Service lead and Consultant Embryologist at Cambridge IVF, Stephen Harbottle, said despite the disappointment, they are fully committed to working with patients from Peterborough and Cambridgeshire.
Although they will have to pay for each cycle of assisted fertility treatment – instead of getting the first on the NHS - costs are still less than private clinics and every penny generated is ploughed back into the NHS.
Cambridge IVF has a higher than national average success rate of live births per frozen embryo transfer – 34% for women under 40-years-old - and close links with the Trust’s Rosie Maternity and Addenbrooke’s Hospitals means joined-up care, smoothing the “patient pathway”.
Staff are inviting anyone with questions about IVF to drop into the clinic at Kefford House, Maris Lane, Trumpington, Cambridge, between 6pm and 8pm on Tuesday September 12, 19 or 26. No appointment is necessary.
It is emphasised that patients from the East Midlands clinical commissioning area are unaffected by the announcement, and will still be able to access NHS assisted conception services at Cambridge IVF.
Infertility affects one in six people, can have wide societal and health impacts and is categorised as a disease by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Cambridge IVF was opened in December 2011 and sees more than 200 patients a year
Mr Harbottle, said: “While we fully understand the very difficult financial position the CCG is in, we know the decision will be met with worry by our patients in the Peterborough and Cambridgeshire area.
“Our assurance to them is that Cambridge IVF, as the assisted conception service provided by Addenbrooke’s and the Rosie, will continue to provide coordinated fertility treatment and a well-established and recognised patient pathway.
“Anyone who is concerned or has questions should not hesitate to contact us or drop into one of our Tuesday evening sessions.”
About Cambridge IVF
Cambridge IVF is part of the Rosie Hospital and Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. It is staffed by NHS employees and offers care pathways for both NHS and self-funded patients. It is able to offer patients a single, simplified care pathway from pre-conception through to post-natal care in a single NHS team.
Self-funding is different to paying for care privately. Although patients pay a fee for their treatment, fees are kept to a minimum and returned directly into the local NHS economy to support essential treatments and services.
About Cambridge University Hospitals
Cambridge University Hospitals (CUH) is one of the largest and best known hospitals in the country, delivering high-quality patient care through Addenbrooke’s and the Rosie Hospitals. CUH is a leading national centre for specialist treatment for rare or complex conditions and a university teaching hospital with a worldwide reputation.
CUH is a key partner in Cambridge University Health Partners (CUHP), one of only six academic health science centres in the UK, and is at the heart of the development of the Cambridge Biomedical Campus (CBC), which brings together on one site world-class biomedical research, patient care and education. As part of the Campus development, Papworth Hospital is creating a bespoke, purpose-built hospital, and AstraZeneca is building a new global R&D centre and corporate headquarters. The Campus is one of the government’s 11 National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) comprehensive biomedical research centres.
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