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STORY: WHO / INFERTILITY REPORT
TRT: 03:05
SOURCE: WHO
RESTRICTIONS: PLEASE CREDIT WHO ON SCREEN
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 30 MARCH 2023, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND / FILE
FILE – RECENT, GENEVA SWITZERLAND
1. Aerial shot, exterior WHO Headquarters
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Pascale Allotey, Director of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research, World Health Organization (WHO):
“Infertility is a medical condition. A medical diagnosis. When a couple have tried for a 12-month period to get pregnant and it doesn't occur. The report shows that 1 in 6 people are infertile over a period of a lifetime.”
3. Wide shot, Allotey being interviewed
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Pascale Allotey, Director of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research, World Health Organization (WHO):
“The key findings of the report show that 1 in 6 people are infertile over a period of a lifetime. That is a significant number.”
5. Close up, Allotey being interviewed
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Pascale Allotey, Director of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research, World Health Organization (WHO):
“So, the sheer magnitude of the numbers of infertile couples mean that there is a great demand for infertility care, for diagnosis and treatment, because it is not well recognized. The services are often not available, which means that those who try to seek care end up in catastrophic expenditure within the health services. Even if the services are available, they are unaffordable for a lot of people.”
7. Close up, Allotey being interviewed
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Pascale Allotey, Director of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research, World Health Organization (WHO):
“The infertility has not had much attention globally, and this is largely because there has been in the population discussions, there has been much more of a focus on contraception rather than infertility. And so, it just has not been prioritized. And the report shows just how critical the question is and just how critical the need is. 1 in 6 is a lot of people.”
9. Wide shot, Allotey being interviewed
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Pascale Allotey, Director of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research, World Health Organization (WHO):
“This is just the beginning of this work. What WHO needs is a baseline on which we can begin to develop more evidence for the area of work to begin to make sure that the services are available. And so, this is an opportunity for us to demonstrate the importance of the issue and also for your anticipation, there will be a report that is the first guidelines that are developed for the area of infertility care.”
11. Wide shot, Allotey being interviewed
12. SOUNDBITE (English) Pascale Allotey, Director of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research, World Health Organization (WHO):
“WHO is calling for greater policy prioritization of infertility. We're calling for greater access to infertility services, and we're calling for greater evidence, better evidence to be able to address the treatment issues.”
13. Wide shot, Allotey being interviewed
Large numbers of people, roughly 1 in 6 worldwide, are affected by infertility in their lifetime, according to a new report published today (03 Apr) by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Infertility is a disease of the male or female reproductive system, defined by the failure to achieve a pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sexual intercourse. It can cause significant distress, stigma, and financial hardship, affecting people’s mental and psychosocial well-being.
Around 17.5 percent of the adult population experience infertility, showing the urgent need to increase access to affordable, high-quality fertility care for those in need.
WHO’s Director of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research, Pascale Allotey, said, “infertility is a medical condition. A medical diagnosis. When a couple have tried for a 12-month period to get pregnant, and it doesn't occur. The report shows that 1 in 6 people are infertile over a period of a lifetime.”
Allotey said1 in 6 people “is a significant number.”
The WHO official said, “the sheer magnitude of the numbers of infertile couples mean that there is a great demand for infertility care, for diagnosis and treatment, because it is not well recognized. The services are often not available, which means that those who try to seek care end up in catastrophic expenditure within the health services. Even if the services are available, they are unaffordable for a lot of people.”
She said, “infertility has not had much attention globally, and this is largely because there has been in the population discussions, there has been much more of a focus on contraception rather than infertility. And so, it just has not been prioritized.”
Allotey said WHO needs “a baseline on which we can begin to develop more evidence for the area of work to begin to make sure that the services are available.” The report, she said, “is the first guidelines that are developed for the area of infertility care.”
WHO, she said, “is calling for greater policy prioritization of infertility” as well as “greater access to infertility services” and “greater evidence, better evidence to be able to address the treatment issues.”
The new estimates show limited variation in the prevalence of infertility between regions. The rates are comparable for high-, middle- and low-income countries, indicating that this is a major health challenge globally. Lifetime prevalence was 17.8 percent in high-income countries and 16.5 percent in low- and middle-income countries.
Despite the magnitude of the issue, solutions for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of infertility – including assisted reproductive technology such as in vitro fertilization (IVF) - remain underfunded and inaccessible to many due to high costs, social stigma and limited availability.
At present, in most countries, fertility treatments are largely funded out of pocket – often resulting in devastating financial costs. People in the poorest countries spend a greater proportion of their income on fertility care compared to people in wealthier countries. High costs frequently prevent people from accessing infertility treatments or alternatively, can catapult them into poverty as a consequence of seeking care.
