In 1994, after 17 years of practicing and teaching Obstetrics and Gynecology, Dr. Springer made what he calls, "the most rewarding professional decision of my life" . He gave up his practice and his teaching positions and returned to school to study reproductive endocrinology and infertility. Two years later, he completed his fellowship at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Another milestone was reached when he completed his board certification in reproductive endocrinology and fertility in May, 2005. Leaving private practice and taking two years out of your life to start a new career is not something that is typically done by a 46-year-old physician with a young family. But Dr. Springer is anything but your typical physician.

"From the earliest days of my Ob-Gyn training, I knew that someday I wanted to devote my career to the care of the infertile couple. But, after finishing my residency training in Obstetrics and Gynecology in 1977, (Dr. Springer did his residency at Albany Medical Center from 1974 to 1977) there were very few infertility fellowships available. Infertility was still a developing field. And besides, I felt that the experience of delivering babies and doing office and surgical Gynecology would only enhance my ability to care for infertility patients if I were ever able to get the chance to go back and do an infertility fellowship."

That chance came in 1994, and though the work was hard and the sacrifices great, Dr. Springer has never regretted his decision. He says, "Today, your typical infertility specialist goes straight from residency to fellowship. They've never delivered a baby, treated an abnormal pap smear or supported a patient through the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. I did all of this on a daily basis for 17 years. As a result, I understand women, their emotional needs and their desire for a family on a level that might be difficult for many infertility doctors."

Since 1996, Dr. Springer has practiced infertility in the Southwest suburbs. He still teaches Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility to medical students and residents in Obstetrics and Gynecology. Since finishing his fellowship, Dr. Springer has cared for thousands of infertile couples and has performed or supervised thousands of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) cycles. His resume includes two years as Director of IVF in a busy three physician practice in Orland Park. During this time he established clinical and laboratory protocols and directed an IVF program which boasted some of the best pregnancy rates in the Chicago area.

In 2001, frustrated with the mentality of large group practice, he established the Center for Reproductive Health. "Frankly," he admits, "I was fed up with the mentality of 'more offices, more patients'. Nurses and technicians were doing all the work. I was lucky to see my patients once every three months. There had to be a better way." The better way was a doctor focused infertility practice, where patients are assured that their care is being managed by their doctor and where daily communication with the doctor is the rule, not the exception.

Dr. Springer took another major step in November of 2002, when he moved the Center for Reproductive Health to its current location at 2246 Weber Road in Crest Hill. With 25 years experience in patient care and the management of nearly a thousand IVF patients guiding him, Dr. Springer designed and built a brand new, state-of-the-art, patient-friendly reproductive center. The Center is designed to provide personalized medical care and support of the infertility couple using the most up to date techniques available. Most significant, within the Center is a 1200 square foot block of surgical and laboratory rooms which contain the newest, most technologically advanced in-vitro fertilization laboratory in the Chicago area - Joliet IVF. "I was fortunate," he says, "to build our IVF laboratory from the ground up. There were no building constraints, no pre-existing obstacles with which to contend, and nobody telling me what I could or could not do." As a result, it was a labor of joy, and the end product is a magnificent IVF center which has the capability of providing the best pregnancy rates anywhere in the Chicago area.

Dr. Springer was born in 1947 and received his Bachelor of Arts at Simpson College in Iowa. He earned his D.O. degree from the Des Moines University of Osteopathic Medicine in 1973. He trained in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Albany Medical Center in Albany, New York where he was chief resident his senior year, and completed his sub-specialty training in Infertility and Reproductive Endocrinology at the University of Illinois from 1994 to 1996. Dr. Springer is certified by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the American Osteopathic Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology and is Board Certified in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility.

He has been involved in teaching his entire career. He served as Chairman of the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the New England College of Osteopathic Medicine and has been a clinical instructor at both the Albany Medical College and at the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Chicago. He is former director of residency training for Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine and currently holds the title of Associate Professor at Midwestern University. Dr. Springer lives in the Western Suburbs with his wife, Michelle, and their two sons.