Attention, Infertile Couples—Embryo Safety Comes First
In recent years, declining birthrates and advanced maternal age have led many couples around the world to turn to assisted reproductive technologies like IVF. According to surveys, the top concern among these couples is the health of the embryo and whether the correct embryo is implanted. Numerous incidents have occurred, both domestically and internationally, involving embryo mix-ups or mistaken destruction of embryos—causing great anxiety among hopeful parents. Many couples even plan to “work on conception” during the upcoming holidays, hoping to welcome a new life in the new year. But did you know that reproductive medicine has its own essential “Golden Triangle,” and all three elements are equally crucial?
To illustrate: in IVF or egg freezing procedures, the physician acts as the commander, making treatment decisions based on experience, communicating with the patient, and issuing instructions to the clinic team. This helps couples stay emotionally stable and ensures that treatment progresses smoothly. The fertility consultant bridges communication between physician and patient, helping the patient fully understand the process. And finally, the embryologist, the key player behind the scenes, uses professional skill and care to optimize embryo development. They also routinely meet with doctors to review cases and incorporate new knowledge to improve pregnancy rates. These three—doctor, consultant, and embryologist—form the essential Golden Triangle of reproductive medicine.
Dr. Ming-I Hsu , Director of Huayu IVF Clinic and a renowned figure in Taiwanese reproductive medicine, has over 20 years of gynecological experience. He studied under Dr. Howard Jones (the father of IVF) in Norfolk, USA, and is the only direct disciple of Dr. Jones in Taiwan. When founding Huayu in 2018, Dr. Hsu addressed infertile couples’ biggest concern—embryo mix-ups—by collaborating with a former NTU engineering classmate to design the lab. At significant cost, they introduced Taiwan’s first EU-certified RI Witness Error Prevention System to create a high-security medical environment for IVF and egg freezing patients. From the start of treatment, each patient at Huayu is assigned a unique chip. On the day of egg retrieval, identity is double-checked before surgery, and all culture dishes are labeled with that specific chip. Only when the system confirms that all materials belong to the same patient can lab procedures begin. Inside the embryo lab, the chip tracks every step the embryologist takes involving that patient’s eggs, sperm, and embryos—from retrieval and fertilization to culturing, freezing, and embryo transfer—ensuring traceability. RI Witness eliminates human error by giving every egg, sperm, and embryo a name and number, preventing tragic cases where “your child is not your child.”
To every couple, embryos are priceless treasures. Dr. Cheng-Wei Wang, Deputy Director of Huayu, previously served as Deputy Director of the TMU Reproductive Medicine Center, won the Young Physician Award in 2015, and is known for his work on the Facebook page “ ”Good Pregnancy Tribe.”
He’s often asked how to produce good-quality embryos. Dr. Wang explains that Huayu uses Timelapse embryo monitoring technology, which continuously photographs embryo development 24/7 inside the incubator—without removing the embryo. This allows uninterrupted, stable growth without external interference and lets couples clearly observe each embryo’s cell division process.
Across all services—egg freezing, IUI, IVF—Huayu integrates a team of expert physicians, a high-tech lab, and experienced embryologists to work seamlessly. In recent months, these efforts have driven pregnancy success rates to new heights. Dr. Hsu emphasizes that lab conditions like temperature, humidity, and gas levels all affect reproductive cells. To minimize risks, Huayu strategically designs the lab layout to shorten the transport distance for eggs, sperm, and embryos. The embryo lab is the central hub, with specially designed routes connecting to the retrieval and operating rooms, allowing embryologists to handle materials quickly. These details are crucial to IVF success.
