Children conceived using donor gametes: communication, experiences, and psychosocial aspects of knowing one’s genetic background

Precongress Course 6


SIG Global and Sociocultural-Aspects of Infertility SIG Nursing and Midwifery SIG Psychology and Counselling   ESHRE Special Interest Group Global and Socio cultural Aspects of Infertility
, Nursing and Midwifery and Psychology Counselling

Course coordinators
Denisa Protopopescu (Romania), Louise Dias (Belgium), Mariana Moura Ramos (Portugal)

Course type
Advanced

Course description
The growing use of assisted reproduction using donation and the changes in the law regarding donor anonymity, as well as the availability of direct-to-consumer genetic testing, is a specific environment that needs attention. The experience of using and being conceived with third-party reproduction can be a challenging experience for donors, patients and children as well as for fertility staff. Counselling patients, children and donors is highly recommended (ESHRE Working Group on Reproductive Donation et al., 2022). This course aims to address the needs of all parties involved in these contexts and discuss challenges, tools and training of counselling to promote the healthy adjustment of families.

Target audience
Psychologists, counsellors, nurses and midwives, physicians and other health professionals involved in assisted reproduction with third-party reproduction

Needs assessment and expected outcomes
This course will address the following educational needs:

  • Review the needs of families formed through third-party reproduction
  • Review the interventions and tools available to help patients and children deal with communication and disclosure challenges

After the course, participants are expected to:

  • be aware of the families’, in particular the parents’ and children’s, needs before, during and after the disclosure of the use of third-party reproduction to conceive
  • be knowledgeable about strategies


Innovative aspects of the course
We hope this course will equip healthcare professionals with necessary knowledge and practical skills to help them better integrate and provide high-quality, patient-centred care in their daily practice to patients and families formed using third-party reproduction. This course has a broad scope as it combines the views of psychologists and counsellors with that of nurses and midwives and is supplemented with global and social-cultural aspects of this matter.

Programme




Sunday 29 June 2025

Chairs
Chairperson to be announced
Chairperson to be announced
09:00 - 09:30
Disclosure in contemporary context
Sophie Zadeh, United Kingdom
09:30 - 09:45
Discussion
09:45 - 10:15
Why to counsel patients using third-party reproduction to disclosure
Lone Schmidt, Denmark
10:15 - 10:30
Discussion
10:30 - 11:00
Coffee break
Chairperson to be announced
Chairperson to be announced
11:00 - 11:30
Perspectives and experiences with direct-to-consumer dna-testing
Helene Malmanche, France
11:30 - 11:45
Discussion
11:45 - 12:15
Psychosocial outcomes of families formed through third-party reproduction after disclosure
Vasanti Jadva, United Kingdom
12:15 - 12:30
Discussion
12:30 - 13:30
Lunch break
Chairperson to be announced
Chairperson to be announced
13:30 - 14:00
How to counsel families to disclosure: clinical point of view
Astrid Indekeu, Belgium
14:00 - 14:15
Discussion
14:15 - 14:45
Education and counseling for parents via the digital TELL tool: what we’ve learned and what’s next
Patricia Hershberger, U.S.A.
14:45 - 15:00
Discussion
15:00 - 15:30
Coffee break
Chairperson to be announced
Chairperson to be announced
15:30 - 16:00
Experiences of a donor-conceived child - a lifelong condition
Raymond Egge, Norway
16:00 - 16:15
Discussion
16:15 - 16:45
Experiences of parents who conceived with third-party reproduction
Vegard Lunde, Norway
16:45 - 17:00
Discussion