVF this clinic is beyond everything you need for your fertility journey.

Dr. Lersten is so kind and explains procedures calmly, which helps relieve anxiety while going through the difficult process of fertility treatments. I am thankful to SGF for helping me build the family I’ve always wanted. I highly recommend SGF to anyone going through infertility.

I cannot express enough gratitude for the exceptional care and support we received from Dr. Selter and the entire team at SGF. From our very first consultation, we felt understood and supported. We are incredibly grateful to Dr. Selter and the team at SFG for helping us start our family.

Dr. Healy is amazing! She was there to help us through every step of our fertility journey. She checked in frequently and was always able to answer any questions we had. Her calm and supportive demeanor brought a sense of peace to my husband and I during these anxious times.

Biography

Stephen J. Greenhouse, M.D., received his medical degree from the University of Maryland School of Medicine. He completed his residency in obstetrics and gynecology and a 2-year fellowship in reproductive endocrinology and fertility at The George Washington University. Dr. Greenhouse is a clinical assistant professor at The George Washington University and the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine. Dr. Greenhouse is board certified in obstetrics and gynecology and reproductive endocrinology.

Read More

Education

  • Residency: Obstetrics and Gynecology, The George Washington University
  • Fellowship: Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, The George Washington University

It is with heavy hearts that we must announce the tragic passing of our colleague, Stephen Greenhouse, M.D. Steve died in an accident on July 28, 2018. He is survived by his wife Robyn, and his three sons, Ryan, Tyler, and Dylan.

If you would like to share a tribute to Dr. Greenhouse with our SGF Community, fill out the form below.

“I think about Dr. Greenhouse all the time. I adored him. He gave me the love of my life. I will forever be grateful to him. My heart goes out to this lovely family. He loved them and talked about them often. – Maria Jordan “

“I just found out Dr. Stephen. I’m in shock in really sad. Dr. Greehouse was my angel and assisted to bring happiness to our family when my second son joined us. You will always be in our hearts Dr. Greenhouse.”

“It’s been 11 years since we went to Shady Grove Fertility. We were blessed with two boys (ages 13 and 10) thanks to Dr. Greenhouse and his staff. Going through infertility treatment is a long and sometimes difficult process. Dr. Greenhouse was always a wonderful doctor to work with! Our family just recently heard about his passing. It was heartbreaking to hear. I hope that he knew how much his work helped so many families! Thank you to all the staff of Shady Grove for the work you do. Dr. Greenhouse, you will always be remembered and truly missed.”

“I am so sorry to hear the passing of Dr. Greenhouse. We live in Kentucky and wanted to do a Shared-Risk program. He was wonderful and understanding through our many phone consultations. He encouraged me to keep trying not to give up. After two failed IVF’s, We were successful with number 3. I can still hear the sound of his voice, sharing the good news with us. We are the proud parents of a perfect 10 year old, and I thank God for Dr. Greenhouse everyday. I will continue to remember his family in prayer!!!”

“I would never have been able to bring my amazing son Dylan into this world without the help, encouragement, patience gentle spirit of Dr. Greenhouse. I’m truly sad because I wanted to see him again but he definitely lived his true purpose while he was here with us and a blessing to many. May his beautiful soul Rest In Peace. – Sefa Laurence.”


“Our condolences and love go out to Dr. Greenhouse’s Family. This world will truly miss such a wonderful, loving, and compassionate person. We heard about the passing of Dr. Greenhouse literally on our son’s second birthday, July 29th – who would not be here if it weren’t for the help of Dr. Greenhouse and his team/colleges. It was a major shock (tears and all) as we were looking forward to seeing him again for baby #2 and sharing pictures of our son. He was a person who had a natural gift for easing peoples worries in just a couple words or sentences – the perfect person for this difficult field. We will now always wonder what he would have said to ease our emotions as we embark on our next IVF journey. Rest in Peace Dr. Greenhouse – I’m sure your watching over all of us.”

“So sorry to hear of my fellow med school classmate’s tragic passing. My heart goes out to his wife, his sons, his patients and to all others who acutely feel the loss of this kind and caring physician.”

“It has been weeks and I am still a mess over Dr. Greenhouse’s passing. If it weren’t for him and his team we wouldn’t have our amazing miracle today. Dr. Greenhouse never gave up on us and tried everything he could think of to get us to a baby (3 IVF cycles). We had just recently started up the process of trying for baby #2 when he passed away. I will forever wonder what may have happened if he gave his recommendations for this cycle but I’m still going to power through. I think he would have wanted that. I keep telling my husband that if this works and we have a boy that I want his middle name to be Stephen. That is how much this amazing man has meant to us. He will be forever missed and always in our hearts.”

