FertilityTies.com to Unite Members and Experts for Information Exchange and Support, Offline Event Scheduled for June 6, 2009 at The Hilton New York Hotel
New Fertility-Focused Social Media Site Offers 24/7 Support and a “community” for those TTC (“trying to conceive”) & Faced with Infertility, June Event to Add Personal Touch to Online Community
April 1, 2009 - Los Angeles, California – FertilityTies, a new social media site and online community, launched today to provide those faced with infertility and those trying to conceive with the opportunity to connect with peers and medical experts. Now more than ever, in the wake of “OctoMom” and in the midst of a recession, patients want to assure that they select a respected physician with credentials and referrals, that they make wise choices for the sake of health, family and finances. Many of these patients, aggravated by extensive online searching for answers from multiple sites, can now find everything that they are looking for in a singular destination; FertilityTies is a community and social media site for everything pertaining to fertility.
The site, http://www.fertilityties.com/, offers: daily medical information, access to Q&As answered by respected MDs, the option to journal about one’s experiences and hear from others in similar situations, a live chat, fertility-focused polls (i.e. “Should infertility treatments be government regulated?”), a physician directory with patient testimonials, and more, including tools and charts to be unveiled in the coming months.
“Assisted reproductive technologies are an amazing innovation and fertility treatments have come a long way, but recently the subject has been linked with controversy,” said Veronica Alvarez, Founder and CEO of FertilityTies, referring to Nadya Suleman (the tabloid-magnate mom of octuplets) and to women over the age of 50 undergoing risky IVF treatments. “We want our members to be aware of respected physicians with high success rates and completely ethical approaches. We hope to arm our members with helpful tools that are available on a single site rather than in multiple destinations, and to lead them to information regarding cost-effective and medically effective treatments.”
FertilityTies, prior to its launch, has had over 25,000 questions and over 250,000 comments posted. Users hail from the U.S., India, the U.K., Canada, Australia and across the world. Despite difficult economic times and the fact that the site is still in Beta mode, over 50 members have already committed to attending the June event, including Sarah Rice of Hartford, CT, who is helping to plan it.
“Fertility Ties has introduced me to a wonderful group of women and doctors in the fertility world who have taught me about ovulation predictor kits, what a cycle day is, but most importantly I was able to connect with other women who have had the same experiences as me,” said Rice. “The support and guidance I received from this online community during one of the most difficult times in my life, having suffered from two miscarriages, is invaluable. I found support from Dr. Q who took the time to answer my questions once I did achieve a healthy pregnancy. And the friendships I have made will last a lifetime."
FertilityTies June 6th event will take place at The Hilton New York Hotel, located at West 53rd Street and Avenue of the Americas, where assisted reproductive technologies will be discussed and members’ questions will be addressed by a panel of physicians. Alvarez says that she hopes the event, which will cover topics such as “Male and Female Infertility”, “Secondary Infertility & Ethics”, and “Acupuncture & Fertility”, will allow members to bond and get the reassurance they crave from top medical experts, bridging the divide between access to online information and information that can be obtained in the real world.
About FertilityTies and Veronica Alvarez, Founder & CEO
FertilityTies (www.FertilityTies.com) was founded and created by Veronica Alvarez, an accomplished professional with an extensive business background. While she herself has not undergone fertility treatments, she is passionate about online communities and “building products that help make the world a better place.” She has over 12 years of experience creating, building, and running some of the largest communities on the web, having worked with Yahoo! En espanol, Yahoo! Personals, Yahoo! Avatars and many other sites.
"I truly believe that by empowering people through access to information, a difference can be made, and what better community to build than one that is based on family values and a desire to have a family regardless of your gender, religious background or sexual orientation."
Alvarez’s desire to create FertilityTies arose not only from being touched by the lives of friends faced with infertility, and from meeting fertility specialists like FertilityTies’ Rudy Quintero, MD, but from a desire to serve markets that can greatly benefit from social media and Internet technology. Alvarez realized that she would like to help this particular growing niche (infertility is on the rise worldwide) to gain access to desired fertility information, and help them to avoid frustration from controversial items that appear in the media.
About Rudy Quintero, MD
Dr. Rudy Quintero, a Reproductive Endocrinologist in Los Angeles, is the key 24/7 medical expert who answers members’ questions on the site. (Note: He will not dispense medical advice, make a diagnosis or suggest treatment through the site).
Says Alvarez about Dr. Quintero: “He has been working with our members on a daily basis, providing information free of charge to those who were not his own patients in an effort to empower them with information. He’s a strong patient advocate who has already begun bringing new members to the site through his careful and competent responses to the questions posed. We see him as our pillar, someone who will be instrumental in the community’s continuing success.”
To connect with Dr. Quintero and other medical experts, to find out about the June FertilityTies’ event, and to learn more about the site, go to http://www.fertilityties.com/.
*The information on FertilityTies.com is for informational purposes only. The site does not provide any medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.*
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