Why you should always record details of your medical treatment while doing an IVF treatment cycle?
When more patients do an IVF treatment cycle, they expect their doctor to take care of all the medical technical minutiae and keep all the records for them. At the end of the cycle, they often have no clue at all as to what was done, and this is especially true for those clinics that refuse to share the original medical records with the patient, and just give them a treatment summary, which often hides information, because it doesn’t provide key medical details, such as photos of the transferred embryos.
In fact, many clinics refuse to part with the medical records, claiming they are the clinic’s property ( which is a lie !). Doctors do this because they don’t want their patients to go to another clinic, and when patients realize this, it leaves a very bad taste in their mouths, because they have no idea what the doctor did, and whether it was done properly or not.
As a result, when the cycle fails, and they need to start a new IVF cycle in a new clinic, they have no basic information as to what happened in the first cycle. This also makes it very hard for the new IVF doctor, who is deprived of valuable information which could be used to maximize your chances of getting pregnant in your next cycle.
This is why it's very important that you keep detailed records during your IVF treatment, irrespective of what the clinic does. This acts like supplementary documentation because you will often start forgetting the details of your treatment after some time. Think of this as your personal journal or diary, where you can also record your feelings and hopes! Making notes proactively on a daily basis during the treatment cycle will help you remember everything that was done. Not only will this assist you in becoming more proactive and better organized during your IVF treatment, but you can also ask questions before the next scan and blood test to make sure that your treatment is progressing as planned. Good doctors want patients who are well-organized and well-informed – it’s only bad doctors who try to hide information from their patients!
Good doctors will happily share your medical records with you and will do this proactively and routinely, so you are in control and have peace of mind knowing you have received high-quality medical care.