Chelsea and Westminster IVF waitlist

[pandapopk]

Hi has anyone had ivf funded through the NHS at Chelsea and Westminster hospital? How long did the process take? I’ve been waiting 6 weeks since I got referred. Seems like this is going to be a slow process! Would love to know how long it has taken other people so I know what to expect!

Even with the referral it takes a while until you get in and start the process.
We were referred in August and didn't get an actual appointment until Dec. If there is a bank holiday expect delays etc.
It is not a personalised service so prepare yourself, do your own research before going in.
Good luck!

@pandapopk C&W were really quick for us and that was this time last year. They're super helpful if you give them a call, and always call for cancellations which they were also really patient and helpful with. I think our funding came through after 3/4 weeks tops. The initial appointment they gave us was the biggest shock as it was 5 months ahead of the referral but I called and they had a cancellation the next day so we essentially skipped the 5 month wait.

We got pregnant just before starting our round so didn't end up going through the whole process with them, but very close to.

Hi there, I’m in the same boat!
they applied for funding around 7 weeks ago and still haven’t heard anything? Did you hear anything back yet? how long did it take? thanks

Hi Amy
I am about to start with my IVF cycle at chelsea, my timings so far have been:

• Doctor referred Jan
• First appointment to get referred to council for funding May
• Letter saying we got funding June
• Call with doc to confirm funding June
• First nurse appointment August
• Starting September

i think everyones timing is different and i think it is also dependent on your case/ reason for infertility if yours will be a similar timing to mine (my AMH is super low) When we rang up once we had funding to see if we could speed things along they originally said that there wasnt any space to start in 2023... but then they managed to find something when we spoke to the doctor... my best advice is to keep calling to see if you can get an update or a cancellation appointment to try and get things moving as quick as possible!

Hope that helps!
xx

Thank you so much for the info!
my GP referred me to gynaecology department in May. Had my first call with one of consultants in June to which they said they’d apply for funding and haven’t heard anything back since then! I also have low AMH. I’ll just call them again to see what’s going on! Thank you again! Wish you all the best xx

Hi @pandapopk hope you don't mind me jumping on here. Just wanted to say thank you for sharing your timeline. I have my first appointment over the phone with them next week so it's really useful to have a rough timeline.

Would you mind telling me how they check you are non smokers? Breath test or blood? My husband has stopped but is out with friends this weekend and worried he may have a slip up.

Hope your cycle is going well/went well! Fingers crossed it's a successful one. 🙏🏼

@Amy012 hope you have heard back re funding by now and wishing you all the best with your cycle too.

Hiya! Yes I did find out a few weeks after! I’m starting my injections next week 🎉
they didn’t actually do any tests with us, you just sign the consent forms today that you don’t smoke! Are you at Chelsea and Westminster also? X

@Amy012 that's great news! Wishing you the best of luck with the whole process,fingers crossed for you 🤞🏽
I'm with Chelsea and Westminster too, just waiting to hear back about funding atm.

Good luck with everything! I’d just advise that if you don’t hear from them within a few weeks give them a call. X

Hi all, jumping on to see how everyone here is getting on?

My NHS consultant is referring us this week, but told us it moves very quickly and we might be seen straight away as the local clinics are all fighting each other for referrals (we’re Wandsworth and had four to choose from)… which doesn’t seem to line up with what you have all experienced!

I had asked if we could keep doing ovulation induction while we wait, she said yes but might not be time as IVF could get started quickly. She also said we definitely wouldn’t have time to do private IVF while we wait!

Interested to see what happens next…

I am still waiting on my appointment, they said there was a bit of a backlog with funding approval but my funding has now been approved and I should expect an appointment letter through for sometime in January.
As soon as I get my letter (they said December) I will try and call for a cancellation just in case I can get one

Good luck hope your appointment comes through quickly!

hey!

yes mine moved pretty quickly once the referral for funding and funding came through. Only thing I’d say to bare in mind is that your body may not be ‘ready’ or your cycle might not be aligned to the timings of the clinic so you may have to wait a month or two to start (which can be really frustrating!). What I mean by that is the clinic was ready for me to start but I had to wait until my period came and because it had just come i basically had to wait another 28days to start.

just wanted to let you know so you are aware, I know the wait is awful but it will be worth it!

fingers crossed for you and good luck!

xxx

@Sierra26 any news on your appointment? Just wondering if you had managed to get one as quickly as your consultant thought.

