Research and Development of COVID-19 procedures at Shady Grove Fertility

Presenter: Kelsey Calabrese, Public Health Science & Public Policy, Global Public Health Scholars

For my Practicum project, I will be doing research for Shady Grove Fertility Center. Shady Grove Fertility is a practice that specializes in developing treatments for infertility. Some of the procedures Shady Grove does is IUI, IVF, egg donation, and egg freezing. Fertility treatments have been complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Keeping up with the latest recommendations regarding vaccination in regards to pregnancy and pre-pregnancy has been a challenge. For my project I will be looking at the latest data in regards to vaccinations, fertility treatments, and covid-19. I will be compiling a fact-sheet as well as a powerpoint presentation to share my findings. This will help answer frequent questions for patients, as well as keep the medical staff informed with the latest data and guidelines.

12 Comments

Mohammed Ndiaye

May 06, 2021

Do you face any cultural or religious implications from infertility?

kelsey.calabrese

May 10, 2021

Replying to

Hi Mohammed!

I didn't look into any of the cultural or religious implications from infertility. I would assume that this probably varies between cultures and religions. There may be certain stigmas women face when they are struggling with fertility.

Ananya Katepalli

May 06, 2021

Have fertility treatments affected COVID-19 transmission or infection rate within pregnant women? Has this affected maternal vaccination in any way?

kelsey.calabrese

May 10, 2021

Replying to

Hi Ananya,

Fertility treatments take place before a women is pregnant so they have not impacted the transmission rates in pregnant women directly. There have been a few office-isolated COVID outbreaks within the Shady Grove offices early on in the pandemic. The office conducted contact tracing and was able to limit the spread following the initial exposure of some medical staff and patients. There have been some concerns and hesitancy regarding maternal vaccination but it is recommended that all patients who are pregnant or trying to conceive receive the covid vaccine if they are able.

Andrew Ely

May 05, 2021

Did you learn any strategies to reduce vaccine hesitancy among the women at Shady Grove?

kelsey.calabrese

May 10, 2021

Replying to

Among the women at Shady Grove, the best strategy to reduce vaccine hesitancy is to present the science and facts to patients. If patients believe that getting the vaccine is the best choice for them and their child then they will most likely decide to get vaccinated. I also learned during my research that there have been documented cases of a mother who was vaccinated and passed on antibodies to her unborn child. Cases like these might motivate expectant mothers to get vaccinated.

Muhammad Hashmi

May 05, 2021

Have the treatments for infertility gone up in price because of the COVID pandemic or have they remained the same?

kelsey.calabrese

May 10, 2021

Replying to

Hi Muhammad,

The price of the fertility treatments themselves have not change. However, the demand for these treatments has actually increased since the pandemic. The only potential impact on price is if the the treatments fail and another cycle must be completed. Good question!

Kira Mazel

May 05, 2021

What changes in the Shady Grove Fertility offices regarding Covid-19 safety precautions were implemented because of the research you compiled and found? Are the implementations office specific or general precautions that are implemented in many medical offices?

kelsey.calabrese

May 10, 2021

Replying to

Hi Kira!

Many of the in-office safety procedures are office-specific to be in accordance with local covid regulations as well as the most recent CDC guidelines. Most of the research I did was more general guidance for patients such as when/ if they should get vaccinated, potential implications of getting covid while pregnant, etc. Some current procedures Shady Grove is implementing is requiring anyone entering the office to wear a mask. Anyone wearing a neck gator or valve-mask is not permitted to enter the office. All patients are also prohibited from bringing others to their appointments at this time to allow for social distancing.