To help more patients receive lifesaving kidney and liver transplants, the UVA Health Transplant Center is launching a new program today to emphasize the importance of living organ donation.
“It’s an honor to be part of a comprehensive, patient-centered transplant team here at UVA Health that gives hundreds of patients the gift of life each year through an organ transplant,” said Shawn J. Pelletier, MD, director of the transplant service line and chief of the Division of Transplant Surgery at UVA Health. “The most significant limitation on our ability to help patients is the number of donated organs available for transplant. So our new Living Donor First program is designed to consistently share with every patient and family the hope and possibility that living donation can provide, which can include shorter wait times and longer-lasting donated organs.”
The campaign brings together the entire transplant care team – front desk staff, nurses, coordinators, doctors, financial-assistance teams and social workers – around a shared mission: to support living donation. Backed by tailored tools and resources such as posters and flyers, the initiative will help UVA Health team members guide patients and families through discussions about living donation.
“We want to make sure that living donation is the first conversation, not a last resort,” said Anita K. Sites, RN, MSN, AGAC-NP, CCTC, manager of the living donor and pediatric transplant programs at UVA Health. “At every visit, every patient and family will hear a consistent, compassionate and clear message about the life-changing benefits of living organ donation – no matter where they are in their transplant journey.”
The UVA Health Transplant Center carefully evaluates potential living donors to ensure the decision is right for them. Once someone is evaluated and decides to become a living donor, UVA provides extensive, individualized care and support before, during and after their donation.
“Our team works to ensure that anyone making the selfless decision to save someone else’s life by becoming a living donor not only receives the highest-quality medical care, but also has all the emotional, financial and logistical support they need throughout the entire donation process,” Sites said.
The Living Donor First campaign is an example of the UVA Health Transplant Center’s continual efforts to better serve patients and families, Pelletier said.
“By creating a seamless, compassionate experience and starting the living donation conversation earlier, we aim to change lives and expand possibilities for patients and families across Virginia and beyond,” he said.
