1. family and parenting
2. motherhood
3. artificial insemination

Sydney Conference Schedule 2015
8.00 – 9.00 am
Registration
9.00 – 9.10 am
Welcome Rob Reith President Surrogacy Australia
9.10 – 9.20 am
Against the odds – Lisa & John Banfield’s extra-ordinary journey to parenthood
shouldn’t have been this hard. Lisa summarises what needs to change.
9.20 – 10.00
am
Children Through Surrogacy Tell It Like It Is
Those born via domestic & international surrogacy often have both a donor and
surrogate to get their head around, often far away. Three young people discuss their
lives, relationships with the woman who carried them, self-identity, disclosure in
social networks and growing up with a few differences
Moderator: Kate Bourne
Panel: Matt Mills (17), Alice Clarke (26), Morgan Rennie (17)
10.00– 10.25
am
Keynote: The Psychology of Surrogacy Understanding what motivates surrogates
to carry What psychological and personal issues are important.
Dr Kim Bergman, Growing Generations
10.25 –
11.00am
MORNING TEA
Chair: Robert Reith, President Surrogacy Australia
11.00 –
11.25am
Keynote: What Australia Can Learn from US surrogacy
The USA-based Centre for Surrogate Parenting has been working with surrogates
and intended parents for over 30 years. That experience has led to constant
refinement of IP & surrogate matching and support protocols. Karen discusses how
the US model could be adapted in Australia
Karen Synesiou, CSP
11.25 –
12.10pm
Best practice – a Panel Debate
12.10 –
12.35pm
12.35 - 1.30pm
Surrogacy is here to stay as a route to parenthood. But what should surrogacy look
like in Australia? Whats wrong with current practice? Would compensated surrogacy
increase the pool of appropriate surrogates? Should we allow the kind of generous
expenses which the UK does? What sort of professional support should be available
during a surrogate pregnancy? Should IPs have to put funds in escrow?
Moderator:: Sophie Scott, ABC National Health reporter
Panelists: Kate Bourne, Chelsea Tobin, Dr Peter Illingworth, Jenni Millbank
Embryo Transfer Decisions
Many intended parents want more than one child. Faced with high costs, many opt
for multiple embryo transfer, thinking two for the price of one more financially
affordable. Discusses the implications of single vs multiple embryo transfer, risks,
very pre-term delivery, medical cost and insurance implications - risks and factors to
consider prior to making a decision
Dr Michael Kettel, San Diego Fertility Center
LUNCH
1. 30 - 2.00pm
Room 1
Room 2
Chair: Lilly Frost
Chair: Henry Yaden
Conceived with a donor:
Surrogate Session: What to
consider when thinking of carrying.
Factors which might exclude potential
surrogates; What expectations should
you have of IP’s? How long should
you invest in getting to know them?
Likely emotions and how to deal with
them. Setting expectations in regard to
fair treatment
Sperm and Egg Donor conceived children
share their thoughts.
What will be important to my child growing
up? Do they have a desire to meet their bio
mum or dad? Why/why not?
Moderator: Robyn Perchik
Abby Bergman &Amy Corderoy
Moderator: Renee Golland
Panellists: Eliza Cole, Keira Alexander,
Kerri-Ann Nattrass
2.00 - 2.30pm
A Brief How To of Working With
Agencies
Room 2 Friends & relatives as
surrogates or donors How to make
the journey work
What are they? Eligibility, choosing a
destination, What to look for; what they
should provide, Making sense of costs;
agency structures, middle men agents ,
minimising risk;
Parents discuss the pros and cons? Is
this a possibility in overseas surrogacy?
What is important to discuss? What
are the warning signs which might
suggest conflict? How do they plan to
involve their donor or surrogate in
their children’s lives?
Sam Everingham
Moderator: Karen Mills
Panelists: Clinton Bryan-Mathieson,
James Davy, Keira Alexander,
Rhiannon Stevens
2.30 – 2.55pm
Quarantining embryos, Ethics
Committees, Cooling Off Periods?
Many Australian intended parents and
surrogates become frustrated with the long
delays imposed on them by many Australian
IVF clinics in the name of ‘best practice’.
Australian surrogacy suffers as many head
offshore rather than wait. Clinics in the UK
and US have far less red tape. So is it
necessary? What are the pros and cons?
Should we be re-thinking our approach?
