IVF is a ray of hope for childless couples: MHC CEO

Childlessness was a distressing situation and in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) was a ray of hope for infertile couples as it provided the possibility to produce a child artificially, said renowned Obstetrician and Gynecologist Professor Dr Saqib Siddique on Friday.
Lahore Mid City Hospital (MHC) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr Siddique was also a part of the team that conducted the first IVF operation in Pakistan in 1989. He said after the operation, various religious decrees were issued about the IVF, but the religious voices subsided after being informed of the reality and nature of the procedure.
He said the first IVF, commonly known as “test tube”, baby was born in 1978 in the United Kingdom and since then thousands of babies all around the world have been born using this technique. Siddique said the IVF was a valuable technique for infertile couples. Its success rate was almost 35 to 40 percent, especially if the woman aged under-35.
Siddique said women, being childless, were subjected to greater social stigma and suffering than men in our society. He advised the couples to seek medical help if they failed to bear a child within one year of healthy marriage. “If the wife is over 30, the couple must approach a doctor after six months of trying since the rate of successful conception significantly decreases after 30,” said the doctor.
Siddique said in Pakistan only eight IVF centers were operating and all belonged to the private sector. The government ignored the private sector while making health polices and this lack of cooperation between the public and private sector was one reason why the treatment at private hospitals was so costly.  “The government should make health polices in collaboration with the private sector,” said Siddique, adding that the private health sector consultants were ready to serve the nation free of cost if the government needed help regarding establishing public IVF centers and making health polices. He said the MHC was a state of the art hospital, specialising in gynecology and obstetrics, general surgery, laparoscopic surgery, orthopedic surgery, nephrology, plastic surgery, urology, pediatrics, nursery, skin care and new baby born care centre. The executive committee of the hospital included Dr Shazia Khan, Dr Afan bin Saqib and Dr Khuam Khalil. 23 seasoned consultants, 22 junior doctors and almost 30 nurses were serving different department in the MCH.