HFEA statement regarding London Women’s Clinic
02 November 2009
In a statement responding to reports over the weekend about London Women’s Clinic, the HFEA said:
We can confirm that London Women’s Clinic reported an incident earlier this year. Sperm from a donor was used despite a medical condition being identified through screening.
As soon as the incident was reported, HFEA instructed the clinic to stop using any donor sperm and to carry out a complete and thorough audit of all stored samples. This was carried out.
Following investigation by HFEA and inspection the clinic put in place a range of measures to ensure that this type of incident did not happen again.
Screening of all donors is a mandatory requirement of the HFEA Code of Practice. Clinics are required to follow clinical guidelines set out by their professional body – in this instance the British Fertility Society.
Very serious, Grade A incidents in the fertility sector are rare. However, they can be traumatic for those involved.
We work closely with clinics to identify and report incidents so that we can help them learn from them and minimise the risks in the future.
Page last updated: 02 November 2009