The Progress Educational Trust podcast Progress Educational Trust

This episode of the Progress Educational Trust (PET) podcast marks the 100th birthday of the late Baroness Mary Warnock.

The discussion is chaired by Sarah Norcross (Director of PET), with contributions from:

⚫ Felix Warnock (son of the late Baroness Mary Warnock)

⚫ Dr Duncan Wilson (Senior Lecturer at the University of Manchester)

⚫ Professor Anna Mastroianni (Professor of Bioethics and Law at Johns Hopkins University)

⚫ Baroness Ruth Deech (former Chair of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority)

⚫ Julia Chain (current Chair of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority)

Baroness Mary Warnock (1924-2019) – philosopher and Patron of PET – led a Government committee whose 1984 report went on to shape fertility and embryo research law, both in the UK and around the world.

In this discussion, speakers including the current and former Chairs of the UK's fertility regulator – the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority – explore Baroness Warnock's life, work and legacy.

PET is grateful to CooperSurgical and the Adelphi Genetics Forum for supporting this discussion.

PET is also grateful to Jon Nicoll, who created the opening and closing music for its podcast.

Register at https://www.progress.org.uk/events/upcoming-events/ for upcoming PET events.

This episode of the Progress Educational Trust (PET) podcast discusses how best to understand and address welfare issues in the context of fertility treatment.

The discussion is chaired by Sarah Norcross (Director of PET), with contributions from:

⚫ Professor Abha Maheshwari (Lead Clinician at Fertility Scotland)

⚫ Ruth Phillips (Fertility Counsellor at the Edinburgh Fertility Centre)

⚫ Dr Susheel Vani (Lead Clinician at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary)

⚫ Nicole McKeith (Fertility Nurse and Nurse Sedationist at Ninewells Hospital)

PET is grateful to the Scottish Government for supporting this discussion.

PET is also grateful to Jon Nicoll, who created the opening and closing music for its podcast.

Register at https://www.progress.org.uk/events/upcoming-events/ for upcoming PET events.

This episode of the Progress Educational Trust (PET) podcast discusses recent changes to the way the UK's fertility regulator – the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) – assesses and explains 'add-ons' to IVF treatment.

The discussion is chaired by Sarah Norcross (Director of PET), with contributions from:

⚫ Dr Tim Child (Chair of the HFEA's Scientific and Clinical Advances Advisory Committee)

⚫ Professor Joyce Harper (Professor of Reproductive Science at University College London)

⚫ Dr Ippokratis Sarris (Director of King's Fertility)

⚫ Tracey Sainsbury (Fertility Counsellor)

⚫ Dr Tasha Alden (patient and researcher)

Add-ons are optional treatments, technologies or procedures offered alongside IVF – often at considerable expense to patients – which may not be supported by reliable evidence.

The HFEA regulates all UK fertility clinics, including those that offer add-ons, but tends to regulate the add-ons themselves only indirectly. This is because the HFEA's legal powers concern what can be done to or with gametes or embryos outside the human body, and many add-ons fall outside this scope.

The HFEA's other main role in relation to add-ons is providing information for patients and the wider public, explaining what particular add-ons entail and whether there is evidence to support their use. In 2019, the HFEA introduced a 'traffic light' ratings system, placing add-ons in one of three categories depending on the quality of evidence.

In recent months, the HFEA has overhauled its ratings system, replacing its three previous categories for add-ons with five new categories. These new categories involve criteria including the quality of evidence, the impact on treatment outcome, and concerns about safety. Anyone who thinks the regulator's list of add-ons is incomplete can propose an add-on for assessment and inclusion.

PET is grateful to the British Fertility Society for supporting this discussion.

PET is also grateful to Jon Nicoll, who created the opening and closing music for its podcast.

Register at https://www.progress.org.uk/events/upcoming-events/ for upcoming PET events.

This episode of the Progress Educational Trust (PET) podcast discusses whether – and in what circumstances – single people should be able to access publicly funded fertility treatment.

The discussion is chaired by Sarah Norcross (Director of PET), with contributions from:

⚫ Dr Sarah Martins da Silva (Clinical Lead for Fertility Services at NHS Tayside)

⚫ Dr Alan Brown (Senior Lecturer in Private Law at the University of Glasgow)

⚫ Dr Catherine Jones (Lecturer at King's College London)

⚫ Professor Guido Pennings (Director, Bioethics Institute Ghent)

PET is grateful to the Scottish Government for supporting this discussion.

PET is also grateful to Jon Nicoll, who created the opening and closing music for its podcast.

Register at https://www.progress.org.uk/events/upcoming-events/ for upcoming PET events.

This episode of the Progress Educational Trust (PET) podcast discusses technologies and approaches that helped fertility patients and practitioners during the COVID-19 pandemic, and that are still proving useful now.

The discussion is chaired by Sarah Norcross (Director of PET), with contributions from:

⚫ Dr Ashleigh Holt-Kentwell (Clinical Research Fellow at Aberdeen Fertility Centre)

⚫ Ciara Heatherwick (Specialist Nurse at Glasgow Royal Infirmary)

⚫ Lesley Benzie (Fertility Counsellor at Glasgow Royal Infirmary)

⚫ Alison Elliot (Fertility Counsellor at Glasgow Royal Infirmary)

⚫ George Hughes (Lead Clinical Embryologist at Ninewells Hospital's Assisted Conception Unit)

⚫ Dave Wales (Quality Manager at the Edinburgh Fertility Centre)

Fertility treatment was – like many other areas of healthcare – drastically disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, causing difficulties for patients and professionals alike.

However, the pandemic also prompted creative solutions and novel approaches, some of which are still proving useful now.

In this discussion, a cross-section of fertility professionals – a Clinical Research Fellow, a Specialist Nurse, two Fertility Counsellors, a Clinical Embryologist and a Quality Manager – discuss what has been learned from the pandemic, and the scope for further innovation.

PET is grateful to the Scottish Government for supporting this discussion.

PET is also grateful to Jon Nicoll, who created the opening and closing music for its podcast.

Register at https://www.progress.org.uk/events/upcoming-events/ for upcoming PET events.

This episode of the Progress Educational Trust (PET) podcast discusses an imminent change that will have consequences for people involved in – and affected by – donor conception.

The discussion is chaired by Sarah Norcross (Director of PET), with contributions from:

⚫ Rachel Cutting (Director of Compliance and Information at the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority)

⚫ Laura Bridgens (donor-conceived person, and Director of Donor Conceived UK)

⚫ Rebekah Dundas (mother of three donor-conceived children)

⚫ Nina Barnsley (Director of the Donor Conception Network)

In October 2023, some people who were conceived from donor gametes in the UK – where the relevant sperm or eggs were donated after the UK abolition of donor anonymity came into force – will reach the age of 18.

From this point forward, a growing number of donor-conceived people will be officially entitled to ask the UK's fertility regulator – the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) – for their donor's full name, date of birth, and last known address.

The HFEA has launched a campaign to raise awareness of the changing situation, and to encourage relevant donors to ensure that they are contactable. This entails the donor providing up-to-date contact details to the clinic where they donated 18 or more years ago (if that clinic still exists), and/or providing these details to the HFEA.

In this discussion a donor-conceived person, a parent of donor-conceived children, and representatives of the HFEA and the Donor Conception Network discuss practical, personal and ethical aspects of disclosing donor information.

PET is grateful to the Scottish Government for supporting this discussion.

PET is also grateful to Jon Nicoll, who created the opening and closing music for its podcast.

Register at https://www.progress.org.uk/events/upcoming-events/ for upcoming PET events.