Choose IVF as a career option

By Dr. Shobha Gupta

It is estimated that globally between 60-80 million couples suffer from infertility every year, of which probably between 15- 20 million are in India alone says ICMR Bulletin. This indicates that the country needs the infertility experts to curb this growing problem of infertility. This baby making business is booming at a very fast pace hence the demand for IVF centres and the experts gone up by 70% in last 10 years.   

Being childless is very traumatic for a couple. And Infertility/ Reproductive Medicine is a very fine and sophisticated branch. If you are passionate about providing the best possible care to the highest clinical standards, and you’re excited by the idea of collaborating with like-minded peers and leaders in fertility treatment then one of the revolutionary treatments of chronic infertility is through in vitro fertilization or IVF.  

IVF as a technique has helped countless couples overcome infertility for the last two decades and more. Though initially IVF was developed to treat tubal factor infertility, today this technique is used to treat unexplained female and male infertility as well as immunological problems and several others.  

Almost every hospital in India has a separate IVF unit, there are 1000’s of IVF centres across India. This clearly signifies that choosing the IVF Expert as a career opportunity is a no loss deal. This profession requires a deep understanding of the anatomy, biochemistry and endocrinology of the male and the female. An IVF expert has to be very good at surgical skills as well. Not only this, he /she should be able to take care of the psychological needs of the patients. One can work in any private or government hospital or can opt for self-employment – start a clinic.

Infertility is a fact and it has no cure that
will allow the woman to bear a child. The gamble of IVF is worth taking and it doesn't matter how late you leave starting a family, the message is you can always rely on IVF as an insurance policy.  

The cost of IVF in India is roughly around 80,000 to 3 Lakhs depending upon the seriousness of the case. To become an IVF Expert one has to go through at least 11 yrs of rigorous training. It starts from an admission in a medical college for MBBS (5 and half years), followed by a post graduate degree in Obstetrics and Gynecology (3 yrs). After that is a super specialization in the field of Reproductive Medicine.  

In India, the highest degree in this branch is called FNB (Fellow of National Board in Reproductive Medicine, 2 yrs). To get into this course, one has to qualify an All India common entrance exam and again an exit exam at the end of 2 yrs of training. There are only 11 seats for this all over India.         One has to be really dedicated in this field since it’s not only physical treatment but a lot of psychological counselling as well.  

The remuneration varies widely from a Rs. 50,000 to 1, 00,000 to start with and might go up to any value with passing years. After an MD degree in obstetrics and gynecology, you can do a training programme.

It’s a highly gratifying profession since the joy of parenthood can't be compared to anything else making such couples conceive and have their own child who have been trying for years is the biggest gift one can give. But at the same time this profession also has its own challenges. It requires a very long training period of at least 11 yrs. There is a lot of psychological counselling required especially if an IVF cycle fails. It requires high skills since it’s a very finely balanced treatment and finally, the highest success rate world over are not more than 50% in spite of all the hard work. 

“An IVF Expert plays a very pivotal role in the life of infertile couple. I personally has developed a passion for making the infertile patients conceive. As it is a very noble profession and this is the best gift in this world”