2.55 – 3.20pm
Dr Glenn Sterling, Life Fertility
Men in the middle –
Australian male parents discuss coping when
your partner won't give up; how they manage
relationships, finances and their sanity on
surrogacy journeys
Moderator: Michael Condon
Panellists: Mark Piwkowski, Michael Tobin
How to cope when journeys don’t
go to plan
Not uncommonly multiple transfers
are unsuccessful or something
unexpected happens. How do you deal
with this? Surrogates and parents talk
about what they’ve learnt to minimise
risk, what they’d do differently and the
resources that helped
Moderator: Kate Bourne
Eliza Cole, Keira Alexander, Andy
Leonard, Brian Yaden
3.20 – 3.45pm
Room 1 Legal issues in surrogacy for
Australians
What factors should intended parents and
surrogates consider? What should be in an
agreement; What happens in the parental
transfer process in court? What role does the
lawyer have? How do legislative changes in
Victoria affect IPs? what if surrogate refuses
to sign parentage, what if IPs refuse to pay
bills?
Moderator: Louise Johnson
Ben Sayer, Monica Blizzard, Linda Wright
Birth Plans
Meeting expectations of both
surrogate and intended parent is vital.
Who will be in the birthing suite?
Briefing maternity ward staff; Will
your surrogate express milk? What
amount of time does she need postbirth? What procedures should a
hospital have ? What supports and
follow up are important post-birth?
Who should oversee this?
Moderator: Rachel Kunde
Panelists: Tereasa Trevor; Eliza Cole;
AFTERNOON TEA
3.45 – 4.15pm
4.15 – 4.40pm
Chair: Mark Piwkowski
Chair: Karen Mills
Parental Orders Post international
surrogacy
Matching with Surrogates
Understand the differences between
appearing on a birth certificate and legal
parentage. When is Declaration of parentage
for the bio parent and awarding of parental
responsibility possible for overseas
arrangements? What if both IP’s are on the
birth certificate? Find out how the state you
are from affects outcomes. Learn just how
affordable the process can be. This session
also covers step parent adoption and routes
to legal parentage.
Building an intimate relationship from
scratch with a surrogate and her
partner can seem daunting. Parents &
surrogates provide tips on how to
navigate the terrain. Do’s and donts of
on and off-line behaviour. Questions
to ask; What if my child wants to meet
them in later life?
Moderator: Katrina Hale
Panelists: Mandy Storer, Tereasa
Trevor
Paul Boers, Boers Associates
4.40 – 5.10pm
Uncompensated Surrogacy in Mexico
How does the Mexican government feel
about surrogacy? Do they have laws
protecting surrogates and children? What is
the infrastructure like? Are children citizens
of the country they are born in? How do
citizenship & passports work? Will Mexico
become another Thailand?
Moderator: Dr Martyn Stafford-Bell
Panelists: Dr Hugo Barba, Leon Altamirano,
CEFAM; Lilly Frost, Surrogacy Beyond
Borders
5.10 – 6.30pm
6.00 – 7.00pm
Surrogate Session: After Birth
Emotions
What post natal emotions should
surrogates expect; Coming to terms
with mental vs hormonal conflicts;
dealing with loneliness, post-natal
depression and feelings of
abandonment. Surrogates discuss
ongoing relationships and reflect on
their journeys.
Moderator: Miranda Montrone
Rachel Kunde, Renee Golland,
Rhiannon Stevens
EVENING DRINKS FUNCTION
Surrogacy Australia AGM
SUNDAY 17 MAY
8.30 – 9.00 am
Registration
Chair: Dr Ashim Kumar, Fertility & Surgical Associates
9.00 – 9.25 am
Mics:
9.25 – 9.50 am
Egg Donation in Australia
Carla discusses how she became a donor and takes us on a journey through
community-run Australian donor forums. How they work and how to navigate the
maze
Carla Pincombe, Egg Donation Australia
When to Switch to Egg Donors & What to Consider
This presentation will help you understand when to consider donor eggs and what
donor attributes most contribute to success rates.
Dr Georgina Tang, City Fertility Centre
9.50 – 10.10am
Pre-Genetic Testing
When is it relevant? What are the pros and cons? What are the contra-indications? Are
their ethical considerations?
Dr Michael Feinman, HRC Fertility
10.10 – 10.35
am
IVF Protocols & Fertility Drugs – When are they relevant?
