A Comparative Study of the National Infertility Registry System and the Proposed Model for Iran

The national registry system of infertility has been established at various levels in different countries over the years due to the high prevalence of infertility in the world, as well as its social and economic effects on communities. Therefore, the present study was conducted to provide a model of the National Infertility Registry System for Iran. This comparative study was conducted in 2016, and the sample data included those related to the infertility registry systems in the United States, Canada, and England. Based on the aim of the study, different articles, databases, books, and the related websites were searched and national and international experts were consulted with in order to investigate the infertility registry system in developed countries (e.g., the United States, Canada, and England). Then, based on economic, cultural, and geographical conditions of Iran, an infertility registry system was proposed including 7 main axes and 20 sub-axes. Finally, the proposed model was validated using the Delphi technique at two stages, showing an agreement coefficient of 85%. In this study, the model for the Iranian National Registry System was proposed based on seven aspects encompassing the objectives and the structure of the system, data elements, the criterion of the registry, the process of data collection and reporting, as well as data quality control and classification. In general, due to the importance of the infertility registry in taking health measures, the proposed model can improve the management of infertile patients, in terms of providing a system to follow the results, and the effectiveness of the treatment, health family planning, and controlling the factors which influence infertility.