Legal issues and Ethical considerations surrounding Egg Donation

Egg donation, embryo donation, semen donation and surrogacy was legalized in the country after the Government of India appointed Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to form the decree to sketch legal issues and ethical considerations surrounding the infertility treatments. The practice of donation, creating of embryos outside the body and storage that was derived more than a decade ago revolves around some Ethical Considerations and Legal Issues and Chapter 3 of ICMR defines the Code of Practice for infertility treatment. Pahlajani IVF Clinic strictly follows the norms defined by ICMR and preserves the rights of donors under the law.

Throughout the egg donation process, Pahlajani IVF Clinic ensures confidentiality of both donor and recipient. Under the legal agreement of the hospital, the identities are veiled, unless unusual circumstances of medical emergency or orders of court. Secondly, the donors are kept abreast of the legal, ethnic and risks involved in the procedure. The donors are informed beforehand that the offspring (if any) will not know her identity. Also, the recipients are au fait on the limitations tagged with the proposed treatment, techniques and possible side-effects.  

Pahlajani IVF Clinic encourages no treatment without the consent of infertile couple throughout the stages of treatment via a standard consent form to be filed before the process. Before initiation of any kind of process, the donors are serviced with thorough counseling sessions to ensure psychological involvement, balanced decision and push the degree of positivity to higher levels. In case, the donated eggs are used for research purpose, the projects are first approved by the Institutional Ethics Committee.

Criterion to be an egg donor with Pahlajani IVF Clinic

There are few requirements that an egg donor should meet, including, the age criteria that should be between 21 and 35 years. The girl/woman should be free from HIV, Hepatitis B and C, Hypertension, Diabetes, sexually transmitted diseases, and common genetic disorders such as thalassemia. Secondly, the hospital records and determines the blood group and the Rh status, and other relevant information in respect of the donor, such as height, weight, age, educational qualifications, profession, colour of the skin and the eyes, and the family background in respect of history of any familial disorder.

Pahlajani IVF Clinic protects the anonymity of the donor except the child demands the information after becoming an adult. Also, the donor shall have no parental right or duties in relation to the child.Ethical ramifications gyrating around gamete donation sometimes creates a vacuum in fertility treatment. While donors are concerned about autonomy, justice, beneficence, and non-maleficence, the recipients need assurance of the clinical reproduction service. However, Pahlajani IVF Clinic believes in informed decision making and conserves the interests of the donors. 

Pahlajani IVF Clinic walks on few defined principles of ensure health benefit and preventing harm to donors. Donors are well-versed about the longitudinal effects of the ovulation drugs and recoil of the process. 

Dr Neeraj Pahlajani