Models for future delivery of care in infertility-- hospital-based services

Hospital-based infertility management will alter radically over the next few years. The forthcoming National Institute for Clinical Excellence guidelines should improve financial support for couples having National Health Service (NHS) assisted conception treatment, and increasing NHS interest in clinical governance may well lead to policy on issues such as number of embryos transferred, risk of ovarian hyperstimulation and patient selection for treatment. Changes in clinical practice will follow. In addition, a number of alterations to clinical training in reproductive medicine will soon be in place, with impact on both sub-specialist and specialist registrar training. It is also clear that private sector practice in general, and private facility assisted conception in particular will be more tightly regulated in the coming years, with increasing governance in both research and clinical practice.