In vitro fertilization service warranted, physicians say

Fertility doctors in St. John's say it's time for Newfoundland and Labrador to provide a service to infertile couples that is available in almost every other Canadian province.

Invitro fertilization, they add, can not only help couples fulfill their dream of raising a family, but also address the government's goal of boosting Newfoundland and Labrador's population.

"The population here deserves it and warrants it," said Dr. Terry O'Grady, a St. John's obstetrician and gynecologist who specializes in infertility issues.

In vitro fertilization is available to couples in every province in the country, with the exception of Newfoundland and Labrador and Prince Edward Island.

O'Grady said that exception needs to end.

"If you take our population and then realize that one in six couples has infertility - that's a lot of people in the child-bearing age that are having difficulty," she said.

Thousands of dollars and kilometres

There are physicians in the province who could provide the service, including Dr. Sean Murphy, but hemust tell patients who have exhausted all other options that their chance to conceive a child is both thousands of dollars and thousands of kilometres away.

"The population here deserves it and warrants it- Dr. Terry O'Grady

"You can see the look on the patients' faces, they're just kind of it's hard, sometimes devastating for people," he said.

"They say well, we can probably find the finances to pay for it but I'll need two weeks off work, I have nowhere to stay while I'm there in a different city, I'm away from my family, my friends, my support system."

Most IVF clinics in Canada operate privately. In Quebec, the service is covered under government health insurance, and Ontario is thinking of following suit.

O'Grady's clinic, Newfoundland and Labrador Fertility Services, currently helps about 70 couples go out of the province for IVF treatment.

Emotional and financialchallenges

Kim Pretty and Bob Long, who became parents 10 months ago, agree that a service inside the province would have been a welcome alternative to their decision to pursue treatment at a clinic in Calgary.

"We were fortunate that we could do as much as we did," said Pretty.

"I mean, 13 procedures were a lot to go through ... emotionally, financially. And to have a clinic here would just be amazing. It would make such a difference and make it available to a lot more people."

O'Grady, meanwhile, says that couples and others concerned about IVF services should turn the issue into a political one, by writing to their MHAs.