Truly, as good as it gets. Dr. Sara Pittenger-Reid and RN Laura Rueckheim are absolute stars. Our case was extremely challenging and as a result we consulted with, and/or received treatment from, more than a dozen practitioners in the course of our treatment. This includes pretty much EVERY clinic in the Bay Area, plus several clinics across the US - and even international clinics. So to say that Dr. Reid and Nurse Laura are #1 means they made it to the top of a pretty competitive heap of the very best IVF talent in the world. We finally had success at this clinic, but even more importantly were treated with extreme respect and sensitivity. The entire operation was first class all the way. We also saw other doctors associated with the clinic for certain parts of our care, including Dr.'s Wachs, Sgarlata and Willman - and every single practitioner displayed the same level of sensitivity, caring and competence, so we really felt we were in the very best of hands.
Some supporting details:
1) Chains can have advantages. The Foster City office is part of the national chain of Reproductive Science Centers. While "chain" often translates to lower-quality, assembly-line service, this was anything but the case in our experience, and in fact we saw some major advantages. One - they are able to pool clinical data from ALL of their locations...more data = more evidence-based treatment options. Two - you can receive monitoring at any of their satellite locations. Monitoring is time-sensitive...we found as commuters that having different location options was essential. Downside: surgical procedures are ONLY performed in San Ramon, but since these less frequent, we found it wasn't a big deal to get a hotel room overnight in the area. Also, there are multiple doctors in the practice, which again, means sometimes for time-critical procedures you may need to be OK with a different doctor - but it also means that you have more options and will not get jammed into a schedule that is more convenient for a solo practitioner but less optimal for your body.
2) Attention to office environment. The office itself is nice. Clean, well-appointed, spacious and calm. When you are in a highly charged emotional state, which you will be if you are struggling with infertility, you appreciate this. (Note: the San Jose office isn't as nice).
3) Overall staff quality. Every single person we had the opportunity to interact with - from the front desk to the back office and everything between, displayed a much higher than average level of knowledge, responsiveness, and caring. We cannot say the same thing for MANY other offices we had the opportunity to interact with, who had overworked and confused staff, disastrous scheduling mixups, loss of private medical records, language issues, downright rudeness, lack of interest, and total lack of sensitivity.
4) World-class treatment. Dr Reid and Nurse Laura were 100% in our corner and were willing to work with us. At other facilities we heard things like "you have NO chance!" or "there is only one way of doing things here." Our caregivers listened attentively to our concerns, outlined options, and were willing to consider treatment plans outside the "standard" ones. On the flip side, they were also careful to steer us away from areas they thought had no solid scientific evidence and were likely to be expensive dead-ends.
5) They answer the phone (or call you back, promptly)! It seems obvious. Sadly at many other facilities, it's not.
6) Coordination with acupuncture. We can't prove that it made us successful, but having direct access to onsite acupuncture, coordinated with the procedures, definitely helped make the process itself easier to tolerate.
7) Insurance & billing. They are really good with insurance (in fact are a preferred provider with several carriers), and if your insurance doesn't cover it, are very reasonable to work with. Pricing is fair and transparent and there are financing options. Again this compares with other facilities - a number won't deal with insurance at all, several have pricing that is way above RSC's and/or bill for things like phone calls by the minute, and others will force you to use certain (very expensive) third party providers for certain lab or other services (with whom they might even have economic relationships).
8) Dr. Reid and Laura, as people. This is a really difficult process and I can't imagine a pair of caregivers who could be any smarter, supportive, and downright sweet. Totally agree with the other reviewer who wrote "We wish we could continue our pregnancy with Dr. Reid". We're totally spoiled now and it will tough for any provider to live up to these standards!
9) Success. Proof is in the pudding - after going everywhere else, IT WORKED! read more
