UCH commences low cost IVF services

University College Hospital (UCH) Ibadan has inaugurated its N200million in vitro fertilisation (IVF) centre to provide low cost IVF services to infertility couples in Nigeria.

UCH”s Chief Medical Director, Professor Temitope Alonge said this centre, which is the biggest in Nigeria, will also be training doctors to provide fertility treatment.

He stated that IVF treatment at the centre will cost less than N750, 000 in contrast to other infertility centres in the country that charge at least N1.5 million

Professor Alonge declared that about that 20 per cent of Nigerian couples are infertile and that the problem had led to many couples suffering in silence and had broken homes because they cannot have children.

He said the hospital, through women’s market programme in Access Bank has now made infertility treatment affordable and accessible to all couples with infertility problem.

According to the CMD, “they have a special programme that relates to women’s health and part of which is fertility treatment. They actually offer facilities for women to undertake IVF.

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“We know that the cost of fertility care is not easily affordable by many clients. They agreed to have a low cost IVF at not more than N750, 000 so that when the loans are given they do not have to add to it.”

Head, Women Banking, Access Bank, Mrs Ada Udechukwu stated that the bank decided on the intervention because infertility was a critical issue that limits women’s wellbeing.

She stated that in a survey by the bank, many women rated infertility as highest because it was very expensive and difficult to tackle because of the cultural bias on assisted reproductive technology to ensure pregnancy.

Mrs Udechukwu said that the banks’ maternal health service support product aimed at helping women access quality healthcare at a discounted financing had achieved 56 babies through IVF in Nigeria and four other babies in Ghana and Rwanda since it commenced in 2014.

According to her, “We want to see many lives imparted, we want to be able to assist their choice of motherhood and parenthood. At Access bank, we do much more than banking. We actually want women to grow. We want to see them happy.”

Professor Sina Oladokun, a fertility expert and gynecologist in charge of the IVF centre said patients with infertility issues were before now sent to other hospitals to access.