According to a recent report, the chairman of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), Lisa Jardine has suggested that the IVF clinics are not doing enough to support and persuade people to donate sperm and eggs. In an effort to raise awareness of sperm and egg donation, Lisa Jardina said that she wanted egg donation to become more obvious as blood donation. She stated that donating sperm and eggs should be something which can be commonly considered by anyone and everyone.
Lisa even stated that the egg and sperm donors must be welcomed at the IVF clinics. The centres must be established to offer a service which would be specifically orientated towards the donors, indicating to the fact that the current situation is not that helpful to the donors.
It has been recognized that egg and sperm donors were not being appropriately cared for and set out to level out this imbalance and from the beginning, intended to alter the impersonality of the donation and offer a really great service for both recipients and donors. However, it is quite obvious that most interested donors find it difficult to discuss donation with others.
The IVF centres and clinics have been started to address such issues. We even know that the donors require a lot more care and support than just being left to go with it in an ambiance which is frequently well out of the normal experience and not organised or designed for the donors. Lisa Jardine rightly points out that the IVF clinics lacks in providing the needed support. Hence, the centres must be established to offer a service which would be specifically orientated towards the donors.
However, there are 2 important considerations that have not been addressed here. First of all, sperm or egg donation is not like giving blood. There may be a small number of people who actually view it in such a manner, but not the majority. It has to be understood that blood and egg donation has far greater implication than donating blood and even entails serious commitment as well as responsibility and is much more intrusive medically, especially for the egg donors. All of these factors can alone make it quite different and is not something which can be talked though.
Moreover, almost nobody has idea about the total amount of the work required to look after and recruit donors properly. In this regard, it is important to make sure that the donors know exactly what is included and that they feel comfortable with each and every aspect of the process of donation. The IVF clinics should make sure that they are not left without contact for long and are also supported fully on the whole journey.
In this whole article there is no mention of the children originating from sperm or egg donation. Witch, as a person originating from sperm donation, i find quite problematic. I am a spermdonor too, i would like to see my donation helping parents who will be open and honest to their children. And not see their conception and biological and medical background as a medical procedure, best to be forgotten.
Children originating from fertility treatment do have rights. All our parents have been people with fertility problems. So i think as a group, donorchildren, have the most knowledge of all parties.
If someone who makes good money out of fertility treatments says it should be like donating blood…well let that just be obvious enough.
Point noted and will update with a new article about babies with donor/Sperm and Eggs.