LeeDawson

Wednesday 11 June 2003





June 2003: World Infertility Month
Issue 11: 2 Jun 2003
Source:

American Infertility Association (http://www.americaninfertility.org/)



"Break the silence, erase the shame, talk about it" is the central message of this year's World Infertility Month (WIM), a global initiative intended to dispel the myths about infertility and to educate the general public about the facts.


Patient and professional organizations in more than 40 countries took part in the first WIM, in June 2002. More are expected to take part this year, running events to raise the profile of infertility "as a disease, often treatable."

Promoting WIM 2003, Pamela Madsen, executive director of the American Infertility Association (AIA), said: "We are crushing the stereotypical silence that has tainted our community. We are puncturing the myth that the inability to procreate naturally is a dirty secret best kept well hidden... We are educating our families, our friends, and our governments."

Ideas to raise awareness
The website of the AIA includes a detailed organizer's kit, containing ideas for events to attract local, regional and national media publicity and to raise people's awareness of infertility. These include competitions, talks, parties, rallies, and surveys (with a suggested questionnaire included in the kit).

The AIA site also lists the many organizations worldwide that are endorsing WIM, including patient groups in Argentina, Australia, Denmark, France, India, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Spain and Turkey. The European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) is also listed (see http://www.americaninfertility.org/wim/wim_center.html, and scroll down, for the full list).

The need for education
A recent survey by the AIA highlighted a "serious lack of education about fertility" among the general public. Only one out of 12,382 women who took part in an online survey of fertility knowledge correctly answered all 15 questions. The survey included questions such as at what age does a woman's fertility begins to measurably decline (answer: late twenties).

Madsen said women who delayed first-time parenthood until after 30 were often "stunned and furious" when they learned how age can compromise fertility. "Women must be better educated so they can make accurate and informed decisions about family building," she said (see WebZine: The fertility misinformation gap).

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