NHS ordered to fund IVF for couple after bungles

THe NHS has been told to pay for a Scottish couple to have private fertility treatment after they suffered “unreasonable” delays in their care.

Picture: PA

The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) said NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde should offer the couple £6,000 if they wanted to try to have a baby using private facilities.

It follows a 20-month delay during their NHS treatment during which time they saw their chances of success diminish.

The SPSO report said the male patient – referred to as Mr C – suffered from a serious life-threatening genetic disease which affected his fertility. The couple sought help from the NHS in February 2009 and were referred to the fertility unit that November. But a procedure to retrieve sperm from Mr C was not carried out until July 2011.

In November 2009, hormone tests suggested Mrs C had a reduced ovarian reserve, meaning fewer eggs available for fertilisation. By the time treatment was carried out, this had declined further. After an unsuccessful attempt at IVF, the couple were told they would not be offered a further cycle of treatment using the woman’s own eggs due to the reduced chances of success.

Instead, they were offered further treatment using donated eggs which the couple were not keen to pursue, claiming this was contrary to their rights to access NHS treatment.

Medical advisers told ombudsman Jim Martin it would have been clinically inappropriate to offer further NHS treatment with the patient’s own eggs given the limited chances of success.

The report said: “The adviser said it would have been reasonable to fast track Mrs C (given her low ovarian reserve) in the same way that it was reasonable to prioritise older women.

“The adviser added that the 20-month period from the time of the referral by the professor to the time of sperm retrieval played a significant role in this delay, because once sperm was available the cycle of treatment commenced expeditiously.”

The adviser said the shortcomings in the couple’s care “may well have contributed to the poor outcome”.

The ombudsman said: “It is not possible to replicate the outcome of the treatment which should have been given to Mr and Mrs C in a more timely manner.” The report concluded that the board should apologise to the family and offer £6,000 if they decided to try IVF in the private sector.

A spokeswoman for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said: “We are sorry for the distress caused to this couple and we will work with the couple should they choose to have their treatment privately.

“We have already apologised to the couple, but will be writing to them again offering our apologies for any failures with their treatment. We will also respond to the ombudsman’s recommendations regarding the wider service.”