New Direction Fertility Centers — An Honest Editorial Review

The Phoenix East Valley is one of the fastest-growing fertility care markets in the Southwest, and patients in Mesa, Gilbert, Chandler, and Scottsdale have more options today than at any prior point. Against that backdrop, New Direction Fertility Centers stands apart for a specific reason: a public commitment to transparent, accessible pricing in a specialty notorious for opaque costs. Founded by Dr. Mark Amols, a former Mayo Clinic chief resident who has spoken openly about his own experience with infertility, the practice has grown into a multi-physician group with four locations serving greater Phoenix. Its primary clinical hub sits in Gilbert, placing it within easy reach of Mesa and the broader East Valley.

Physicians and Clinical Team

New Direction is led by four board-certified reproductive endocrinologists and infertility specialists (REIs) — an unusually deep bench for an independent, non-hospital-affiliated practice:

• Dr. Mark Amols, MD — Completed his residency and fellowship in Reproductive Medicine at Mayo Clinic, where he served as Chief Resident. He earned his MD from the University of Arizona School of Medicine, is dual board certified in OB/GYN and Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, and has served as President of the Phoenix Ob/Gyn Society. Patients consistently describe his approach as direct and empathetic.

• Dr. Seth Derman, MD — Double board certified in Reproductive Endocrinology and OB/GYN. He completed his fellowship at the University of Maryland and was formerly a Clinical Assistant Professor at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. He has been named a Castle Connolly Top Regional Doctor every year since 2015.

• Dr. Mark Johnson, MD — Board certified in both OB/GYN (with a subspecialty in REI) and Medical Genetics — a dual certification that is rare and particularly valuable for patients pursuing preimplantation genetic testing or managing heritable conditions. He served as Past-Chair of the Arizona ACOG Section from 2008 to 2011.

• Dr. Wael Salem, MD — Double board certified in OB/GYN and REI, with Masters degrees in Biomedical Sciences and Public Health. He serves on the Editorial Board of Human Reproduction, one of the field's leading peer-reviewed journals.

The clinical team also includes Michelle Murphy, CNP and Gigi Arora, CNP, certified nurse practitioners who coordinate care across the practice's locations.

Services and Treatments

New Direction offers a full-spectrum reproductive medicine menu:

• IVF and ICSI — The clinic's core service. ICSI is available for male-factor cases where standard fertilization is unlikely to succeed.
• IUI — A lower-intervention option for mild male factor, unexplained infertility, and patients using donor sperm.
• Preimplantation Genetic Testing (PGT-A, PGT-M, CCS) — Aneuploidy screening and single-gene disorder testing, with Dr. Johnson's genetics board certification providing in-house subspecialty depth.
• Egg Freezing and Fertility Preservation — Available for elective preservation and for patients facing cancer treatment.
• Surgical Procedures — Hysteroscopy, laparoscopy, myomectomy, and TESE are performed within the practice, avoiding outside surgical referrals.
• Endocrinology Management — PCOS, thyroid disorders, and related hormonal conditions managed in-house.
• Donor Egg Cycles — Available for patients with diminished ovarian reserve or prior poor response.

For a detailed walkthrough of the IVF process, see our IVF guide. Patients comparing options across the state can review our guide to fertility clinics in Arizona.

Laboratory and Success Rates

New Direction operates its own on-site IVF laboratory rather than outsourcing embryology. The lab features an advanced air filtration system designed to reduce environmental contaminants and, more significantly, uses individual patient incubators. Conventional shared incubators are opened repeatedly throughout the day, exposing embryos to environmental disruption for roughly two hours daily. New Direction's individual incubator system reduces that exposure to approximately three minutes per day — a meaningful reduction during the critical five-to-six-day culture window.

Reported IVF success rates by age: under 35 approximately 69%; ages 35–37 approximately 63%; ages 38–40 approximately 44%; ages 41–42 approximately 17%. The clinic states its overall pregnancy rates exceed the national average, and the figures for younger patients are consistent with that claim against published CDC ART data. These are historical aggregate outcomes and cannot predict any individual result.

