It's important to ask the right questions to make sure a fertility center or doctor is a good match for you. has a few suggestions of crucial questions every intended parent should ask!

How do I decide if an IVF center is a good fit?
When starting out on your surrogacy journey it is a good idea to talk to a few different fertility clinics and physicians to figure out where they are similar and what their differences might be. It is highly recommended to schedule a consultation with a physician before deciding to pursue a journey with their clinic. During this consultation, it is a great idea to establish what your goals are. By having this conversation you will get a gut reaction to the doctor and the facility. You can see whether or not your personality styles mesh, if they are excited by the prospects of working with you, if they seem passionate about helping LGBTQ people create families. This gut reaction can be a great indicator of whether or not that fertility center is right for you.
From a technical perspective, it is highly encouraged that you find a doctor who is both double board-certified in obstetrics & gynecology alongside reproductive endocrinology. This is information that should be available on their website, but you can always ask the doctor.
Questions about the fertility center:
- "How many cycles of IVF are you performing per year?"
- "How many gestational carrier cycles are you performing per year?"
- "How many egg donor cycles are you performing per year?"
The answer to these questions should be in the hundreds, if not thousands, but definitely not in the tens. You want to go to a clinic that has a lot of experience performing these cycles of IVF.
Questions about the fertility center's team:
- "Do you have a dedicated team that works with patients using egg donors?"
- "Do you have a dedicated team that works with patients using gestational carriers?"
Since your journey will involve both an egg donor and a gestational carrier, you want to make sure that the facility is experienced, prepared, and committed to working with patients who have both.
Questions about the fertility center's laboratory:
- "What percentage of your cases are single embryo transfers?"
- "How new is the technology in your lab?"
- "What is the experience of the embryologists?"
- "How large is the embryology team?"
- "How many cases are you doing per year?"
- "How many cases of pre-implantation genetic testing are you doing?"
A fertility center that has a high percentage single embryo success rate while having a large number of cases per year, shows that they are extremely skilled and knowledgeable. This question is one of the best indicators that the fertility center knows what they are doing and is a great choice for you.
Considering the quality of the IVF lab is always important. It does not matter if you are the best physician in the world, if your laboratory isn't up to par, then the chances of a successful embryo creation and transfer are very low.