The best thing about my work are the egg donors. I can’t help but wonder how it’s possible that there are such kind, lovely people in the world! I’m privileged to help such wonderful women and to work with them every day.
I’ve been the person in charge of donors since August 2017. Before that, we didn’t have a person specifically assigned to the care of donors.
We wanted to centralise egg donations at every clinic under one contact person the donors could easily keep in touch with. The aim is for me to complete as many parts of the process as possible with the donor during their appointment with me. Being in contact with a familiar person makes the treatment easier.
For example, I try to participate in every egg collection to ensure that the donors have a familiar nurse with them and that they feel safe. I’ve come to know many of them very well.
Before Fertinova and Ovumia, I worked for 12 years at the former midwife institute in Helsinki. Once Fertinova merged with Ovumia, the donor procedure was updated, and I got the job of taking care of donors.
I’m an extremely sociable and open person. I talk a lot and am seldom quiet. Maybe that’s why I was chosen for this job. I’m very approachable.
Nonsensepod spread the word and brought in new donors
The last year has been busy, with a lot of new egg donors signing up last autumn. One reason for this may be the Nonsense podcast from last autumn in which I participated with our doctor Maria Tuominen.
It was a lot of fun and demonstrated to future donors the kinds of people they will be dealing with. I hope it made us more approachable. The last podcast focused on our Fertility Check-up and brought us many new customers.
The grapevine is also efficient at spreading word about us. A lot of our donors have friends or acquaintances who have acted as a donor for us. They recommend our clinic to their friends and many of them talk about their donation process very openly on social media.
It’s been a pleasure to get to know the donors. I’ve noticed that they like the fact that they’re not just another face among many, because I remember who they are and what we have talked about before.
When everyone is present and no one is ill, I focus only on donors. I contact the people who have submitted a pre-completed form based on the information they have given, and we talk fairly briefly that first time.
Usually, donors have already acquainted themselves with the facts very well. We make an appointment and when they arrive, I run a blood test and other tests and give them their medication.
I also do paperwork, advise people on injections and make phone calls, for example, when a donor begins to menstruate and it’s time to make a new appointment. When we have a lot of donors, there isn’t much time for anything else. Right now, I have a colleague to share the workload with.
Read more about egg donation in Ovumia
