The economic pain of childless couples in quest for parenthood

IVF treatment costs at least Sh440,000 and even then it’s not guaranteed. PHOTO | FILE 

By Annie Njanja

After marriage, pregnancy tends to follow almost immediately. But what happens when the search for a baby turns into a costly and elusive dream?

When 31-year-old Betty Mumu realised that she could not conceive, she sought medical attention. Medical tests showed she had fibroids which had blocked her fallopian tubes.

Following her doctor’s advice, the fibroids were surgically removed. She paid Sh120,000 in a government hospital’s private wing in Nyeri for the procedure.

Then followed a two-month break from work, a cocktail of medicines and regular check-ups to ensure she healed properly. The medicines and check-ups cost her Sh6,000 every month.

Still, even after the surgery and costly drug therapies, Betty could not conceive. Her fallopian tubes were still blocked. The doctor declared her clinically infertile, a condition that is classified as a disease by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Infertility is a disease of the reproductive system defined by the failure to achieve pregnancy after 12 months or more. The condition is common in developing countries, but many childless couples suffer in shame.

Pre-treatment test

One in four couples found in developing countries is childless, according to the WHO. Tubal diseases in women and oligospermia –low sperm count—account for 50 per cent and 14.3 per cent of the reported infertility cases, respectively.

The WHO says the burden of infertility is underestimated in developing countries and this is why no progress has been made for the last 20 years.

Ms Mumu’s next bet is the expensive assisted reproductive technology which will cost Sh50,000 pre-treatment fees on the first visit to see a gynaecologist and clinical embryologist at the Nairobi In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) centre. 

If the doctor recommends IVF treatment, she will pay Sh440,000, but with no guarantee of conceiving. Couples can try several times if the initial IVF attempts fail. If a couple going through IVF buys the sperm or embryo, the cost is much higher. Ms Mumu and her partner represent the economic burden of childless couples in Kenya. 

“The cost is way beyond what an ordinary person can afford, it is a lot of money even for the middle class because there is no insurance cover for such procedures,” said Dr Alfred Murage, an IVF consultant at the Aga Khan University Hospital.

“We offer counselling prior to treatment and we make it very clear to the couple that there is a chance that it may fail even after investing a lot of time, money and emotions. Once we are past counselling, we do a basic medical assessment for both the man and woman,” he said.

Biggest obstacle

Dr Murage who is also the interim secretary of the Fertility Society of Kenya (FSK) said that chances of conceiving through IVF are 35-40 per cent despite technological advancements. For women above 40 years, the chances of conceiving are even lower, at 10 per cent.