A Day in the Life of an Embryologist at Boston IVF: Behind the Scenes of Your Fertility Journey

When you think of your fertility journey at Boston IVF, you probably picture your interactions with doctors, nurses, and clinical staff. But behind the scenes, an integral team of experts is working tirelessly to help make your dreams of parenthood come true—our embryologists. Though you may not meet them directly, these highly trained professionals play a crucial role in many aspects of your care, from egg retrievals to embryo transfers.

Let’s take a closer look at what a typical day looks like for an embryologist at Boston IVF and how their work directly impacts your treatment.

Egg Retrievals: Behind the Scenes Precision

Egg retrieval days are busy in the embryology lab. On average, our team handles around 15 to 16 egg retrievals daily, and the workflow requires precise coordination between the medical team and embryologists.

When the eggs are retrieved from your ovaries during the procedure, they are immediately handed off to the embryology team. The embryologist will carefully locate and isolate the eggs from the fluid collected from your follicles. While this process happens away from the patient, it’s one of the most crucial steps in your fertility treatment.

Before the egg retrieval begins, the embryologist is part of a pre-procedure "time-out," a safety check involving the doctor, nurse, anesthesiologist, and scrub nurse. This ensures that every aspect of the procedure matches the patient’s details and that the team is aligned. Once the eggs are identified and counted, the next step involves either freezing them for future use or preparing them for fertilization in the lab.

Fertilization

Once your eggs are collected, the next major task for an embryologist is insemination. This could involve traditional insemination, where sperm is added to the media drop containing eggs and left to fertilize conventionally, or a more precise method known as Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI). During ICSI, an embryologist selects a single sperm and injects it directly into an egg, giving it a greater chance of fertilization—especially in cases of male factor infertility.

The embryologist then monitors the fertilized eggs closely, grading them throughout the week to ensure the best embryos are selected for transfer or freezing. This continuous observation helps the team identify which embryos have the best chance for success. 

Embryo Transfers: A Key Role in the Procedure Room

Embryologists play a hands-on role during embryo transfers. Unlike egg retrievals, where the embryologist works more behind the scenes, the transfer procedure brings the embryologist directly into the patient’s care. This is one of the most exciting parts of their job, as they get to be directly involved in placing the embryo into the uterus, a key step toward achieving pregnancy.

Here’s how the embryo transfer process works with the help of an embryologist:

• Preparation and Sterility:
  Before the transfer begins, the embryologist follows sterile procedures to ensure everything is prepared safely. This includes wearing sterile gloves and carefully handling all equipment to avoid contamination. The embryo dish is taken from the incubator, and the embryo is placed into a small amount of transfer media. 
• Ensuring Accuracy and Communication:
  Like in egg retrievals, a "time-out" is performed before the embryo transfer to confirm that everything matches the patient's details. The embryologist waits for the doctor’s confirmation before proceeding to ensure that the catheter is correctly placed for a smooth transfer.
• Teamwork in the Procedure Room:
  The transfer involves precise teamwork between the doctor and the embryologist. While the doctor positions the catheter inside the uterus, the embryologist prepares the embryo in a specialized catheter. The embryo and surrounding media have an air pocket on either side which allows the care team to see on ultrasound where the embryo is within the uterus. Once the doctor signals that the positioning is perfect, the embryologist transfers it into the uterus. The doctor ensures the placement is correct while the embryologist carefully injects the embryo.

What Else Does an Embryologist Do?

Beyond egg retrievals and transfers, embryologists are involved in several key tasks:

• Routine Observation and Grading: Embryologists observe developing embryos daily, assessing their quality and determining the best candidates for transfer or freezing.
• Cryopreservation (Freezing): They manage the freezing process of eggs, sperm, and embryos, ensuring that the materials are safely stored for future use. Vitrification is the method used to freeze embryos, keeping them viable for years.
• Assisting with Andrology: Some embryologists also work in the andrology lab, where sperm is prepared and analyzed for procedures like ICSI or intrauterine insemination (IUI).

The Heart of Your Fertility Journey

Though you may never see the embryology team face-to-face, their work is the foundation of your treatment at Boston IVF. From retrieving your eggs and preparing your embryos for transfer to freezing and storing reproductive materials, embryologists are an essential part of every step of the IVF process. Their precision, attention to detail, and dedication to patient safety help ensure that your embryos have the best chance for success.

Embryologists at Boston IVF are not just scientists—they’re passionate professionals who understand the emotional weight of their work. Every embryo they handle represents hope for a family, and they take pride in playing a key role in your fertility journey.

If you have any questions about the work our embryologists do or the procedures you’re undergoing, don’t hesitate to ask. We’re here to support you every step of the way.