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How the sperm donation process works

  1. Call the sperm bank to make an appointment. Dr Rajesh observes: “A positive experience leads to word-of-mouth referrals. At the Centre for Assisted Reproduction (CARE) at SGH, potential donors call out of their own initiative, without any advertising on our part.”
  2. Go through a full body check-up. You will also have to provide your personal health details, as well as information about the health of family members. “The donor will have access to his semen evaluation and his infectious diseases screening results,” says Dr Rajesh.
  3. Sign a legal document stating that all the information provided is true, and that you will not pursue the identity of the child who is born from the donated sperm. In fact, you will not even know if your sperm is eventually used for artificial insemination or not.
  4. A month later, the actual donation can be done in the privacy of the home, or at the sperm bank. Donors can only be registered at one sperm bank. Besides SGH, there are two other public hospitals, including KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH), a member of the SingHealth group, with sperm banks within their fertility centres.
  5. A minimum of four to six samples of sperm is required within three months. After six months, these samples will be re-screened for disease. Any infected sperm is of course immediately rejected. Dr Rajesh adds: “At CARE, only 10 donations were accepted between 2008 and 2011, out of the 14 that were offered.”

What happens after sperm donation?

Sperm donation is strictly anonymous – both donor and recipient will never meet. Dr Rajesh says: “The recipient of donor sperm will also never be made aware of donor-related information.” Only you will know that your donation might have helped a childless couple become a family.

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