Surrogacy literally means 'help'. In reproductive medicine it has come to mean a special kind of help; it's when a woman gets pregnant on behalf of someone who herself can't carry a pregnancy and have a baby. This is usually because the infertile woman has been born without a uterus or has had a hysterectomy.

Surrogacy means having IVF; it's expensive, and there are no Medicare rebates. The eggs from the infertile woman are fertilised with her own partner's sperm. A resulting embryo is then transferred to the uterus of the surrogate, who carries the pregnancy and has the baby. Genetically it's the child of the infertile couple, but it is a child to whom the surrogate (the pregnancy and birth mother) may have an understandable and ongoing attachment.

Surrogacy is no longer illegal in Western Australia but remains a very involved process. If you are considering surrogacy, please contact our counsellor on 08 9389 4200.