Becoming an Egg Donor

Egg Donor Requirements

Donors must be willing to undergo routine tests for verification and:

  • Must be between 21 and 30 years old
  • Must be in good health
  • Must have normal, regular menstrual cycles
  • Must have two functioning ovaries
  • Must be within a normal weight range
  • Must be willing to have a psychological evaluation
  • Take precautions to avoid pregnancy during the donation process.
  • If married, assure that your spouse or significant other is comfortable with the donation.
  • Have a health history free of: genetically transmittable (inherited) diseases; sexually transmitted diseases; cancer; substance abuse*

Note: If you have had a tubal ligation, but meet all of the above criteria, you still may be a good candidate for egg donation.

If you meet these basic qualifications, we invite you to complete our brief online eligibility questionnaire or call 513-924-5550 to speak with our Donor Egg Coordinator.

The Screening Process

When a potential donor has been identified, she is first asked to complete a detailed questionnaire which gives us general information about her personal and family health history. The questionnaire gives us information regarding all members of the donor’s family from her grandparents’ generation to that of her children, if applicable.

When the completed questionnaire is received, an RN and a physician review it.

If the health history is negative for genetically transmissible diseases and the reproductive history is acceptable, the donor is contacted and an initial interview is scheduled. During this interview an RN outlines the donor cycle in detail and discusses all medications, side effects, risks and precautions. All procedures are reviewed. If, after talking with the RN, the potential donor wishes to proceed, she will complete the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI). This series of simple questions provides us with information about the donor’s personality traits. After successful completion of the PAI, she is referred to a psychosocial consultant.

During the psychological interview the donors may ask any questions regarding the psychological ramifications of ovum donation. Virtually every donor we see envisions this process as a compassionate, altruistic act and her portion of the donation merely the donation of a few cells, much like blood donation. The final step in the screening process is a meeting with one of the physicians or a Nurse Practitioner. At this time the potential donor is counseled regarding possible risks and side-effects, and any final questions about the procedure are answered. A physical exam is completed, the donor is tested for sexually transmissible diseases, and blood type is determined.

Matching Recipient Couples with Donors

When all of the results of the screening have been received and found to be in order, the approved donor is ready to be matched with a recipient! Matching donors and recipients is a very exciting part of the egg donation process. It is especially important to us that recipients are completely comfortable with the donor they chose.

Every couple has a different set of criteria for making this extremely personal choice. Importance may or may not be placed on any number of things, ranging from physical characteristics to blood type to personality traits.

Potential recipients will be provided with information about the donors as they become approved. All non-identifying information regarding a donor’s age, physical characteristics, educational background, occupation, fertility history is shared with the recipient couple.

Donor Compensation

Compensation ranges greatly depending on the area of the country in which you live. At the Institute for Reproductive Health, we have recently raised our donor compensation to $6,000. This fee is designed to compensate the donor for time spent within our office and away from work or school.

For more information about becoming an egg donor, please feel free to contact our donor egg program nurse coordinator, Sarah Price, APRN, by calling 513-924-5578 for additional information.

For more information, please check out our Informational Videos.