LI IVF feedback? UPDATE w/ question

I'm up in the air now and thinking about using them. Even if NSUH does take my insurance, i just realized that since LI IVF is a center of excellence, I wouldn't have to pay any copays until when/if i get PG, but i have a few questions for those that go there.

- How has your experience been so far?

- Have you had PG success with them yet?

- I want to go to their Lake Success location, but i read that for somethings you have to go to Melville. Do you know how often that is? (I'm in Queens, so i don't really want to trek out there)

- Are they very proactive?

- Do you have to wait long for/at appointments?

Thank you!

UPDATE
I made an appointment with LI IVF and cancelled the one i had with NSUH. I read alot of posts mentioning how the copays could really add up, so i wanted to take advantage of their COE status. Now i have another question.

Does anyone see Dr. Brenner? I know i've read some posts on here about him, but just looking for any other feedback you may have.

Message edited 8/26/2008 4:33:33 PM.

Re: LI IVF feedback?

- How has your experience been so far?
I was a patient at LI IVF for 8 months and was very happy with them. I am a patient of Dr. Brenner's. I think the nurses and staff (for the most part) are very understanding and supportive.

- Have you had PG success with them yet?
I am currently 8 weeks pregnant after my first IVF cycle (tried clomid, injectables, and then moved onto IVF).

- I want to go to their Lake Success location, but i read that for somethings you have to go to Melville. Do you know how often that is? (I'm in Queens, so i don't really want to trek out there)
I primarily was a patient of their Lake Success office. The only times I had to go to the Melville office was on the weekends (it's the only office open) and for procedures (IUIs, IVF).
- Are they very proactive?
I think they are - I was also an advocate for myself and stated exactly what route I wanted to take. We decided to move onto IVF at a pretty fast rate and Dr. Brenner supported our decision.

- Do you have to wait long for/at appointments?
For your initial appointment, there might be a little wait. But once you're a patient, getting an appointment in a timely manner isn't a problem.

HTH!

Re: LI IVF feedback?

I just started with LI IVF (Dr. Brenner) last week. I am very happy so far. I got an appointment quickly- about 2 weeks after I called. We had no wait at the appointment and all the staff were very nice and supportive. Dr. Brenner was great and we are comfortable with the direction we're going in.

They did say that the Melville office is where we can go for labs on the weekends and I believe procedures are done there. It's not really that far from Queens, it's right off the expressway. Good luck with your decision.

Re: LI IVF feedback?

TY!

Re: LI IVF feedback?

- How has your experience been so far?

Wonderful - I have zero complaints

- Have you had PG success with them yet?

Yes, but I lost my son due to IC, had nothing to do with them.

- I want to go to their Lake Success location, but i read that for somethings you have to go to Melville. Do you know how often that is? (I'm in Queens, so i don't really want to trek out there)
You definitely have to go to Melville for IVF transfers and retrievals. Also, if you need blood and/or sonos on the weekends - Melville is the office.

- Are they very proactive?
Yes, they will tell you what the next step is. I spent a year at another clinic just doing IUI's and when I went there, he suggested a lot of further testing and we ended up going straight to IVF.

- Do you have to wait long for/at appointments?

Aside from the weekends, which can get pretty crazy with the Melville office being the only one open - I've never had to wait more than 10-15 minutes to be seen.

Re: LI IVF feedback? UPDATE w/ question

Thank you for the responses! I made my appointment w/ LIIVF today. I'm going to see Dr. Brenner. Does anyone else see him?

Re: LI IVF feedback? UPDATE w/ question

saw your post and thought i would sign up and give you some info.

I believe you will be very happy with Dr. Brenner and the entire staff.

Wife had 3 cycles first and third (just recently) were BFP and second one was BFN....We have been very happy with the care of Dr. Brenner and KEnigsberg, we do not know Dr. Droesch very well but she did perform our last retreival...you should know that whoever your doctor is it may not be the doctor that performs your retreival/transfer...for example for us our first 2 cycles Dr. Brenner was the doctor who set up the treatment, but KEnigsberg performed the retreival and transfer, and on thei last cylcle Kenigsberg set up the protocol but Droesch did retreival and brenner the transfer....they are all good.

We are experienced with them and even with our success and failures we were very comfortable that they made the best decisions for us.

To summarize Dr. Brenner with a quick story...on our last cycle Dr. Brenner performed the transfer, we got the call from dr droesch with our BFP!! but the next day dr brenner called from his car just to congratulate us!!

so good luck I think you will be happy

Re: LI IVF feedback? UPDATE w/ question

While Dr. Brenner is not my primary doctor there, he has done a few of my sonos and 1 of my IUIs. He's very nice.

Re: LI IVF feedback? UPDATE w/ question

I see Dr. Brenner. My DH and I really like him. He is easy to talk to and we feel comfortable asking him plenty of questions. We've been seeing him since April and I am now 5 weeks pregnant.

ETA: Just to add to what PP had said, the nurse called w/ our beta and BFP and a few hours later Dr. Brenner called to congratulate us as well.

Message edited 8/28/2008 4:01:24 PM.

Re: LI IVF feedback? UPDATE w/ question

Although Dr. K is my doctor, I just had a sono done with Dr. B and he was very nice. He explained everything, wasn't rushed and I felt really comfortable. Either Dr. K or Dr. B would be a great choice.

Re: LI IVF feedback? UPDATE w/ question

I didn't respond to your post the other day b/c I was in a bad place mentally- and didn't want that to impact my answer.
Now that my head is clearer- I will respond. I go to LI-IVF. I am a patient of Dr. K's and think the world of him (though I would've thought the world and the galaxy if he called me at all during these past 2 weeks while I was in beta hell - though in all fairness he was on vacation and he was checking in on me daily so I really can't complain).
Dr. B is SO nice and has (IMO) a TREMENDOUS bedside manner! He did my IVF transfer and he called me twice this past weekend and was the one who convinced me to take the methotrexate shots (like I had a choice). I seriously considered switching to him for my next cycle based on that alone- b/c I need to be treated a little more fragile right now.
This was my first cycle at LI-IVF and I think their staff is great and on top of things..... they have a great system. HTH! GL!!!

Re: LI IVF feedback? UPDATE w/ question

Thank you so much When i called to make my appointment the receptionist asked me my name and date of birth 3 times. By the third time, i said my name is STILL xxx. I think i'm understanding, but talking to her was very frustrating. She was very nice, but i was concerned that if she wasn't even hearing my name (or acknowledging that we just covered that twice), what did that say about the office? (i'm usually not high strung, but i'm sure you all understand how it's so different in this situation). However, I'm glad to hear that was an exception and that the Dr's are great. I figured i would see other doctors during the course of our time there and i'm fine with that (i've always gone to practices, not solo doctors, so i'm used to it), but it's nice to hear good things about all of them.

Thank you for taking the time to share your experiences with me. I know you've probably answered these questions more than anyone would care to, so thank you for extending yourselves to someone that's new to the process.