Richmond, Va. – At its meeting today, the OPTN/UNOS Board of Directors placed University Hospitals of Cleveland, a transplant hospital in Cleveland, Ohio, on probation.
As established in the OPTN bylaws, probation is a public designation of an OPTN member that is executing a corrective action plan for noncompliance with OPTN policies or bylaws, or a serious lapse in patient safety or quality of care.
Summary of Events
The heart transplant program at University Hospitals of Cleveland has, in recent years, performed a low volume of transplants and encountered early-term recipient deaths. Peer review of the hospital’s heart transplant program revealed concerns with its quality management protocols.
The OPTN/UNOS Membership and Professional Standards Committee (MPSC) conducted a due process review of the institution, culminating in a hearing on May 5, 2016. The MPSC subsequently recommended that the institution be placed on probation as it undergoes a plan of corrective action. The OPTN/UNOS Board of Directors approved the committee’s recommendation.
The Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) is operated under contract with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Division of Transplantation, by United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS). The OPTN brings together medical professionals, transplant recipients and donor families to develop national organ transplantation policy.
