Third-party IVF programs are strained, some partners are life savers
“Patient experience is worse than it’s ever been in eighteen years, and it’s only getting worse.”
That’s how surrogacy agency owner Eloise Drane described the current state of third-party IVF on Inside Reproductive Health:
As donor eggs, donor embryos, and surrogacy are incorporated more frequently into clinical care, programs are managing a growing number of external participants alongside patients already navigating emotionally demanding treatment. Many third-partry programs, surrogacy agencies, sperm banks, and egg banks simply don’t meet the operational standards required to seamlessly support the patient experience.
Drane emphasized that third-party IVF introduces complexity that clinics and patients experience differently than standard treatment. “This is not just IVF with a few extras. It’s a whole different experience,” she added.
Patient Experience Killer: Patients Forced to Be Their Own Case Managers
Psychological evaluation is a required component of donor and surrogacy arrangements, but many IVF programs rely on traditional referral models that were not designed for scale. Intended parents, donors, and gestational carriers are often referred to local mental health providers with limited fertility-specific experience, creating long wait times and inconsistent evaluation quality.
Clinics frequently encounter delays of several weeks while attempting to schedule compliant evaluations, stalling cycles before medical treatment begins. Shortages in reproductive mental health providers compound the issue, forcing programs to manage multiple referral relationships while monitoring compliance with professional guidelines. In some cases, clinics receive reports that lack the depth or standardization required for complex third-party decisions, adding administrative burden and uncertainty. Patients often enter third-party pathways without structured preparation for grief related to the infertility journey.
Mind 360 was developed to address these psychological screening constraints directly.The platform provides virtual, fertility-focused assessments conducted by PhD-level psychologists trained specifically in third-party reproduction.
By replacing fragmented local referrals with standardized evaluations and ASRM guideline-aligned reports delivered within a short turnaround window, Mind 360 reduces the likelihood that psychological clearance delays will stall cycles early in care. Centralized criteria across intended parents, donors, and carriers provide programs with predictability while giving patients clearer expectations around readiness and next steps.
For many patients, the emotional work of donor conception continues after embryos are created or transferred. Decisions around disclosure, identity, and long-term family narratives often intensify as clinical touchpoints taper off.
Shared Beginnings integrates fertility-specific counseling before, during, and after donor conception, treating emotional support as part of routine care rather than a one-time clearance step. Programs offering continuity report fewer downstream disruptions tied to unresolved emotional concerns.
IPs Still Can’t Find The Right Donors. Only Some Egg Banks Have Sufficient Selection
Screening and securing qualified egg donors remains a persistent challenge for IVF programs, driven by low acceptance rates, extensive medical and psychological screening requirements, and rising expectations from intended parents around donor characteristics. Clinics managing donor recruitment internally must coordinate outreach, screening, cycle timing, and laboratory logistics—often extending timelines and limiting donor options, particularly when donor pools are geographically constrained.
My Egg Bank was established to address these constraints by centralizing donor recruitment and screening through a national frozen egg network. By providing access to pre-screened donor eggs without requiring clinics to duplicate recruitment infrastructure, the model expands donor availability while allowing programs to focus on treatment execution rather than donor sourcing.
Third-party IVF frequently requires embryos and gametes to move between donor banks, laboratories, and treatment centers. Each transfer introduces risk—and patients are acutely aware of what is at stake.
Industry partnerships, including Cryoport’s agreement with Inception Fertility and My Egg Bank, reflect a shift toward continuous monitoring and integrated tracking. Transport security is now seen as necessary for patient confidence because of the visibility that patients have into the status of their specimens.
Third-party IVF is not becoming simpler. Donor demand continues to rise, care pathways involve more external partners, and patient expectations around coordination and transparency are increasing.
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