I called them today to chase up mine again and they said it might be March as there is a backlog. I almost cried as I had mentally been preparing for Jan like I was told a few weeks ago.
The lady I spoke to said it was just an estimate and could be earlier and she would try and chase it up for me by the end of the day so I am hoping it's sooner.

Thanks for the update @User262 , sorry it’s taking longer than you’d want. It’s such a waiting game isn’t it. How long did your funding take to get confirmed?

my nhs specialist only sent the form away last week (I pestered her secretary via email until she confirmed), and I’ve not heard anything from Chelsea yet. Going to call in a few days to check they’ve got it and enquire as to timelines.

really hoping you get a cancellation opportunity! Xx

@Sierra26 good news after my phone-call my record was updated within an hour and they have booked two appointments (not sure why there are two) first week of Feb and first week of March.
Now that I have these I will still try and call about cancellations in a few weeks time and also check why there are two dates booked in.

Definitely worth chasing them in a couple weeks if you don't hear anything.
My funding was confirmed over the phone after about 6 weeks(I chased at 4 weeks and then on the second call they kind of just said yes it's approved over the phone and I'll get an appointment soon)
The last I spoke to today said they don't confirm funding in writing but getting an appointment means the funding has been approved.

Good luck with yours hope the wait isn't too long!

Hi! Just wanted to jump in as I've just rescheduled an appointment (originally mid-January) so if you ring up ASAP you may be able to get my cancelled slot!

Good luck all ✨

@pixiecircle thank you so much for posting this! I've only just seen it but I will give it a go first thing tomorrow. So kind of you to message in here!
Wishing you a lovely Xmas and new year

Finally got through to the right person today. Here’s what I was told - (thanks @pixiecircle for updating us, I hope @User262 got the slot!).

They received my referral on 8th Dec

They say next available appt is Feb, but I’m not booked in yet, and need to wait for that to come through

First appt is telephone with doc

Second is f2f both of us with nurse - injections and meds (not sure for what, will I have a plan by then?)

Third is baseline scan on day 1-3 of my cycle, then on from there with treatment based on personalised plan /cycle timing

no mention of funding process and I didn’t ask, although they did ask me to confirm neither of us were on visas

Just this second got email through with first appt for second week of Jan! 🤪

editing to add -

it says funding approved (only took 1.5 wks!)

and second appt (nurse) provisionally booked for late Feb

@User262 hi, how did your first appt go? I had mine last month, now waiting for my f2f at end of Feb. Reckon CD1 will be aprox 13th March after that to get going. I’d love to keep in touch through the process given we’ll be with same clinic at same time! Xx

@Sierra26 that would be great! I'll send you a pm if I can figure out how. I didn't change my original appointment so I'll be a week or two behind you I think my CD1 will be at the end of March

Hi!! So glad you got to use my cancelled appointment — how did it go?? Can anyone shed some light on what happens at the f2f nurses consultation?

@pixiecircle you discuss your protocol and if you're happy with it and understand it. You go through injecting and they give you lots of leaflets / resources to go through ahead of starting. You discuss timeline and book in your baseline scan x

@pixiecircle i wasn’t given any meds or shown how to inject at mine, I was told all that would happen at the first baseline scan appt when we get going.

my nurses appt 2 weeks ago was -

going through consent forms (word of warning - there are hours worth and they seem to like finding things wrong! we had to redo our signatures as they weren’t consistent enough…)

going through the protocol again

told to book in blood tests (couldn’t go same day as they were closing)

told how to book in baseline scan for provisional first day of next period, and what to do if that date needs to change

it so could have been done f2f to be honest!

when is your appt?

Thanks @FlyOnTheWall89 @Sierra26 !!

Is that the consent forms they sent via a link? Still yet to do ours! That's annoying if it doesn't have to be f2f as we'll be travelling from over 3 hours away 🙈

We've been rebooked for July, to give us time to get fit + healthy. I've also been considering an appointment with a urologist to give my partner's SA results a closer looking at... he's got high round cells, which we haven't had any clear info on, and want to make sure we square anything away before starting IVF.

How do you feel about the appt and everything else?