When fertility doctors face potential disciplinary action, it is not easy for patients to find out. The Investigative Journalism Bureau found nine doctors — several working for the same company — with current or past restrictions on their licences.
Doctors with Restrictions at NewLife Fertility
Four doctors who work with NewLife Fertility have had restrictions put on their licences. The Investigative Journalism Bureau (IJB) analyzed the backgrounds of more than 260 physicians who work at clinics known to offer egg freezing, in vitro fertilization, and other fertility services. It found nine doctors who had current or past restrictions placed on their licences by provincial regulatory bodies. Eight of these specialists still work at clinics in Ontario or Quebec, but the IJB found no mention of their disciplinary issues on the clinics’ websites.
Five of these doctors are or were employed by NewLife Fertility. NewLife Fertility CEO and medical director Dr. Samuel Solimon said the issues faced by its physicians with Ontario’s medical college “are public and are not related to our clinic. These are issues that have been addressed by the college and resolved.”
Other Clinics Involved
A sixth physician, who works at Lakeridge Fertility east of Toronto, was cautioned twice by the regulatory body for poor judgment in the deaths of two babies during labour. Lakeridge said the involvement of Ontario’s medical college in the doctor’s case referred to obstetrics and had “nothing to do with” gynecological practice. There were “no concerns” over the doctor while she worked at the Lakeridge facility, said Dr. Andrew Browning, the clinic’s medical director.
A physician at Clinique OVO in Quebec was disciplined for removing a patient’s fallopian tube without consent. OVO did not respond to repeated requests for comment. A doctor now at IVF Canada in Toronto was cautioned for failing to protect a patient’s confidentiality. IVF Canada did not respond to requests for comment. And a physician at a different Toronto-area clinic was disciplined for improperly allowing an egg donor to learn the identity of the woman who received her egg.
Lack of Disclosure
Patients who attend NewLife Fertility’s 10 clinics, stretching from Hamilton to Markham, Ont., may not know about the past infractions or alleged infractions of some physicians who work at some of its sites. Although such restrictions are posted online by the regulatory body overseeing Ontario doctors, fertility clinics — including those that market egg freezing — are not required to post this information on their own websites.
Fertility Inc. is a five-part series by the Investigative Journalism Bureau that delves into the Wild West of the egg-freezing industry, its aggressive marketing, the high costs, and the chances of an eventual successful pregnancy.
