The International IVF initiative is a worldwide non-profit education project for the Assisted Reproductive Technologies community, sharing scientific and practical and knowledge for Embryologists, Reproductive Scientists, and anyone working in the ART community. Each episode will be sharing insights into the world of IVF, along with profiles of legends within the world of ART, the latest news and wisdom from our community.
Welcome to another Beyond the Webinar episode of the I3 Podcast, where we're joining the after party which followed the Embryo Biopsy webinar which you can view in full here (https://ivfmeeting.com/products/session-109-embryo-biopsy-level-up). Nearly 1k people joined the webinar which focused on the practice of blastocyst biopsy with experienced biopsy practitioners. It was a fascinating conversation highlighting the practicalities when performing this delicate technique in the routine IVF lab, giving valuable advice on the methods, troubleshooting and tips. In this episode you will join the moderators Thomas Elliott and Dr. Tony Anderson along with speakers Debbie Venier, Dr. Charlene Alouf and Dr. Bec Holmes and members of the I3 team all discussing how it went
What was discussed:
Re-biopsy something every embryologist possibly has questions on - challenges around rebiopsing
TBR’s - when the embryo doesn’t seem worth it
When TBR’s are planned according to when the lab has time
The impact on a lab that is short staffed.
Cost implications
Data available on rebiopsy age vs aneuploidy/ euploid
Grading
Read rates - spectrum and how labs vary
40% of embryos tested have aneupoliody and the impact this has on implantation
Should these test be done on all patients?
The impact on Day 5 or Day 6 biopsy and implantation rates
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5 Dec 2022
IoT, Quality and Gen Z
Welcome to another episode of the I3 podcast, where once again we go Beyond the Webinar to hear the discussions that followed two sessions recently shared with the I3 community.
First up you will hear the panel's thoughts after the session called Quality Inside - discussing quality measures that are evident in IVF clinics across the globe and best practise- highlighting new technologies to help embryologists to obtain a robust quality control (QC) system for lab equipment and environment. Speakers included: Dr. Jean Popwell, Cassie Miller, Dr Mina Alikani, Dr Thomas B. (Rusty) Pool, Dr Gerardo Mendizaba Ruiz, Dr Michael Skumial and Dr. Alison Campbell and Ineabelle Collazo
Then you will hear the comments following the session titled ‘Mind the [generation] gap’ which focussed on showcasing the new demographic entering the ART workforce, the digital native, Gen Z and looked at how with an ageing workforce what will attract new talent to the profession and how best do labs work with different generations having different knowledge in terms of systems and process.
Quality Control in the Cloud
Watch the full session here (https://ivfmeeting.com/products/copy-of-session-105-quality-inside)
What was discussed:
Cyber Security issues
The impact that has in the lab & How labs can overcome the risks - guy around 7 min
Security within labs can be restrictive - separate platforms have to be used for software that is being implemented.
How you have to think about every way software is implemented - Hacking can happen through Ultrasound machines
What could happen if QC data is connected to patient success - how Dr Google could act against the lab with a patient seeing data and thinking something wasn’t done correctly?
You can anonymise systems
Should data from an embryoscope be part of the medical record? Extra info that is discoverable could be misinterpreted. How sometimes too much information can be detrimental.
Considerations about choosing a product that is customizable, so not everything goes to the EMR.
Now we’re going to hear the panelists from the Mind the ‘Generation’ Gap which was hosted by Veteran senior embryologist, lab manager and mentor, Dr Kimball Pomeroy and former embryologist and current educator Huey Huynh, Panelists Savannah Palmer, Toyin Ojo and Angela Regan and Presenters: Fran Farlie Radhika Kakula-vara-pu and Chloe He
Watch the full session here (https://ivfmeeting.com/products/session-106-mind-the-generation-gap)
Discussion about obstacles affecting the LGBTQ+ community
Questions were raised about climate emissions from IVF and the importance of labs being sustainable.
Explanation of ‘Population Matters’ - Lobby group who are targeting students at Universities to think about their decision to have a family.
Discussions about population size issues - the world population is 8bn people, double since 1974. The rate we’re expanding is significant.
Discussion of how AI can help with more insight into Embryos
The difference in software usage amongst generations - gaps in knowledge
Importance of efficient databases/systems to ensure ‘user experience’ works for everyone, cross-generation.
Issues around finding new embryologists around the world - retractions on people practicing in different countries.
Better funding for pipeline of talent in the UK
Importance of awareness raising of what Embryology actually is - to attract more talent
Lack of societal...
25 Oct 2022
Best Practices in Cryostorage
Welcome to another Beyond the Webinar episode, following the I3 session discussing Best Practices in Cryogovernance. The panel discussed how they are dealing with issues concerning the problems faced by clinics around the world with the increasing rising inventory of frozen specimens after IVF. The session was moderated by Senior Embryologist Dr. Mina Alikani, President of Alpha Scientists in Reproductive Medicine and British patient advocate and podcast host of The Fertility Podcast Natalie Silverman who was joined by an experienced panel consisting of a senior embryologist from Europe, Christianna Makri, lab managers from two large UK clinics Charissa Watchorn and Anastasia Mania and the vice president of clinical strategy of the TMRW group, embryologist Cynthia Hudson.
The speakers were Dr. Michael Collins, Glenn Proctor, Dr. Steven Katz and Robert Perkinson. We'd like to give a huge thank you to our session sponsor TMRW Life Sciences (https://www.tmrw.org/) and you can watch the full session here (https://ivfmeeting.com/products/session-104-cryogovernance-vi?_pos=2&_sid=3202a93a9&_ss=r)
What was discussed:
Different regulations around the world - what they mean
Common worry globally worry about cryostorage amongst embryologists
How bio-repositories in the UK are on standby for smaller clinics or partner clinics locally which have reciprocal agreements
What is going into cryostorage, it’s not just embryos it’s also eggs, so a 20yr old might not want them for a decade.
How patients are encouraged to discard or donate material because they don’t want to pay, but if there are no storage fees they might just forget about them
How the industry needs to think about better communication, so the clinic is clear to patients about the process - roles and responsibilities. Guidelines with the paperwork about - being able to contact patients etc to help with the issue of orphaned embryos.
Better engagement is needed with the patient to give them the perceived value of what they have in storage
What protections are in place in the US and the issues that the industry faces
Language used such as 'discarding' embryos creates issues for patients as it can be triggering and how patients can bury their heads in the sand when not knowing what to do with their frozen gametes.
Could there be a monthly fee, rather than the yearly storage fee?
Coverage that clinics have for the storage and the attention that is paid to the tanks
What can go wrong with Dewers - how problems are managed, how they are monitored.
Warranty on Dewers
Explanation of how TMRW storage process works - it’s a specimen management software tool
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Make sure you keep an eye on the upcoming events at IVFMeeting.com (https://ivfmeeting.com/collections/coming-soon) for the follow-up to this conversation
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Inside a recent episode
Return to Cairo
Published 30 Sept 2022 · Transcript excerpt
[…] The dishes are being exposed to and things like that. So. Might be another thing to mention. So, Jehan, something that. We're working on with Lehigh University is using CFD or computational fluid dynamics to address exactly what you're saying. So you have your final diffusers. You have your returns. […]
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