publive-image

Institut Marquès is a centre of international reputation in Gynecology and Assisted Reproduction, with a history of more than 95 years. The fourth-generation of  gynecologists of the Marquès family are now part of the clinic's team. It has become an international reference in its sector. Led and managed by Dr. Marisa López-Teijón, Institut Marquès treats patients from over 50 countries. The center has the added value of being a reference in the study of male sterility. Institut Marquès also has its sperm bank and a broad donation program of oocytes and embryos. 

Institut Marquès offers a wide range of first-class fertility services and personalized care. The center has a specialized assistance team, fluent in different languages, guiding patients step-by-step during the treatment. Headquartered in Barcelona, Spain, the center also has a footprint in the UK (London) and Italy (Rome and Milan). Institut Marquès has a broad portfolio of services and obtains the best success rates, reaching 91% per cycle in In-Vitro-Fertilization treatments with donor egg. The center specializes in special hardship cases of patients with fertility issues (those who have previously undergone several cycles without success). 

Pioneer in innovation, Institut Marquès harnesses state-of-the-art technologies to benefit the wellbeing of the patients and to perfect the assisted reproductions techniques, such as PGT (Preimplantation Genetic Testing), pregnancy control and foetal stimulation. The use of the latest Reproductive Biology technologies in its labs allows the center to select the most suitable oocytes, spermatozoa and embryos to obtain a pregnancy.

Dynamic Leadership Redefining Health and Medicine

Dr. Marisa López-Teijón is the CEO of Institut Marquès and a member of the Governing Board of Sterility and Infertility Section of the Spanish Society for Gynaecologists. Holding a degree in Medicine and Surgery, she specializes in Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Dr. Marisa López-Teijón manages Institut Marquès's General Management, the consultation and the R&D Project Team. Dr. Marisa López-Teijón feels gratified as the scientific platform ResearchGate sets her among the top 10% of the most influential researchers in the world.

In medical research, Dr. Marisa López-Teijón is especially interested in certain areas such as music at the beginning of life. She says,"We have developed a world pioneer innovation project with the aim to improve the IVF by implementing music in all embryo incubators in our Assisted Reproduction laboratories." She adds that Institut Marquès's scientific studies have demonstrated that music micro-vibrations produce movements similar to those that fertilized eggs experience in their journey through the fallopian tubes and the uterus; they stir the culture medium, achieving a more homogeneous distribution of nutrients and scattering the waste metabolites. The use of music represents a significant advance to reproduce in its laboratories the natural conditions that embryos would have if they were in the maternal uterus. It is also a key factor in increasing the center's success rates.

Dr. Marisa López-Teijón has also led the first study on fetal hearing: "Fetal facial expression in response to intravaginal music emission.” This is the most downloaded study in

Ultrasound, the journal of the British Medical Ultrasound Society (BMUS) and Ig Nobel Prize of Medicine, the first one in Obstetrics in the 27-year history of the award (Harvard University, September 2017). This report explains that, beginning in week 16 of pregnancy, a fetus response exists to music delivered intravaginally, expressed through specific movements of the mouth and tongue. It shows, for the first time, that a fetus can hear starting at week 16 of the pregnancy. The study focused on transmitting a greater intensity of sound to the fetus. We therefore designed a new, specific device that would emit music intravaginally: Babypod. Babypod is the only device that allows the mother to communicate with her unborn baby. Its use during pregnancy has important medical applications, such as discarding fetal deafness or facilitating ultrasound scans, because by stimulating the movement of the baby, the fetal structures are more clearly shown on the screen.

As Dr. Marisa López-Teijón is much involved in studying male infertility, she was the lead researcher of a population-based study examining the quality of semen in Spain. Since last November, she is working on a new study: the long-term impact of the Coronavirus on the male reproductive function.

Leading the Change with Affection

Dr. Marisa López-Teijón believes there is a need to have determination and passion for achieving success. "I greatly celebrate dedicating my life to the “embryonic passion”. With a lot of work, a lot of enthusiasm and surrounding myself with the best professionals," she asserts.

Advocating Innovation to Stay Relevant

According to Dr. Marisa López-Teijón, one of the main qualities that differentiate entrepreneurs and leaders is creativity. She says creativity is not a subject taught in schools nor an occupation for a few hours a day. It is a way of being and thinking. All the same, it requires a lot of discipline. Dr. Marisa López-Teijón tries to keep her childlike curiousity, asking herself always why do things happen, not taking anything for granted, and abhorring statements like “it has always been like this” and “it is impossible,” as well as all established norms. 

Disclosure is also one of Dr. Marisa López-Teijón's main interests. She wrote a fertility guide: "I want to get pregnant now!" Available in English, Italian and Spanish, this book has helped thousands of people to achieve their dream of starting a family. Dr. Marisa López-Teijón is also keen to write about her day by day at the consult and has her blog "fertility-experiences.com", which currently has over 850,000 readers.

Winning Leadership Traits

Dr. Marisa López-Teijón believes every journey has a few roadblocks and challenges; she has overcome them with a lot of work, a lot of enthusiasm, and a team with the best professionals. That is how Institut Marquès manages hundreds of children born every year in more than 50 countries.

Dr. Marisa López-Teijón advises transformational leaders to pursue excellence. Excellence is not perfection, it is not predicting the future; it is inventing it by carrying out innovative and courageous projects. She believes that excellence is a state of mind that involves determination, ingenuity and fun. 

Overcoming Challenges in the Society

Dr. Marisa López-Teijón accentuates that men with a title or a position are taken for granted; women have to prove they are worth it. For many years, she was the only woman in charge of a fertility clinic. At congresses, she was asked who she had left her children with. Dr. Marisa López-Teijón contemplates that today's advanced societies will become more and more egalitarian. But, she also asserts that it is still essential to continue to fight individually and collectively for equality, respect and recognition.

Staying Ahead of Technology Innovation

Progress in technology is changing how things work and innovation in healthcare should be oriented towards facilitating processes for patients. Dr. Marisa López-Teijón's goal is to keep on innovating and working in research and development. She says that reproduction specialists are meeting new patients' profiles, which reflects the changes in society, a new social horizon. 

Consequently, Dr. Marisa López-Teijón learned that people must be prepared for continuous changes in all aspects.

Inspiring Emerging Business Leaders

Dr. Marisa López-Teijón emphasizes that family, friends, work and personal growth are the four crucial pillars. And next-generation leaders must embrace them. They also must set goals and not get side-tracked by what others think. They have to re-evaluate everything for themselves, and this requires discipline and courage.