Fertile Ground
With its new office in Abington, Shady Grove Fertility builds on its long and storied history of helping families bring life into the world.
Most American families crave the joy that comes only from starting or adding to a family. For some, however, the path to parenthood is complicated by obstacles pertaining to infertility. After months or even years of struggling to conceive, many begin to feel as though their dream will never happen.
“A lot of people who come to us have been through the wringer,” says Ryan Martin, M.D., a physician partner with Shady Grove Fertility’s Warrington office. “Whenever I meet with a new patient or couple, I’m there to listen, because what they have been through is very emotional. I’m also gathering information, their history, because everything they tell me—even if it’s something subtle—will allow me to tailor a plan to their specific situation.”
Since its founding more than 30 years ago, Shady Grove Fertility has facilitated the births of more than 100,000 babies. The organization has state-of-the-art offices in 10 U.S. states, including several in southeastern Pennsylvania—Allentown, Center City Philadelphia, Chesterbrook, Warrington, Lancaster, Mechanicsburg, and York—and one in Newark, Delaware. Yet another will soon come to the Philadelphia suburb of Abington.
“No matter which office they go to, every patient is assigned a team—a nurse, a doctor, a financial specialist—so they know exactly who to reach out to if they need something,” Dr. Martin says. “That kind of continuity makes each office have a small-town feel. We intentionally designed the practice this way to make sure the care each patient receives is very personal.”
At Shady Grove Fertility, the path to parenthood begins with comprehensive testing and an in-depth interview, the results of which help their team devise a plan with one goal in mind: a live birth.
Shady Grove Fertility offers an array of options to help a patient achieve that goal while reducing the possibility of a multiple or high-risk pregnancy. Some patients may benefit from ovulation induction combined with intrauterine insemination (IUI), in which medications stimulate the release of one or more eggs from the ovaries, to coincide with the introduction of sperm. Others may require more advanced means, such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), in which one or more eggs are removed from the patient’s ovaries to be fertilized in the embryology laboratory.
Shady Grove Fertility takes a stepped-care approach to solving the unique challenges associated with infertility, starting with the least invasive and most cost-effective treatments. Additionally, a Shared Risk 100% Refund Guarantee Program enables patients to focus on receiving high-quality care without the burden of worrying about the cost. The program, which covers up to six IVF or donor egg cycles and any subsequent frozen embryo transfers, is particularly beneficial for patients whose insurance does not cover infertility care. If treatment does not lead to a live birth or the patient chooses to withdraw from the program, Shady Grove Fertility will issue a full refund.
That said, about 82 percent of program participants experience the profound joy of taking home a baby, according to Dr. Martin.
“My approach is to provide patients with all their options—least invasive to more invasive—based on the testing,” he adds. “I spend a lot of time talking about the pros and cons of each treatment, as well as the patient’s own physiology. I want them to be informed and empowered. People in this situation often feel as though they have lost control, and having this level of knowledge gives them some control back.”
Dr. Martin knows all about losing control and having to overcome obstacles. As a 12-year-old boy, he was involved in a traumatic event that changed his life. A stranger shot him in the back twice, rendering him paralyzed below the waist. He had been a talented athlete prior to the incident, and months of rehabilitation enabled him to return to playing wheelchair tennis and basketball. His hard work and competitive spirit helped him earn countless accolades and awards, including three US Open championships.
Dr. Martin and fellow reproductive endocrinology and infertility specialist Sally Fitzgerald Vitez, M.D., will lead Shady Grove Fertility’s Abington practice, which is slated to open its doors this spring.
“I love the field of reproductive endocrinology because it’s a blend of cutting-edge science and hands-on medicine,” Dr. Vitez says. “During my residency at Columbia [University – New York Presbyterian Hospital], the sheer grit and determination of women who wanted to grow and build their families inspired me. Seeing what those patients went through made me want to help others like them.”
Dr. Vitez, who joined Shady Grove Fertility in September 2023, became a mother herself during her medical training. She and her husband now have two daughters, ages three and one, though her journey to motherhood included both peaks and valleys.
“My husband and I experienced a miscarriage,” she says. “Even though I had all the knowledge in the world, it’s an emotional and real experience when you lose such a wanted pregnancy. It gave me a deeper level of understanding and empathy for what my patients go through.”
Dr. Vitez enjoys all aspects of her practice. She has a particular interest in fertility preservation for patients who have received a cancer diagnosis or are affected by another illness that could affect their ability to conceive later in life.
“Anyone who wants to become a parent should be able to achieve that goal,” she adds. “I want to be a partner on the journey that these women are going through. They’re fighting so hard, and I want to fight along with them. I have the opportunity to do that at Shady Grove Fertility.”
Each Shady Grove Fertility office is staffed by board-certified reproductive endocrinologists such as Drs. Vitez and Martin, as well as specialists such as Russell Hayden, M.D., a reproductive urologist with a subspecialty in male infertility and microsurgery. Their collective knowledge and expertise effectively become shared resources for all offices in the Shady Grove Fertility network.
“We’re truly a family here, and patients can feel that,” Dr. Martin says. “We have a very team-oriented culture, and we all share the same philosophy. We’re here to help [patients] build a family in whatever way works best for them.”
About Drs. Martin and Vitez
A native of Washington, D.C., Dr. Martin earned his medical degree from the Yale University School of Medicine. He completed his residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Yale-New Haven Hospital, and later pursued his fellowship in reproductive endocrinology and infertility at Yale. He joined Shady Grove Fertility in 2016 after building and maintaining a successful fertility practice in New Haven, Connecticut.
A native of Washington, D.C., Dr. Martin earned his medical degree from the Yale University School of Medicine. He completed his residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Yale-New Haven Hospital, and later pursued his fellowship in reproductive endocrinology and infertility at Yale. He joined Shady Grove Fertility in 2016 after building and maintaining a successful fertility practice in New Haven, Connecticut.
Dr. Vitez earned her medical degree from Robert Wood Johnson Medical School of Rutgers University in her home state of New Jersey. She completed her residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Columbia University – New York Presbyterian Hospital where she served as administrative chief resident. She completed her fellowship in reproductive endocrinology and infertility at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital in Pittsburgh.
Shady Grove Fertility – Abington
1653 The Fairway, Suite 218
Jenkintown, PA 19046
(267) 296-9270
1653 The Fairway, Suite 218
Jenkintown, PA 19046
(267) 296-9270
Visit www.shadygrovefertility.com for details about Shady Grove Fertility’s other convenient locations in Allentown, Center City Philadelphia, Chesterbrook, Lancaster, Mechanicsburg, Warrington, and York, as well as Newark, Delaware.
Photo by Jody Robinson
Published (and copyrighted) in Suburban Life magazine, February 2024.
