Carolynn Dubé remembers the pressure she took on her shoulders at the beginning of her in vitro fertilization journey, especially as she supported herself to administer the medication she needed.
“You are standing at the bathroom counter and you think you are thinking.
IVF medications often require precise timing to function as intended. While we explain what fertility treatment requires, patients and their partners usually handle injections at home.
“It creates an increase in anxiety and worry, especially when you reach the point of mixing or injection,” Devet said.
“I'm on these drugs so I want to make sure I'm doing 100% right.”
According to Canadian Fertility Matters, one in six adults in Canada is affected by infertility, as estimated. In vitro fertilization is one option for those looking to start a family. However, this process can take a lot of money and time. Plus, there is no guarantee.
Patients with IVF frequently bump into disorders when questions arise – for example, about nighttime doses – because their clinics are closed when the answers are most needed.
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Entrepreneur Jessica Schafer had a similar experience.
“If you've gone through the process, it's a very “do-it-yourself doctor,” explains Schafer. “You're doing it at home alone or if you have a partner, your partner is doing it and mixing up somewhere between 10-12 fertility medications and that's complicated.
“When I went through it, I didn't know what I was doing.”
Schafer founded a concierge fertility service called Lushi. Prior to the company's December 2024 launch, Schafer spoke with Global News at the Web Summit International Technology Conference in Lisbon, Portugal.
Schafer spoke with Global News at the Web Summit International Technology Conference in Lisbon, Portugal.
Global News
“There's a lack of information, education and people are scared, so many people don't take this,” Schaefer said. “Lushi makes it really easy to access top doctors from the comfort of your home.”
Since its launch, over 15,000 people have signed up to use the US platform.
The recently launched Lushi app in Canada includes a variety of levels of service. Users pay a basic entry-level fee that allows them to ask questions and receive AI-generated answers for some of the most common questions related to egg retrieval and IVF treatment.
“Instead of having to wait hours at the clinic to get answers to some of the questions, we can talk to our AI technology and get immediate access,” Schafer said.
You can also purchase a variety of upgraded packages. These include talking to a trained professional through online video bookings, or even hiring someone to come to your home to manage your injections.
Dr. Mana Baskovic, chief medical officer at Lushi, said the platform will help bridge the gap that Fertility Clinics doesn't have the bandwidth to manage.
“They are limited by the resources they have, and for some time there has been no direct technological advancement within the healthcare space, especially when looking at spaces of fertility,” Vaskovic said.
“As you can imagine, a large part of the population is not comfortable mixing medicines, handling needles, throwing them out or thrustting themselves in.”
Advocates, including Dubé, say online tools also have other benefits. Especially in countries like Canada where access to IVF clinics is not always easy.
“If you're in the northwest area where you flew back to Gander, Newfoundland, or the clinic, you can open the app and connect with a health professional who will help you progress through that process. So what are the opportunities to increase access to care?”
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