Please help referral criteria nhs

[ashley1906]

Hi just wanted some advice from couples who live in the south. My close relative is hoping to be referred for fertility treatment. Her Gp is carrying out all the base line tests like sperm test her ultrasound scan and bloods.

The sperm test has now taken 6 months ! and they still don’t have a result due to the lab messing the sample up. They have now told her she has to wait three months for another test date.

My question is shouldn’t the Gp refer the couple to a gynaecologist at a local hospital or clinic rather than carrying out these tests? Her Gp has said they can’t be reffered untill this is carried out.

I have had ivf myself and this wasn’t the case I’m based in the north of England.

Any information will be appreciated.

[Emlou87]

I’m south London and my other half had to do a sperm test through the GP before we were referred. X

[soccerkt6]

Same as Emlou. I’m in Oxford and we had to go through our GP for my bloods and ultrasound and my husband’s semen analysis. Once that was all sorted, we got referred to a reproductive specialist at our local hospital who ordered my HyCoSy and, ultimately, referred us for IVF.

A three month wait for a semen analysis is absolutely ridiculous though. Can they pay for one privately and ask their GP to use that for the referral? xx

[try2020]

Hey can you do it privately? We did a fertility assessment privately and with the results of those got on the NHS list, we didn't want to wait. Good luck x

[ashley1906 in reply to try2020]

Hi thank you for replying. Can I ask did your Gp accept the reports? And where did you get the assessment done from?

[try2020 in reply to ashley1906]

Hi yes I asked our GP specifically if they would accept them and they said if there was a diagnosis they would. We did it at a private clinic in Scotland but they have them all over, I'll DM you 👍

[Babydust21]

Hey, we're based in London. Mentioned to my GP we were ttc for a few years with no success, he referred us straightaway without any tests. All the tests were carried out by the fertility clinic a few months later before starting IVF. Hope this helps, good luck x

[IVFmumma in reply to Babydust21]

We were essentially the same - I'm in London too. The only test the GP did was a progesterone blood test for me but we had no hassle being referred. We had a few months wait for our initial consultation at the clinic though and things were a bit slow for a few months.

[Hidden]

I think it totally depends on what area you live in and what the individual CCG will do. We were in Bristol and all initial tests had to be done through GP, sperm sample was done through a local fertility clinic which the GP referred us to. We got fed up with the waiting and the fact not all tests were covered like AMH, so ended up going privately for all the tests and for IVF. I understand this isn’t an option for everyone, we just wanted to feel in control of something! I’m really glad we did in the end as Covid then hit and although our first cycle got delayed by a few months I think it would have been much longer if we were NHS.

[KLADY123]

We were referred to the fertilty clinic and at our first consultation the consultant booked all my initial blood tests and told my partner to get a sperm test from his GP but to bring the results to the next appointment. Was all done in a couple of weeks.

6 months does not seem right at all. A private test could be done in days, of course only if financially viable, if so might be worth checking if the GP will accept those.