“Not only was Dr. Greenhouse a great doctor, he was a great father. I am his oldest son. He taught not only me but my two brothers what it means and takes to be a great person in life. My dad was a one of a kind person, who really did care about everyone he met. He did want he did for a living to give back to people, that was the kind of person he was thinking about others. I know that helping people start a family was what motivated him to work so hard. He gave me and my brothers a lot of life lessons in life, we are going to continue to work hard to make him proud.”

“Our hearts have been so heavy since hearing the news. We loved Dr. Greenhouse and are so grateful for he and his team for helping us have a baby. We are currently working with them again for a second baby. When we met with Dr. Greenhouse to start up again he had said how people tell you but until you have a child you just don’t fully understand the love you have for them. He said he felt that way when having his sons. I am so sad to think about his wife and sons and what a difficult time. We are thinking of his family and his work family. We are deeply sad and can only imagine the impact of his loss for those who were with him regularly. We will also be grateful to Dr. Greenhouse and we are sending our love and condolences to his family and the Shady Grove team. We will forever remember him and miss him.”

“I am so honored to have worked with Dr. Greenhouse and learned so much from him in my 6 years so far at Shady Grove. He is by far the best physician, teacher and mentor I have ever known in my 20 years as a nurse. I am honored to have worked with him and called him my friend. But not only that, I was also so blessed to also call him my doctor. Thanks to him, after 6 years of infertility, he helped me to become the mother of 3 beautiful children. There is no greater blessing and he is the reason for that blessing. To say I will miss him is the understatement of the century. He can never be replaced, but I promise to think of him every day and forever honor him by treating all patients with the same care and respect that he displayed each and every day. I love you Dr. Greenhouse…. Sleep in peace.”

“Dr. Greenhouse and the staff had such great chemistry together, and he had provided us such a wonderful experience with his kindness, knowledge, expertise, and care. He’s always so patient me, when I was in such distress. I hope he knows how much we appreciate him for making our dream come true on becoming parents. Each time we look at our son, we still can”t believe he’s ours! We are so happy that Dr. Greenhouse got to meet our baby as well. He will truly be missed, and he’ll always be in our hearts. Our heartfelt sympathy goes out to you, the staff team at Shady Grove, and wife and sons. May you all find comfort and peace. You’re all in our prayers”

“Steve was a genial and kind friend in college. We were in the same fraternity. He was a year ahead of me, but always looked out for me and others in my class. I’m praying for his family during this difficult time. God be with you.”

“Dr. Bromer and Doris, I wanted to take a moment to offer my condolences to you both for the loss of Dr. Greenhouse. What a terrible tragedy and loss for Shady Grove and the community. It is not lost on me that as today I turn 20 weeks pregnant and am halfway there, that this would not have been possible without Dr. Greenhouse. If you recall, he did our transfer in Rockville. Though my interaction with him was limited, he was a kind, intelligent man who took the time to answer my questions and reassure me through the process. Please know that I am thinking of the Shady Grove family and sending everyone love and light.”

“I heard of Dr. Greenhouses’ passing just want to offer my condolences to SGF and the Fair Oaks office. Dr. Greenhouse was a wonderful doctor and the most compassionate doctor I came across in the “business” (and I met with and worked with A LOT of RE’s). I am happy we were at least able to email him and let him know that we had our baby.”

“How does one put into mere words, the impact that one person can have in your life? I am sure, I will not do this justice but all I can do is speak from my heart. Today, I say goodbye to Dr. Stephen Greenhouse. He was one of the people I admired most at Shady Grove Fertility. To say that it was both an honor to have known him and a privilege to have worked with him is an understatement. He was a tremendous patient advocate, and not just his patients but every patient. He was not motivated by monetary gain, he wanted every patient to have a positive experience at Shady Grove Fertility. He motivated our team to do the best job at all times and to watch him work was awe-inspiring. He was highly accomplished, extremely smart and an awesome teacher. He was a great mentor, he provided our team with informative lunch and learns, and I was one of many who truly adored him. He was a fierce protector of people he cared about and everybody in his inner circle, and he simply cared about everyone and not just because it was the right thing to do. He worked over and above the call of duty. He held his own, he worked in an office surrounded by Estrogen and a team of highly functioning, jovial women and we teased him mercilessly. He had a quirky sense of humor, he loved to laugh, to tell silly stories and he was a practical joker. He started and ended each day by walking through the office to say hello and goodbye and to call him on his cell phone if we needed anything. He was extremely kind and generous, and one of the nicest people you could ever meet. His smile and demeanor were infectious and he was the ambassador of positivity. To say that he will be missed is the understatement of the year. My heart is aching for his wife, sons, additional family members, friends, our Shady Grove family, and his patients and last but not lease for me and my family. May God bless and keep you, dearest Dr. Greenhouse and may your soul and spirit rest in eternal peace. I am forever grateful that our paths crossed. You’ve changed my life and because of you, I will be a better person and the best nurse that I know how to be. I will miss you more than you will ever know. This all seems surreal and I cannot believe that you are actually gone. I remember, one time you said to me, “Be Nice”, just know Dr. Greenhouse your legacy lives on and I will “Be Nice” and honor you for the rest of my days! Much Love, my dear friend!!!!”

