RMA: A Trusted Leader In Building Families

The path to overcoming infertility and building a family has never been easier thanks to research, technology, and dedicated experts. There are different treatments and various providers to choose from to achieve a healthy pregnancy and delivery. Finding the best place and team to help guide you can be overwhelming. Fortunately, New Jersey is home to the most trusted authority in fertility care, Reproductive Medicine Associates (RMA). 

RMA was founded more than 20 years ago by a trio of doctors who wanted the freedom to conduct fundamental research that could improve fertility care and help more loving families bring home healthy babies. Their efforts, research, and innovation has made possible advancements in the field of In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) and patient care that weren’t even considered in years past. Now RMA’s partnership with Europe’s largest IVF provider, IVI, has resulted in IVI-RMA being the single largest investor in IVF research in the U.S. and in the world. 

With ten offices in New Jersey, including its newest addition coming to Jersey City in the Fall of 2022, New Jersey and New York City residents can find a clinic close to home. 

At RMA, they view success as the birth of one healthy baby at a time.The providers build families through the safest, proven fertility treatments for both mom and baby that can include Intrauterine Insemination (IUI), In Vitro Fertilization (IVF), and ovulation induction (OI). But RMA is much more than just the science. The fertility specialists at RMA are leaders in the field of infertility and are passionate about the work they do to help women become pregnant and deliver safely. 

What sets RMA apart from other clinics is its personalized care and state-of-the art laboratory that has given RMA patients unparalleled success rates. Through RMA’s investments in IVF research, 8 in 10 of their patients under the age of 35 become pregnant and bring home healthy babies. 

The team at RMA offers hands-on support as they help patients navigate fertility care from work-up to pregnancy. The fertility specialists are all experts in their fields as exemplified by Dr. Maria Costantini, a Physician Partner at RMA New Jersey, Englewood in Bergen County. She is a board-certified Reproductive Endocrinologist Infertility specialist and Obstetrician and Gynecologist and just one example of the premier fertility specialists RMA houses. Dr. Costantini found an interest in infertility from her work as a psychologist at Sloan Kettering where she worked with breast cancer patients.  “I was struck by the fact that women talked more about their fears of not being a parent than they did about their fear of cancer or even death. I started thinking about how I could help from a medical perspective and found a strong interest in fertility preservation. I went back to school for medicine,” Dr. Constanini said. She has been at RMA for 11 years having chosen the group after learning about their research efforts and success rates while she was a student. 

Dr. Constantini recognizes that her background in psychology is an asset to her work now as she can appreciate the emotional element and help patients work through what they are feeling. She has also been able to share her expertise with her colleagues to help the RMA providers learn to treat the whole patient, mind and body–a critical piece of RMA’s mission alongside science, success, and support.   

“It’s easy to be your doctor when things are going well, but it’s so important to be empathetic and listen when things are not going well. Whatever my patient is experiencing, I understand that the patient is a human first and should be respected and listened to,” Dr. Constantini said. 

Every patient is assigned a team that includes not just a provider but also a nurse, and a financial coordinator. There is also a patient navigator who is available to talk with patients throughout their journey. Dr. Constantini said the navigators are not a substitute for the team but a supplement as a caring individual who checks in regularly and helps to aleve concerns or any anxiety. 

Continuing the support system along the way, RMA works with FertiliFriends, which is a support group of patients who have gone through or are going through the fertility treatment process. “This is about helping patients connect and not feel so alone. There’s nothing like being able to talk to someone who has gone through the same thing. One common experience in fertility is a feeling of being isolated and alone because no one talks about infertility. There’s traditionally been a feeling of shame in being infertile and at RMA we are trying to help erase that,” Dr. Constantini said.

RMA also offers individualized nutrition, yoga classes, acupuncture, and other types of complementary care that work together for a healthy pregnancy and delivery. 

Because RMA understands infertility affects individuals and couples across all walks of life, they are dedicated to providing the best fertility care to anyone and everyone including family-building options for the LGBTQ community, those single by choice, and anyone struggling with infertility. RMA welcomes a diverse population and personalizes care to meet each patient’s needs.  

Patient care is a critical part of the fertility process, but success depends on science and Dr. Constantini said the field of infertility has seen great strides over the past several years. Where previously fertility treatments resulted in multiple births with greater chance for complications, RMA has made embryo transfer much more precise resulting in healthy births. In addition, genetic testing has greatly improved with the ability to identify abnormalities in embryos much more exact. “It’s not easy to replicate nature but we can create families and prevent diseases,” Dr. Constantini commented. 

She said the concept of freezing eggs for future use has also seen dramatic advancement and more and more women are choosing this option. “We can freeze eggs safely which leads to future successes. It’s not an experimental procedure anymore and many employer health plans are starting to cover the cost,” she said. 

Overall, for those seeking to build a family there are now many more choices and the chances of becoming a parent are much higher than they’ve ever been. RMA continues to do the research to bring healthy babies to all and will continue to provide compassionate and supportive care to anyone who walks through their doors.