Patient Experience

New Direction's four-location footprint — Gilbert, Scottsdale, Avondale, and Henderson, NV — gives East Valley patients geographic flexibility. The Gilbert clinic at 1760 E Pecos Road is the primary hub with the IVF laboratory; Scottsdale and Avondale satellites handle monitoring closer to home for patients across the metro. For Mesa residents, Gilbert is typically a fifteen-minute drive.

Patient reviews emphasize affordability and physician accessibility relative to larger hospital-affiliated practices. Common themes: physicians who explain treatment rationale clearly, a staff culture attuned to the emotional weight of fertility treatment, and a practice size that avoids the assembly-line dynamic of high-volume clinics. Mixed feedback occasionally notes inconsistencies in administrative communication — a tension familiar at any practice managing significant patient volume.

Considering At-Home Insemination?

Not every fertility journey begins in a clinic. At-home intracervical insemination (ICI) is a lower-cost, private option that suits patients with no known fertility diagnosis — including single parents by choice, same-sex couples, and people who want to try a few cycles before committing to clinical treatment.

At-home insemination kits like those from MakeAMom come with step-by-step instructions designed for donor or partner sperm. Kits are a one-time purchase that can be reused until conception succeeds, require no clinic visit, and arrive in plain, discreet packaging. Many patients use them as a first step while working toward a fertility consultation — or alongside ovulation tracking while they wait for an appointment slot.

If you have a known fertility diagnosis, have been trying for 12 months without success (six months if you're over 35), or your physician has already recommended IUI or IVF, a board-certified reproductive endocrinologist is the right next step.

Insurance and Financing

Arizona has no state-mandated IVF insurance coverage, placing costs on patients unless an employer plan specifically includes fertility benefits. New Direction's published pricing is unusually transparent: IUI at $1,000; IVF at $6,500; IVF with PGT-A at $9,700; egg freezing at $2,500. These figures are substantially below the $12,000–$18,000 base IVF costs common at many practices nationally.

Patients should request a full written fee schedule covering medications, monitoring, anesthesia, and potential add-ons — the headline IVF price covers the cycle itself. Fertility medications typically add $3,000–$5,000. Financing options are available. Patients with employer-sponsored plans should verify whether any fertility benefit applies and confirm in-network status before starting treatment.

The New Direction Fertility Centers website includes contact forms for each location and a main line at (480) 351-8222.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which physicians practice at New Direction Fertility Centers?

Four board-certified REIs: Dr. Mark Amols, MD (Mayo Clinic residency and fellowship; dual board certified OB/GYN and REI; Phoenix Ob/Gyn Society President); Dr. Seth Derman, MD (fellowship at University of Maryland; Castle Connolly Top Regional Doctor since 2015); Dr. Mark Johnson, MD (board certified REI and Medical Genetics; former Arizona ACOG Section Chair); and Dr. Wael Salem, MD (double board certified; Editorial Board member, Human Reproduction). CNPs Michelle Murphy and Gigi Arora support care coordination.

How does New Direction's IVF pricing compare to other Arizona clinics?

New Direction lists base IVF at $6,500 — well below the $12,000–$18,000 typical at larger practices — and IVF with PGT-A at $9,700. Medications and monitoring are billed separately. Because Arizona has no IVF insurance mandate, most patients pay out of pocket, making transparent base pricing a substantive differentiator.

What distinguishes New Direction's embryology lab?

The on-site lab uses individual patient incubators, limiting embryo exposure to disruption to approximately three minutes per day versus two hours in conventional shared-incubator setups. An advanced air filtration system further reduces environmental contaminants. Embryo culture is not outsourced.

Does New Direction serve patients from Mesa?

Yes. The primary laboratory and clinical hub at 1760 E Pecos Road, Gilbert is a short drive from central Mesa. The Scottsdale location serves patients in the northeastern Valley. Mesa patients typically complete egg retrieval and embryo transfer in Gilbert, with monitoring options at whichever location is most convenient.