Supportive care: men’s expectations who undergoing in vitro fertilization treatment

Abstract

Objective Infertile couples perceive some needs and expectations during treatment. Most studies have focused on infertile women’s needs. The study was done to explore the expectations of men who undergoing in in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment. Participants were men whose wives undergo IVF treatment in the IVF clinic of Shahid Motahhri hospital in Urmia. Purposive sampling was performed and data collection was done through in-depth semi-structured interviews until data saturation. Results “Supportive care” was emerged as the main theme consisted of two categories. The first category was “to be treated with attention in healthcare setting” which included three subcategories: Receiving couple based care, establishing counseling centers, and continuous care. The second category was “to be welcomed in the society” which included two subcategories: Financial support from community and close family, and changing community views about IVF treatment. Expectations of men undergoing IVF focuses on supportive care. They seek to receive the kind of care from health care setting and society. A deep understanding of the needs could help practitioners to consider men’s expectations, and assist policy makers and researchers to design and implement interventions and programs in infertility clinics which enhance the partnership of infertile men and fulfill their expectations.

Experiences of men undergoing assisted reproductive technology: A qualitative systematic review

“…The review revealed that many men undergoing ART felt passive and uninvolved in the process compared with their partners 32 . Moreover, they reported feeling little help during the treatment 3,26,29,30,33–36 . Moreover, the process of semen collection was perceived to be embarrassing and uncomfortable, with the semen collection room being poorly located and inconducive 37,38 .…”

“…In addition, studies by Cipolletta and Faccio, 31 Schick et al, 30 Ying et al, 13 and Bayrami et al 33 highlighted that several men felt a sense of helplessness as they went through the treatment without being considered or involved in the decision‐making process. This led to some feeling the need for psychological support 33 …”

“…32 Moreover, they reported feeling little help during the treatment. 3,26,29,30,[33][34][35][36] Moreover, the process of semen collection was perceived to be embarrassing and uncomfortable, with the semen collection room being poorly located and inconducive. 37,38 Some men recounted feeling like a "dirty old man" in a "prison cell" during the process of semen collection, which led to performance anxiety and difficulty in producing the required samples.…”

“…Studies in this review found that some men felt they were given limited information about their treatment, which contributed to their dissatisfaction. 3,33 In addition, studies by Cipolletta and Faccio, 31 Schick et al, 30 Ying et al, 13 and Bayrami et al 33 highlighted that several men felt a sense of helplessness as they went through the treatment without being considered or involved in the decision-making process. This led to some feeling the need for psychological support.…”

“…This led to some feeling the need for psychological support. 33 The doctors or other providers at the IVF clinic do not provide the psychological counselling and support that we need. I hope that there is a psychological counselling center that can provide us support.…”