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Solid-organ transplants are complex because of the innumerable medical issues that must be managed simultaneously: the cause of organ failure, other medical conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure, the potential for infection and tissue rejection, health of the donor organ, narrow windows of viability and a host of other realities.
While surgeons’ expertise is crucial to success, so, too, is the broad expertise that enables staff to keep patients alive and healthy enough for transplant before the procedure, and to give the transplant the best chance to thrive afterward.
UW Medicine’s transplant specialists have demonstrated that expertise with more patients than any other such program in the Pacific Northwest. We perform all solid-organ transplants:
- Liver
- Kidney
- Pancreas
- Heart
- Lung
- Heart/Lung
Awards
In 2010, UWMC was recognized as a high-performing transplant program by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), a federal agency under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. UWMC received one gold medal, 10 silver medals for overall national and one bronze medal for the kidney-pancreas program.
The medals measure post-transplant survival rates, transplant rates and mortality rates after patients are placed on the waitlist.
All U.S. transplant programs were eligible for the awards and reviewed to determine designations. Only 0.1 percent of the programs received gold medals, 1.4 percent of the programs received silver medals and 20 percent of the programs received bronze medals.
Leaders in transplantation
Our patients receive donor organs at one of the highest rates in the nation, and their transplant outcomes are superior and among the best in the United States. Two measures demonstrate our regional leadership:
- In 2009, UW Medicine physicians performed 310 organ transplants; by comparison, an Oregon hospital performed about half that many (165), and no other Pacific Northwest hospital performed more than 130.
- Nine UW Medicine physicians currently provide guidance as committee members of the U.S. Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network; no other Pacific Northwest hospital has more than three such representatives.
Our close work with organ procurement organizations such as Life Center Northwest and Pacific Northwest Transplant Bank has increased the rate of regional donations. Patients are referred to us from across the region and beyond.
Our adult patients can help their recoveries by joining Team Transplant, a program that trains transplant recipients for Seattle-area half marathons. Team Transplant promotes patient wellness through eating, regular exercise and group support, and promotes the virtues of organ donation, as well.
If you or someone you know is facing organ failure, we can help.
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