Workflow: Preparing a Personalised Cycle Timeline

Patients find the IVF cycle timeline confusing. There are many appointments, medications, and waiting periods — and they do not always connect them into a coherent sequence. This workflow shows you how to use AI to draft a clear timeline document for a patient.

Steps

Step 1: Decide which protocol you are describing. Be clear about whether this is a long protocol, an antagonist protocol, a frozen embryo transfer cycle, or another variant. You do not need to name it to the AI in technical terms — you can describe it in plain steps.

Step 2: Write out the phases in plain language. Before prompting the AI, list the main phases yourself: for example, "baseline scan, stimulation injections, monitoring scans, trigger injection, egg retrieval, fertilisation update, embryo culture, transfer, two-week wait." This takes two minutes and makes your prompt much more effective.

Step 3: Open your AI tool. Start a new conversation. Remind yourself: no patient names, no identifying details, no specific doses.

Step 4: Write your prompt. Try something like: "Write a patient-friendly cycle timeline for an IVF cycle that follows these phases: [list your phases from Step 2]. For each phase, write one or two sentences explaining what happens and what the patient might feel or experience. Plain English. Reassuring tone. Format it clearly so the patient can follow it step by step."

Step 5: Review the draft for accuracy. Read through carefully. Check that the sequence is correct for your protocol. AI occasionally adds steps that are not in your protocol or omits important ones. Correct any inaccuracies before you do anything else.

Step 6: Check the emotional tone. The IVF cycle involves real anxiety, especially around the two-week wait and embryo update calls. Check that the AI has acknowledged this. If not, ask it to add a sentence of reassurance at key stress points.

Step 7: Add your clinic-specific information. Copy the draft into your own document. Now add the things AI cannot know: your clinic's phone number, the nurse's name, appointment booking instructions, and anything specific to your process.

Step 8: Add approximate dates if appropriate. If you know the expected dates for each phase, add them manually. This transforms a general timeline into a specific one for this patient.

Step 9: Review one final time. Read the complete document. Check that it reads as a coherent, helpful guide — not a list of medical events. A patient should be able to pick this up at any point in their cycle and understand where they are and what comes next.

Step 10: Deliver to the patient. Send via your patient portal, email, or print for the consultation pack. The document should carry your name or your clinic's name — it comes from you, not from an AI.

Remember: AI is a helpful assistant, not a clinician. You make the call.