Partnership with CHA Medical Group

City Fertility and CHA Medical Group partnership

In early 2018, City Fertility entered a Partnership with CHA Medical Group (CHA), a leading healthcare operator and a premier global leader in fertility and women’s health, and the Singapore Medical Group (SMG), one of Southeast Asia’s largest multi-disciplinary specialist clinic groups.

The Partnership is part of City Fertility’s desire to further optimise best practice in patient care. Together with CHA and SMG, we will continue to grow in Australia with a strong focus on excellence in reproductive medicine and research.

This Partnership provides City Fertility with unique access to CHA and SMG’s globally renowned medical, operational, and research & development expertise. Moreover, the Partnership further expand City Fertility’s capabilities and enhance our continued focus on delivering clinical excellence and world-class results for our patients with a specific emphasis on achieving the best pregnancy rates in Australia.

More accessible

We aim to work closely with our CHA and SMG Partners and selectively expand into new markets both domestic and international.

Our egg and sperm banking services, and pre-implantation genetic screening (PGS) platform will continue as an important part of our services for patients.

Ultimately, the aim of this new Partnership with CHA-SMG is to create an exceptional Australian business and be part of the world’s strongest IVF group for the benefit of our patients.

About CHA

CHA is one of the oldest and largest private healthcare groups in Korea and Asia’s premier name in women’s health, maternity care and reproductive medicine, with more than 9,000 deliveries and approximately 30,000 IVF cases annually.

Founded as an O&G clinic in 1960, CHA currently has operations in Korea, Japan, Singapore and the United States including 14 general & specialty hospitals treating approximately 2.5 million patients per annum, a talent pool of approximately 1,200 physicians and 2,400 nurses globally, 27 research & educational institutions and 2 publicly listed companies.

Amongst others, CHA’s Gangnam and Seoul Station Fertility Centers are recognised as two of the largest and most advanced IVF facilities in Asia and benefit from close interactions with its women’s hospitals and research centres. CHA has built an exceptional international reputation for cutting-edge academic research and technologies in reproductive medicine, with unique expertise in treating complex cases and establishing new standards for global best practices in fertility-related treatments.

About SMG

Incorporated in 2005 and listed on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) in 2009, SMG is a specialist healthcare provider with an extensive network of 36 owned and associated clinics covering 25 specialties including OB/GYN, oncology, pediatrics, dentistry and imaging. SMG has a nationwide footprint throughout Singapore, with growing presence in key regional markets including Vietnam and Indonesia.

Enhanced capabilities

City Fertility will immediately benefit from joining one of the world’s largest fertility networks, providing unique access to CHA’s globally renowned clinical, technological, operational and R&D expertise. For example, the Partnership will allow City Fertility to incorporate the latest state-of-the-art equipment, systems and facility technologies in our laboratories to further optimise the carefully controlled environment necessary for the best IVF success rates. At the same time, we will leverage CHA and SMG’s long history of patient-centric care to provide a truly differentiated experience to our patients.

Outstanding success rates

CHA and SMG’s collective expertise will complement our ongoing commitment to a compassionate and personalised approach to treating patients. In particular, we will continue to be heavily focused on outstanding pregnancy outcomes and live births, to have the best pregnancy rates in Australia.

According to ANZARD Report 2015, Australia and New Zealand’s overall clinical pregnancy rate for IVF was 31.9%, as compared to CHA’s significantly higher success rates levels internationally. We are pleased about the opportunity to adopt CHA’s best practice laboratory and clinical procedures to converge towards these levels and ensure the best outcomes for our patients.

Research outcomes

City Fertility will strengthen its focus on engaging in cutting-edge research with universities in Australia and abroad for the benefit of our patients, with CHA actively contributing its proprietary expertise, relationships and established R&D capabilities. Through proactive research on fertility, reproductive medicine and genetics, we aim to continually increase the chance of pregnancy for our patients.

CHA’s fertility and research centres are renowned for a number of world-first achievements including the world’s first development of the vitrification method of oocyte cryopreservation (i.e., egg freezing), which is now the standard method for freezing eggs.

World first’s achievements include:

• Achieved world’s first successful pregnancy from in-vitro maturation and fertilisation of immature oocytes.
• Developed world’s first vitrification method of oocyte cryopreservation, which is now used in standard practice across the world.
• Achieved world’s first successful birth from a vitrified oocyte.
• Established world’s first commercial egg bank in the US in 2002.
• Discovered the genes associated with recurrent pregnancy loss for the first time in the world.
• First in the world to develop oocyte cryopreservation using slush nitrogen.

To see more of their achievements, click here.

World leader in IVF

Dr Kwang-Yul Cha, Founder of CHA, is recognised as one of the three top IVF doctors globally and an internationally renowned specialist in reproductive endocrinology and infertility.

Among other accomplishments, Dr Cha pioneered the world’s first successful pregnancy & birth through in vitro maturation of human immature oocytes and the world’s first successful birth with frozen oocytes using EM grids.

He is Founder and President of the Pacific Rim Society for Fertility & Sterility and is the recipient of numerous Prize Paper Awards conferred by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM), the International Federation of Fertility & Sterility and the European Society of Human Reproductive Endocrinology (ESHRE).

He also has a prestigious ASRM award named in his honour – the “Dr Kwang Yul Cha Award”, which is bestowed annually for significant contributions to the field of reproductive medicine.