Texas Fertility Center saves $100 per donor evaluation, Northstar Fertility portfolio company ensures compliance
This News Digest Is Paid Sponsored Content From
Mind360
BY: Rachel Leland
The lengthy, arduous process of conventional psychological evaluations often stalls fertility journeys for weeks or months, but a new telehealth platform is already speeding up the process while improving screening quality.
You can send people to Labcorp to get a lab almost right away. You can get several screening tests done in a very short period of time, Mind360 executive director Julius Varzoni said. “[The psychological screening] was the only one that was taking weeks to get done…and we brought it down to a couple of days.”
Mind360 allows potential donors, gestational carriers, and intended parents to book a virtual psychological evaluation in 30 seconds with just a few clicks. Within two business days after the appointment, clients receive a comprehensive report of the assessment with all the ASRM criteria included.
As of November, roughly 167 million Americans live in an area with mental health provider shortages, with over 8,000 more providers needed to ensure adequate care. The average wait time to see a mental health professional is six weeks, according to the National Council for Mental Wellbeing.
Northstar Fertility portfolio company ensures compliance
Everie, the newest addition to Northstar Fertility’s portfolio, works with donors from across the country, which made finding qualified mental health professionals in every state a donor lived in cumbersome.
“Before Mind360, we really had to make a lot of different relationships to ensure we were in compliance and then we had to nurture those relationships because we wanted to have reports that were similar even though we had been working with several businesses to get the job done,” Everie President Aisha Lewis said.
Furthermore, even available mental health professionals may be unfamiliar with the standards for third-party psychological evaluation set forth by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine.
While Mind360 employs Ph.D. psychologists to conduct screenings, clinics often hire social workers, Varzoni said, adding that even then, thorough screenings are not guaranteed and some practitioners charge more for specialized services.
Silverberg: TFC saves $100 per mental health eval
Before partnering with Mind360, Texas Fertility Center would refer potential donors to local mental health professionals in Austin, but test results were not as specialized as desired, Dr. Kaylen Silverberg said.
“It’s kind of like forcing a square peg into a round hole,” Silverberg said. “People don’t just do this, they do all kinds of therapy for different patients. We’ve allowed patients to use their own therapists and their own therapists who may not know anything about reproductive services or the questions we’re getting at. Here we see a lot more consistency.”
Silverberg estimated that Texas Fertility Center had saved up to $100 per evaluation since partnering with Mind360.
In some areas of the country, the savings add up to 50% through utlizing Mind360’s services, Varazoni said.
Organic Growth
Since launching in August 2022, Mind360 has grown its business to 25 clients, including Cryos, Fairfax EggBank, Nodal, and the recently launched Everie. By December, Mind360 will have conducted 2,500 psychological screenings in its first year, Varzoni said.
Clients like Lewis said Mind360's most considerable value wasn't simply cost or time savings, but the personal attention its psychologists provide.
Often, when working with non-specialists in mental health, clinics or egg banks need to inform potential donors if they failed the screening, but Lewis prefers how Mind360 psychologists inform the donors directly.
“I think, if the donor is not a good fit for the organization right now, that's a conversation that should be had at that level of the psychologist and donor, so they do that and I appreciate that. I really appreciate that,” Lewis said.
This News Digest Story is paid featured sponsor content, where the Advertiser has editorial control. They do not reflect the views of Inside Reproductive Health.
Wait time for third party IVF mental health screening reduced from six weeks to a few days
Mind360 shares their average psychological evaluation wait times and cost savings for intended donors, recipients, and gestational carriers.
Don’t let cost or limited availability delay your patient’s cycle. Download Mind360’s informational report to find out how quickly this process can be completed and compare it to your own services.
Mind360 provides:
Seamless online booking
Immediate availability
Telehealth appointments
ASRM trained psychologists
Compliance with ASRM and FDA recommendations
Learn how your clinic’s process can be sped up and improved by clicking the button below.
This News Digest Is Paid Sponsored Content From
Mind360
All external links active as of 12/14/23.
External links are being provided as a convenience and for informational purposes only; they do not constitute an endorsement or an approval by Fertility Bridge or Inside Reproductive Health of any of the products, services or opinions of the corporation or organization or individual. Neither Fertility Bridge nor Inside Reproductive Health bears responsibility for the accuracy, legality or content of the external site or for that of subsequent links. Contact the external site for answers to questions regarding its content.