Assisted Reproductive Technology national consultation

• Participation is voluntary: it's completely your choice, and saying no won't affect you in any way.
• Individual responses will not be shared with ART providers or any other services.
• ART services will not know if you do the survey or not, and your access to any government services will not be affected if you participate or not.
• If you start the survey and change your mind, you can exit the survey to end your participation. Your progress will be saved, but your responses will only be sent to us when you reach the end and press the submit button. After you press submit, you can’t change your answers. You can save a copy of your answers after you press the submit button.

• The information you share in the survey will be combined with other people's responses. We will group the responses into "themes" to summarise the information.
• We may include short examples or stories (vignettes) in the report to illustrate people's experiences. These short examples will reflect the experiences of multiple participants to highlight common themes. To protect your privacy, short examples won’t include any personal details or information that could identify you.
• This information will be included in a report for the State, Territory, and Commonwealth governments.
• The report may also be published online.
• A plain language summary will be shared later this year with people who express interest in receiving it through this survey.
• Your information is only being collected for this project. It will not be used or disclosed for any other purpose.
• The survey platform (Qualtrics) is based in the United States, so in rare cases it may be subject to US laws that could allow access by US authorities. Your information will be stored on servers in Australia and removed at the end of the project.

• Your responses are anonymous.
• Your name will not be included in any reports and will not be connected to survey results.
• Your information will not be shared with ART/IVF providers.
• Your information will be stored on the department’s secure password protected network drive in line with the department’s policies and relevant privacy laws.

The survey will ask whether you would like to participate in an optional focus group. To participate in a focus group, you will need to provide contact details in a separate Expression of Interest (EOI) online form, which will be kept separate from your survey answers.

Please be aware that expressing an interest in the focus group does not guarantee an invitation to participate, as numbers will be limited.

Some questions might feel personal or bring up strong feelings. You may want to think about what would help with this before you start the survey. For example, you might want to do the survey in a comfortable place and talk to someone you trust after you finish.

We understand that reflecting on fertility journeys can be emotional. We encourage you to plan ahead and seek support if needed.

If you are in need of urgent medical or psychological assistance, call 000.

If you are not experiencing an emergency but have concerns about your mental or emotional wellbeing, speak to your general practitioner (GP).

Support is also available from:

• Lifeline Tel. 13 11 14 (24/7) – crisis support and suicide prevention services
• SANE Tel. 1800 187 263 (10am–10pm weekdays) – for people affected by complex mental health issues
• Beyond Blue Tel. 1300 224 636 (24/7) – for depression, anxiety and related concerns
• 1800RESPECT Tel. 1800 737 732 (24/7) – domestic, family and sexual violence counselling
• QLife Tel. 1800 184 527 (3pm–9pm) – LGBTIQ+ peer support and referral
• YourIVFSuccess – helpful resources from IVF consumer organisations and authorities

You will not be paid for doing this survey.

While participation may not directly benefit you or your experience with ART services, your feedback will help shape change that could improve the experience for others in the future.

On behalf of all Australian Health Ministers,the Victorian Department of Health is holding focus groups about the regulation of ART and IVF in Australia. We are seeking feedback from people in Australia who:

• have used ART/IVF services (including egg freezing) anywhere in Australia
• have donated genetic material such as sperm, eggs or embryo
• have supported someone who has used ART/IVF services
• are a donor-conceived person.

You must be 18 years of age or older to participate.

This research is being led by the Victorian Department of Health on behalf of all Australian Health Ministers. The focus groups are open to anyone in Australia.

The focus groups will be online, so you don’t have to travel. Each group will have about 8 people.

The focus groups will be held online using Microsoft Teams. We will record the session using audio and video. We will also use Teams to take written notes (called transcripts). This will help us make sure we correctly capture what you say. Before the session, we’ll send you a list of topics that will be discussed, so you know what to expect and can prepare if you would like to.

The interview will cover the following broad topics:

• How to improve complaints processes
• How to better support ART users to make informed choices about their care
• How to improve the ART user experience through changes to quality and safety
• What worked well on your individual ART journey

• Participation is voluntary: it's completely your choice, and saying no won’t affect you in any way.
• Individual responses will not be shared with providers or any services.
• ART services will not know if you join a focus group or not. Your access to any government services will not be affected if you participate or not.
• During the focus group, if you do not want to participate anymore, you can exit the online meeting by clicking 'leave'. If you leave the focus group early, a facilitator will check in with you by email afterwards to make sure you’re okay. They’ll also ask if you want us to remove anything you said before you left from the transcript.
• You are encouraged to turn your camera on for the focus group, but you are welcome to turn it off at any point.
• Once the focus group is finished, you won’t be able to take back your answers because they will already be mixed in with everyone else’s responses.

• We will record the focus group and write down what is said to help with our analysis. This means that if you have your camera on, your image will also be recorded. The audio and visual recordings will only be used for our analysis. The recording will not be shared.
• The information you share during the focus group will be combined with other people’s responses. We will group the responses into "themes" to summarise the information.
• We may include short examples or stories (vignettes) in the report to illustrate people's experiences.These short examples will combine stories from several people to show patterns and common themes in their experiences.
• To protect your privacy, short examples or stories (vignettes) won’t include any personal details or information that could identify you. Your name will not be included in any reports and will not be connected to your contributions.
• This information will be included in a report for the State, Territory, and Commonwealth governments.
• The report may also be published online.
• You will not be able to view the transcript or recording because these will include other participants’ information.
• A plain language summary will be shared later this year with interview participants, focus group participants and survey participants who express interest.
• Your information is only being collected for this project. It will not be used or disclosed for any other purpose.
• The survey platform (Qualtrics) is based in the United States, so in rare cases it may be subject to US laws that could allow access by US authorities. Your information will be stored on servers in Australia and removed at the end of the project.

• The focus groups will include other participants. This means we cannot guarantee confidentiality. However, all participants will be asked to maintain the privacy of other participants. This means that you can’t tell other people information that was shared by others, and you can’t record the meeting. Please only share information you feel comfortable talking about. You don’t have to discuss anything you want to keep private.
• Your information will not be shared with ART/IVF providers.
• Your information will be stored on the department’s secure password-protected network drive in line with the department’s policies and relevant privacy laws.

• You will receive a $50 gift card to thank you for your contribution.
• While participation may not directly benefit you or your experience with ART services, your feedback will help shape change that could improve the experience for others in the future.

• Some questions might be personal or bring up strong feelings. You may want to think about what would help with this before you start the focus group. For example, you might want to do the focus group in a comfortable place and talk to someone you trust after you finish.
• There is a list of consumer organisations, professional bodies and government authorities on the YourIVFSuccess website. Each of these have more specific support options depending on your circumstances.
• Immediate and free crisis support is available 24 hours a day, you can call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or visit the Lifeline website:

• The focus group will use Microsoft Teams. Further information on how to use Microsoft Teams to access the focus group will be provided before the meeting.
• The meeting invitation is only for you. The invitation should not be shared with anyone else (except support people or interpreters where permission from the project team has been given).
• You can test your camera and microphone before the meeting to make sure they are working.
• As there will be several people on the call, you should keep your microphone on mute if you are not speaking.