Two Queensland families have been caught in an IVF mix-up that resulted in one couple giving birth to the biological child of another patient.
The error was discovered in February after the birth parents requested that their IVF provider, Monash IVF in Brisbane, transfer their remaining frozen embryos to another provider. The age of the baby has not been made public.
Monash IVF is releasing minimal details about the incident to protect the privacy of the families involved, however, they issued a statement outlining the error, which has been reported to regulators.
“Our focus is on supporting our patients through this extremely distressing time. We are devastated about what has happened and apologise to everyone involved. We are truly sorry,” Monash IVF said in a statement.
How was the IVF mix-up discovered?
The mistake came to light when a Monash IVF staff member actioned the birth couple’s request to transfer their remaining frozen embryos. “Instead of finding the expected number of embryos, an additional embryo remained in storage for the birth parents,” Monash IVF said.
An investigation “confirmed that an embryo from a different patient had previously been incorrectly thawed and transferred to the birth parents, which resulted in the birth of a child,” the company said.
Monash IVF’s medical director met with the birth parents and the patient whose embryo was incorrectly thawed.
“All of us at Monash IVF are devastated and we apologise to everyone involved,” Monash IVF CEO Michael Knapp said. The company has undertaken additional audits and is reviewing and reinforcing safeguards across its clinics. “We’re confident that this is an isolated incident,” he said.
Has this happened before?
This is the first reported mix-up of this sort in Australia, however, similar errors have occurred overseas.
Six weeks ago, The Weekly reported on the “irreparable damage” American wedding photographer Krystena Murray suffered after a similar mix-up. She had to hand her five-month-old son over to another couple in Savannah, Georgia, following almost two years of fertility treatment at Coastal Fertility Specialists in the US.
In 2020, three US couples were embroiled in a harrowing legal battle after a Korean-American woman living in New York gave birth to two babies who were not related to her, or each other.
Monash IVF has commissioned Fiona McLeod SC to conduct an independent investigation into the incident.
A spokesperson for Queensland Health said the department would work with Monash IVF to reinforce safeguards in their Queensland clinics and ensure any risks are identified and mitigated.
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