24 Nov 2010
BESIDES Thomson Medical Centre’s fertility centre, two other assisted reproduction (AR) centres have been flouting the rules, said Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan yesterday.
He told Parliament that after the in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) mix-up, his ministry rechecked all the other nine AR centres.
“Two of them besides Thomson Medical Centre did not comply with all the procedures,” he said, without naming them.
But he added that all the public sector AR centres complied fully with standard operating procedures.
There are fertility centres in three public hospitals – National University Hospital, Singapore General Hospital and KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital.
The Ministry of Health (MOH) declined to identify the two errant centres, but a spokesman said both failed to have a second person to double-check that semen was transferred properly from one receptacle to another in the laboratory.
The two centres have since rectified this lapse.
The Straits Times called all the six other centres yesterday.
Parkway Holdings said it understands from MOH that neither of its fertility centres at Mount Elizabeth and Parkway East hospitals was involved.
Similarly, Raffles Hospital said its fertility centre had not flouted any rules. Its chief embryologist Yong Yin Yin said the guidelines set by MOH are already part of current practice.
“We ensure that two embryologists must double-check the patient’s labels at each step of specimen handling, and that the patient and embryos are correctly matched before the embryos are transferred into the patient,” she said.
Gleneagles IVF centre director Christopher Chen said MOH conducted a routine inspection of the clinic a few months ago, and once more after the IVF mix-up was reported. To his knowledge, the centre came out clean, he said.
Dr Paul Tseng, medical director of the Centre for Assisted Reproduction at Paragon Medical, said the centre has complied with ministry guidelines “as far as we are aware”.
It was last audited about two months ago and has not been informed of any non-compliance by the ministry to date, he added.
O&G Partners Fertility Centre declined to speak to the media.
Meanwhile, all new treatments at Thomson Medical Centre have been suspended by MOH since Nov 4. Pre-existing patients can continue there or transfer to another centre.
The ministry said it will lift Thomson’s suspension only after the centre has rectified all shortcomings. It also has to comply fully with the guidelines set for AR centres here.
As for whether any action will be taken against the embryologist or doctor responsible for the mix-up, the spokesman said there are provisions under the Private Hospitals and Medical Clinics Act for penalties to be imposed on breaches in licensing terms and conditions.
Last night, Thomson Fertility Centre, which is part of Thomson Medical Centre, said it accepted the ministry’s findings.
It said its processes have been tightened to prevent a recurrence and remedial action has been taken.
New protocols have been put in place, including handling only one sperm specimen at the same laboratory bench or work area at one time, and disposing of pipettes after every use.
Dr Cheng Li Chang, the fertility centre’s medical director, said its patients remain its top priority.
“Throughout, we have been as open as possible with our patients about the case and their options,” he said.
“Thus far, none of the patients we have spoken to has asked to be transferred to another centre, and we are grateful for their support. We will work hard to regain our patients’ confidence and trust.”
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Dept of O&G
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