“Dr. Greenhouse was truly wonderful to work with – I suffered a devastating late term loss and needed to do IVF for genetic reasons/testing. I worked with a few clinics and several doctors – I consulted with even more. Out of all the people I met with and worked with in the fertility world, Dr. Greenhouse was the most compassionate. He will be greatly missed.”

“Hi Dr. Sasson, I read the news of the passing of your colleague Dr. Greenhouse and I wanted to pass along my condolences. It also really got me thinking how much more than just doctors you are to your patients. I put myself in the shoes of his patients and couldn’t help but cry. You are like angels to us (and I’m not even religious), and your importance in our lives goes beyond the initial act of achieving pregnancy. I’ll never be able to express in words how much you mean to me and my husband. You gave us everything and you will always hold a unique place in our hearts. I know you probably hear this all the time but it really is true. I just thought you should know, since I’m sure you have your days where you need a reminder. You are so important to our little family.”

  • Northern Virginia Magazine’s Top Doctors for Infertility (2012, 2016-2018)
  • Washingtonian’s Top Doctors for Infertility (2012, 2016-2017)
  • Washington Consumers CHECKBOOK’s Top Doctors (2015)
  • American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
  • American Society for Reproductive Medicine
  • Medical Society of Virginia
  • Richter K, Davis J, Carter J, Greenhouse S. No advantage of laser-assisted over conventional intracytoplasmic sperm injection: a randomized controlled trial. J Exp Clin Assist Reprod.2006;3:51-7.
  • Greenhouse S, Castel P, Dean J. Antibodies to human ZP3 induce reversible contraception in transgenic mice with “humanized” zonae pellucidae. Hum Reprod. 1999;14:3593-600.
  • Levy M, Sagoskin A, Stillman R, Widra E, Mottla G, Greenhouse S. The debate continues on “money back guarantees.” Fertil Steril. 1999;72:748-9.
  • Greenhouse S, Stillman R. Cigarette smoking and reproduction effects on fecundity and early pregnancy outcomes. Infertility and Reproductive Clinics of North America. 1998;9:4699-723.
  • Suppression of menstruation in an 11-year-old girl with Glanzmann’s thrombasthenia. International Correspondence Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. 1997;38:3.

Q&A

I was always interested in the sciences and I wanted to help others. The field of reproductive medicine is fascinating and new advances are happening all the time. I enjoy the changes and the challenges of keeping up with new technology and understanding of human reproduction. It is very rewarding helping couples and individuals achieve their goals of having a family.

My father is an ob-gyn, so his compassion and dedication to his patients and practice inspired me. I grew up seeing that; it was a big influence. My father set a high bar and I recall many times being out with him and people introducing us to children he had delivered. They were also so appreciative of his care and understanding. This made me very proud seeing others have such praise for my father. Also, in medical school training, it was Dr. Johnson who got me interested in obstetrics and gynecology. He went from having his own private practice to working at the university hospital because he had a strong belief that everyone should have access to good medical care. He was a good listener and showed respect to all of his patients and staff.

Boxing, hiking, biking, and gardening. When I’m doing any of these activities, they help me to relax. Plus, with the last name “Greenhouse,” how can I not enjoy gardening?

How much I love my dogs, Sunshine and Puddles. My kids often joke that my dogs are my favorite children!

We always strive to be the best and most innovative practice to ensure the best care for our patients. We are leaders in our field that other practices want to emulate. Additionally, seeing employees at SGF grow, learn, and advance in their careers is truly a joy to see. One of the nicest compliments is having former patients who want to join the SGF team.

I want to travel more internationally. I would like to visit Iceland someday. As a nature lover, I’d like to hike more and get certified in scuba diving.

When I know a patient is struggling, I reach out to them personally with a phone call. I want my patients to know that I am available to them not just with advice, but also to listen when they need someone.

While I can be serious about work, I also have a light-hearted side that loves hearing and telling jokes and playing pranks on the staff. I like to be active—a day spent boxing, bike riding, and walking my dogs is a great day! Of course, spending the night on the sofa after all that activity is a great way to end that day!

I want my patients to know that I am available to them not just with advice, but also to listen when they need someone.