When are fertility drugs really necessary? How should IVF clinicians be working with
surrogates own fertility cycles Pros and Cons of Natural vs medicated Cycles for
surrogates & IPs; different cycles types; Preparing your body for self cycling;
Dr Guy Ringler, Californian Fertility Partners
10.35 -11.00am
MORNING TEA
Chair: Dr Martyn Stafford-Bell
11.00–
11.30am
IVF practices in International Surrogacy
Compares processes in the US, Mexico & Greece. How and why do these differ?.
Surrogate screening processes, embryo transfer protocols, medical decision making;
pregnancy supervision; live birth rates;
How many eggs do they aim for? Live birth rate per transfer; miscarriage rates;
Prematurity rate; Still birth rate; post natal death rate; % needing NICU admission;
caesarian rates
Moderator: Dr Martyn Stafford Bell
Panel: Dr Ioannis Giakoumakis (Greece), Dr Hugo Barba (Mexico), Dr Michael Kettel
(USA) Dr Michael Feinman (USA)
11.30 –
11.55am
11.55–
12.20pm
Surrogacy For Australians In Nepal
The impact of the recent earthquake on surrogates and infrastructure. What to expect
from clinics in terms of donor and surrogate screening. How to ensure appropriate
surrogate care during pregnancy and beyond.. What tests are important?
Brian Yaden & Neha Yadav, Family Surrogacy, Nepal
Surrogacy in Greece and Eastern Europe?
Greece has just this year opened its long-standing surrogacy program to foreign IPs.
Ukraine and Georgia have had such programs for years. But how do they work? What
compensation is paid? How are surrogates screened?
Moderator: Martyn Stafford-Bell
12.20 –
12.40pm
Panelists: Dr Ioannis Giakoumakis, Giorgios Sophie Ukleba
Exit Processes for Australians Engaging Overseas
While exit with a child from the US is straight-forward, more planning and time may
be required for infants born in Nepal, Mexico and elsewhere. Three experts explain the
processes and what intended parents can do to minimise time away from family.
Moderator: Sam Everingham
Panelists: Poonam Jain, Roman Deauna, Lilly Frost
12.40-1.40pm
1.40 - 2.20pm
LUNCH
Room 1
Room 2
Chair:Kim Bergman
Chair: Louise Johnson
International surrogacy Journeys
Domestic surrogacy Journeys
In-depth smaller group discussion & Q&A
with parents detailing what to expect processes, costs, potential risks, what can go
wrong and how to survive the unexpected
hurdles
In-depth smaller group discussion &
Q&A with gay parents who used
compensated or uncompensated
detailing what to expect - processes,
costs, potential risks, what can go
wrong and how to survive the
unexpected hurdles
Moderator: Kim Bergman
2.20 - 2.50pm
Mark Dodd, Philip Kaufman, Brendan
Moderator: Renee Golland
The Counselling Process
Adam Haysom-McDowell, Chelsea
Tobin, Clinton Bryan-Mathieson
Induced Lactation for IPs
Relationships between surrogate, her partner
and the intended parent are a key to success.
pre surrogacy preparation Building
relationships; what counselling should cover;
what the counsellor is looking for, what IPs
expect,; preparing yourself; potential impact
on family members; Potential red flags? Why
aren’t more raised in Australian cases? Post
surrogacy issues
Moderator: Dr Devora Lieberman
Panelists: Katrina Hale; Michael Condon,
Miranda Montrone
2.50 - 3.10pm
The World Health Organisation
recommends breast milk as the ideal
food for infants, but for those
engaging in surrogacy, this can be a
huge challenge. Karleen Gribble
provides a crash course in the how-to
of stimulating breast milk for IPs who
want to breast-feed
Karleen Gribbles, Lactation consultant
School of Nursing and Midwifery,
UWS
Hooking into the System
Creating Your Own Storybook’
Parents discuss the ins and outs of applying
for Paternity leave, passports, Medicare cards,
Baby Bonus, new parent groups,
immunisations etc where surrogacy is
involved
Explaining donor conception and
surrogacy to kids at the right age and
right time is crucial. VARTA
counsellor Kate Bourne & parents
discusses how storybooks help and
what to think about when creating one
for your child(ren)
Anthony Stralow, Australian parent
Kate Bourne, VARTA
3.10 – 4.30pm
Parents, Kids, Surrogates and Intended Parents Social Prince Alfred Park