The Parents Via Egg Donation Organization: Attention Ivy League Grads: Looking for Egg Donors To Help Create Families

All you need to know for service and support in becoming a parent via egg donation can be found here at PVED.ORG.
http://tpvedo.blogspot.com/2011/11/attention-ivy-league-grads-looking-for.html

BBC News - Egg donor compensation is to triple under new HFEA guidelines

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-15356148

U.S. fertility specialist says hysteria over egg donation unfounded

Dr Stillman of Shady Grove defends the industry.


"He called for a number of universal standards to be put in place over the under-regulated egg donation industries in both Canada and the U.S.


Among them, he suggested a national donor registry that sets a limit on the number of times a woman could donate eggs; standardized informed consent on how many eggs a doctor can harvest; pre and post-psychological and medical checkups and standardized prices for egg donation."


Sounds pretty reasonable and open-minded to me. Very nice to hear from someone from within the industry.


Jennifer Lahl, on the other hand,
Is quoted as saying that ivf "has created a society ok with 'babies without sex'."


She said it when I asked her at the screenings of Eggsploitation on Feb 3rd, that its not just donor ivf that she wants to stop, she would like to see an end to all ivf.

http://www.montrealgazette.com/touch/story.html?id=5444477

From Wendy Kramer: Today's NY Times/Tomorrow the Today Show

One Sperm Donor, 150 Offspring
New York Times. Sept 5/11
http://tinyurl.com/NYT-2011-09-05
 


The Today Show will have me live from home (er....I mean DSR World Headquarters) tomorrow morning (Wednesday). 
They are also filming Ryan tonight in Pasadena for the piece.


Wendy Kramer
www.donorsiblingregistry.com
303-258-0902


"There are only two lasting bequests we can hope to give our children. One is roots; the other wings." - Hodding Carter

A conversation in the UK.Was it right to lift anonymity for egg donors?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/newsdebate/f/t-10236213/p-1/index.html

Steven Snyder via Andrew Vorzimer (The Spin Doctor) Speaking about Reproductive Law Attorney Theresa Erickson.

Worth reading.
http://www.eggdonor.com/blog/author/admin/

Egg Donor Law Suit ~ EGGSPLOITATION? THINK AGAIN~

To those who think egg donors are making tons of $ in the wild west of unregulated reproductive medicine (which it is), think again....This young woman thinks the ASRM guidelines is what prevents them from making more. And that doesn't sound like coercion or exploitation to me either.


The Faculty Lounge: ASRM Seeks Dismissal of Egg Donor Suit

http://www.thefacultylounge.org/2011/07/asrm-seeks-dismissal-of-egg-donor-suit.html

From the UK-BioNews - Improve donor recruitment: listen to donors

While I'm not looking to sugar coat the issue (but looking to usurp the accusations coming in my direction anyway;) I would also look at how patient satisfaction differs across various sectors to see how this compares. Its all relative as they say.
Compensated or not, I expect all medical patients to be treated with kindness, respect and good care. I would be devastated beyond consoling to ever find that someone was harmed due to negligence or out of fierce profit motives on my behalf. The world is not perfect, regulation of the fertility industry may or may not ever happen.
People usually come to any life-cycle decision, such as whether to donate or receive, with a fair amount of thought behind them and expectations going in. Our medical system leaves a lot to be desired by any patient/consumer. To paint a picture and have phrases constantly out there (but just to be clear, NOT in this article from Bio News UK, but in the previous donor article linked to on this blog from the NYTimes Motherlode blog) such as "used and forgotten", does not help anyone. It really doesn't. Least of all, my kids.


http://www.bionews.org.uk/page_102800.asp?dinfo=YNph1tXOsnQ6BdCg7jV2xd6s

July 22, 2011 An Egg Donor Writes to the NYTimes.com Motherlode Blog About Her Experience

http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/07/22/an-egg-donor-responds/

A Baby With Three Mothers - NYTimes.com

A journalist writes a novel about and shares her views in an interview on third party reproduction. She is also the journalist who wrote the Magazine article 3 yrs ago, Her Body, My Baby.

http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/07/20/a-baby-with-three-mothers/

PRACTICES AND PERCEPTIONS FROM THE UK ABOUT IVF AND DONOR CONCEPTION

Jul 10, 2011 8:58 PM
IVF lotto lady Camille Strachan: 'I'll launch games for cancer drugs and care
homes'
Mail Online
The following paragraphs are directly quoted from the article. It seems that the
idea or painting a picture with a broad brush stroke that egg donors are
exploited has taken on a general truthiness.
I assume that the term "units" means clinics and that by "campaigners" they mean
people who are against ivf,or advocates within the fertility system in the
UK,something to that effect.

