A fertility clinic in Australia has confirmed a significant error involving a woman giving birth to another couple’s child after an embryo transfer mishap.
The incident at Monash IVF’s Brisbane clinic has been attributed to “human error,” despite the company asserting that strict protocols are in place to prevent such events.
Monash IVF disclosed that the mistake was uncovered in February when the birth parents requested the transfer of their remaining embryos to another clinic. During this process, an extra embryo was unexpectedly found in storage, leading to an internal investigation.
It was confirmed that an embryo belonging to a different couple had been incorrectly thawed and transferred, resulting in the birth of a child.
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Monash IVF stated, “We can confirm that an incident has occurred at our Brisbane clinic, where the embryo of one patient was incorrectly transferred to another patient, resulting in the birth of a child.” They added, “Our focus is on supporting our patients through this extremely distressing time. We are devastated about what has happened and apologize to everyone involved.
“We are truly sorry.” The clinic emphasized that it prioritizes the privacy of the families involved, including the child, and affirmed that the information shared publicly has been de-identified with their consent.
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According to the clinic, the situation was escalated to senior leadership within hours, prompting an immediate investigation into the matter.
The investigation confirmed that an embryo from a different patient had previously been incorrectly thawed and transferred to the birth parents, which resulted in the birth of a child. The investigation also revealed that despite strict laboratory safety protocols being in place, including multi-step identification processes, a human error occurred.
Monash IVF activated its Crisis Management Team as soon as the issue was identified. Within a week, the Medical Director of the Brisbane clinic began meeting with affected patients to offer apologies and support.
The company conducts regular compliance audits and is undertaking full process reviews while reinforcing safeguards across all of its clinics.
“On behalf of Monash IVF, I want to express how truly sorry I am for what has happened. All of us at Monash IVF are devastated and we apologize to everyone involved. We will continue to support the patients through this extremely distressing time,” stated Monash IVF Group CEO Michael Knaap. “Since becoming aware of this incident, we have undertaken additional audits and we’re confident that this is an isolated incident.
“We are reinforcing all our safeguards across our clinics – we also commissioned an independent investigation and are committed to implementing its recommendations in full.” Monash IVF has not provided further information regarding how the child was returned to the biological parents or the current legal status of the case.
This case resembles a similar incident in the U.S. involving a Georgia woman. In 2023, Krystena Murray underwent IVF treatment at Coastal Fertility Specialists and gave birth to a baby who was not biologically hers. A DNA test confirmed the error, and after a custody battle, Murray was compelled to give the child, a boy, to his biological parents. Murray has since filed a lawsuit against the clinic, claiming emotional distress and negligence.
It remains unclear if the families involved will receive compensation for the Monash IVF Group’s error.
