Fertility referral

We have a 5 month old through a successful first cycle of IVF at Salisbury hospital on the NHS. ❤️ Can't remember exactly how long certain things took but my doctors along with Salisbury hospital were great at getting things moving. Happy to try and answer any questions you might have x

Hey lovely, we saw a doc feb 2023. Referred straight away. Had a letter through the post end of feb saying they will contact me by 5th of April will an appointment. We got our first appointment the 7th of may 2023. And was booked for a hycosy the next cycle we were meant to have a follow up in June but we got pregnant.

Salisbury hospital fertility are fantastic. I know you can also phone and chase up the referral x

Thanks so much both for your replies. That’s re-assuring to hear good reviews on the process 🙂 Congratulations both for the pregnancy and baby 🎉

I assumed that I would be referred to Bournemouth hospital (or Poole) and therefore didn’t really ask my GP about which hospital I might get referred to.
Are you both based in Dorset? If so did you have to ask to be referred to Salisbury instead of Dorset hospitals?

Dorset residents have the choice of Salisbury, Southampton or Yeovil I believe. IVF isn't offered at Poole or Bournemouth x

Yeah I’m in Christchurch Salisbury hospital was the closest ivf / fertility hospital

Unfortunately for some reason my referral landed at the gynaecology department of Bournemouth hospital instead of any fertility clinic . 😔

I had managed to book an appointment soon using the NHS app when there were cancellations but unfortunately the hospital just called me to say they’ll cancel my appointment and that I shouldn’t try to book any appointment myself for now as they only take urgent care on and that the waiting list for non urgent care at the moment is around 12 months to have a first appointment. 😩

Hi Alice, I was referred by my GP last year and similar to you, it was to the gynaecology dept in Poole. My understanding is that they operate a fertility clinic, but it’s limited. They can do all your pre checks and some treatments but if you move to IVF, you then go to Salisbury. When my referral was made, it was a 3 month waiting list to hear back from them (I could check this on NHS APP) but the day it was due to be reviewed by they rejected my referral because my GP office had missed off my BMI on the letter. This was obviously really upsetting because it just feels like everything takes so long. When that happened I asked my GPs referral person to direct my referral to Salisbury. I then had an appointment with them sent to me within a couple of months. It’s such a tricky process to navigate and no one seems to be able to just tell you what to expect. I felt so alone going through the journey. 1/2

2/2 thankfully, I found out that I had private health insurance that covered some fertility treatment so I was able to go private and went to Wessex Fertility in Ashley Cross - they were incredible and my initial appointment cost approx £375 - If you think private might be an option for you I would 100% recommend and to be honest, I found that initial appointment so helpful that might even be worth it to help you understand your options. That fee included my initial tests too (but I knew why I wasn’t getting pregnant). I fell pregnant naturally the week after I went and I’m sure it was because of having had a stress lifted. Wishing you all the luck in the world xx

Hi Lisa, thank you for your message, I contacted my GP recently to ask for the referral to be directed to Salisbury and they agreed but I think they got it wrong as I can see now in the app that I have a referral for Poole hospital, I’ll need to call them again to get them to send it to the right place 😩

I have private health insurance as well but I think unfortunately anything related to fertility is excluded. I was able to see a private gynaecologist though so I had already some tests done but she can’t do any more for me know.

I’m Insured with Axa, through my employer, who enhance the cover to ensure all employees have access to a certain level of fertility treatment, which is amazing and I am so grateful for.

oh that sounds so frustrating and I remember how upsetting it was to know how important this is for you and your partner and basic admin just not being done correctly. What I would say is that Salisbury Hospital were super helpful when I called them (you have to call the Infertility Clinic) to confirm they’d received my referral and that it was in process. Also, Salisbury hospital don’t operate in the order they receive referrals but actually prioritise them, so you may find that you’re seen sooner based on your circumstances. If your insurance is through your employer, I would say it would be worth checking with your HR dept if you have a policy that covers fertility treatment. My insurance company initially said no, but then I found out my employer enhance my cover and everything from there was covered. Wishing you so much luck with your next steps xx

For anyone who might come across this thread for information, I just received a letter for a first video call appointment with Salisbury hospital mid July