Purpose: To determine the influence of a patient education and care program on the quality of life (QOL) of female patients undergoing non-assisted reproductive technology (ART) fertility treatment.
Methods: Participants completed the MOS 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey and fertility QOL (FertiQoL) questionnaires at baseline and at 3, 6, and 12 months of treatment. The responses of patients who underwent three sessions of the program (at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months of treatment) were compared with those of patients who did not receive the program.
Results: This study compared 69 patients who received an additional care program with 104 patients in the control group, all from 13 facilities. Treatment FertiQoL responses (p = 0.004) and treatment tolerability (p = 0.043) differed between the program and control groups at 3 months using the repeated measures mixed model. The cost of treatment per pregnancy was lower in the program group than in the control group.
Conclusion: The patient education and care program provided by reproductive fertility specialists or fertility nurses during non-ART fertility programs improves patient satisfaction.
Keywords: fertility nursing; infertility treatment; outpatient; quality of life; reproductive medicine.
© 2021 The Authors. Reproductive Medicine and Biology published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Japan Society for Reproductive Medicine.