"Foreign IVF units are not subject to the same rigorous regulation as those
based in the UK and campaigners say women who donate eggs are often exploited.
Clinics abroad also have more relaxed rules that allow single women and those
aged up to 50 to seek treatment.
In the UK, women over 45 are generally turned away by clinics because of poor
success rates. Single people must demonstrate they can provide ‘supportive
parenting’.
But Ms Strachan said: ‘I don’t want to be judgemental. Some women just really
want a child and they’ve been driven crazy by careers or they haven’t met the
right man. I hope to give opportunities to people who would be turned down in
the UK for whatever reason.’"
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2013052/IVF-lotto-lady-Camille-Strachan-Ill-launch-games-cancer-drugs-care-homes.html

JUNE & JULY UPDATE

Sunday June 6th



THE NYC GATHERING AND THE FAMILY BUILDING NETWORK PRESENT:
Creating the Family Story for Parents and Parents-to-be via Donor and Surrogacy.
I want to start off by saying that I am very excited to be meeting both Jean Benward and Theresa Erickson for the first time at the June 6th Workshop.

• Theresa Erickson is an attorney who specializes in Reproductive and Family Law (www.ericksonlaw.net.) and will be speaking on our panel about her own experience as an Ovum Donor. She is an Executive Board Member of Parents Via Egg Donation, PVED.org.

• Patricia Mendell, LCSW, is a psychotherapist in private practice. She is Co-Chair of The AFA, facilitator of their Ovum Donor Seminars, and has written and spoken extensively on fertility, pregnancy loss, disclosure, family, and parenting issues. As a therapist and fertility survivor, Patricia is well aware of the impact decision making choices have on people’s lives. She believes that with the right support system and practical educational tools one can feel confident in tackling any of life’s challenges. http://www.patriciamendell.com, 718-230-9383, 212-819-1778
• Jean Benward, LCSW is a psychotherapist in private practice with over 25 years experience with issues surrounding adoption, infertility, and donor conception. She served as a member of the ASRM’s Mental Health Professional Group Executive Committee for seven years. She is co-president of the Board of Directors of the Sperm Bank of California and has been a consultant on the Sperm Bank’s identity release task force for eight years. Jean is the co-author of the AFA Talking to Kids about Ovum Donation pamphlet. She has just completed a book chapter about Identity Formation in Donor Offspring for a Canadian publisher. She has presented at numerous ASRM symposia and workshops, at the American Society for Bioethics and Humanism and at the Evan B Donaldson Adoption Institute. Her clinical experience includes several years as adjunct professor and clinical supervisor for graduate students in child and family therapy. You can reach her at: officejeanbenward@sbcglobal.net or phone: 925 820 9023.
  This workshop is an expanded version of the very well-received workshop held in November '09. We will have a panel of parents and donor-conceived kids and adults (and a donor!), interactive discussions planned, childrens psychological development info, practical and specific tools will be presented. Please contact pmendell@aol.com or saxel95@aol.com to confirm your reservation.

Additional Events Listing:

Anne Malave-June 2, June 16, June 30-Continuing with Anne Malave PHD, 4 session commitment, Professionally Led Support Group, UWS, 212-787-1304.
Call for Dates-Anne Malave,PHD PG Via DE Professionally Led Support Group, UWS, 212-787-1304.Thurs June 17-Anne Malave PHD, 4 session comittment-6-7pm Professionally Led Support Group in Mineola, 212-787-1304.

Mon June 14, Mon July 12, Tues Aug 3, Mon Sept 13, Mon Oct 18, Tues 11-16, Mon 12-13-The NYC Gathering Womens Dinner in Midtown saxel95@aol.com.
Long Island Resolve Peer-Led Support Group-Third Thursdays Monthly -June 17,July 15,Aug 19,Sept 16,Oct 21, Nov 18, Dec 16.
Sunday-June 27-LI All-inclusive, Eisenhower Park, Lot#2, 10am-1pm.

TPPN-Tues-Jun 8, Sept 14, Oct 12, Nov 9, Dec 14,TPPN, UWS, Professionally Led Support Group, Elizabeth SIlk, LCSW, Nancy Kaufman, LCSW. Esilk2@earthlink.net, NLKaufman@yahoo.com.

Sunday July 11-The Mystic Aquarium, all-inclusive CT and NE Gathering, saxel95@aol.com
Thanks and best to all,
Sara Axel
516-967-7430
http://donorgroupsnyc.blogspot.com/

Regulating Third Party Reproduction in The U.S.

Thanks for the great posts Marna. I started writing this post at 7am ......

The regulations on TPR are what I fear the most. Was it only a year or so ago a bill was voted down in MO that would have had donors listed on birth certificates (same person who proposed taking away school lunches from the poor kids over the summer, let them go work at mc d's and get fed there and work for it)?

Life is and will be hard enough for our kids without having to deal with the idea that their conception was wrong, bad, no longer available because-well,I overslept and haven't had enough coffee yet to go there.I'm on the train,on my blackberry, and I'm just a regular person trying to make a living and get through the day like everyone else. ABC still can't get anyone to talk publicly about spending a tad more for specific (read-better) donor criteria. I'm not what they're looking for,we used a bargain-basement,anonymous clinic shared-cycle donor (who may have been as smart and attractive as the ivy-leaguer...)

So Marna, please rant away because its the only way to get anyones attention. Your statement about the next 10 yrs is interesting because when I started 8 yrs ago another veteran couple at the time told me that in 20 yrs this will all be no big deal and I still hear people say that. Are we 30 pct there or do we still
have a long way to go and a lot of work to do? The technology has advanced much faster than the public mind-set. We are far from the destigmatization and real acceptance that we deserve.

Thanks again Marna!