Voices in Transplant

Why I volunteer: Pete Lalli, Ph.D., Carolinas Medical Center

United Network for Organ Sharing volunteers are united around a common purpose — saving lives together. In a new series focused on the people who volunteer their time with UNOS, we highlight how community members unite and strengthen the donation and transplantation community to help get the right organs to the right patients at the right time.

Hear from Carolinas Medical Center histocompatibility laboratory director Pete Lalli, Ph.D., about why he chooses to volunteer his time with UNOS.

July 2, 2020

Why I volunteer: Colleen Reed, Ph.D., liver recipient

United Network for Organ Sharing volunteers are united around a common purpose — saving lives together. In a new series focused on the people who volunteer their time with UNOS, we highlight how community members unite and strengthen the donation and transplantation community to help get the right organs to the right patients at the right time.

Hear from liver recipient and Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network Ethics Committee member Colleen Reed, Ph.D., about why she chooses to volunteer her time with UNOS. 

June 24, 2020

Better screening accelerates organ offers

As the surgical director of the University of Florida Health’s kidney-pancreas program, Kenneth Andreoni, M.D., often found it challenging to review UNet^SM organ acceptance criteria. He envisioned a system that provided a detailed set of acceptance criteria for offers, which health care providers could program to better determine which types of organs their hospital would accept. In 2014, Andreoni decided to share his idea with UNOS chief technology officer, Alex Tulchinsky. 

“As we originally envisioned it, a transplant program would describe the types of organ offers that they would accept,” Rob McTier, UNOS business architect, explained. “As we further examined the idea, we wondered if participants [in a pilot program] would be able to describe all the different types of organ offers they would accept.” This filtering concept evolved to also include unwanted offers, and soon after the idea for the offer filters pilot was born.

Read more about phase II of the offer filters project. 

June 18, 2020

Why I volunteer: Oliver Hale, UNOS ambassador

United Network for Organ Sharing volunteers are united around a common purpose — saving lives together. In a new series focused on the people who volunteer their time with UNOS, we highlight how community members unite and strengthen the donation and transplantation community to help get the right organs to the right patients at the right time.

Hear from UNOS ambassador Oliver Hale about why he chooses to volunteer his time with UNOS.

June 17, 2020

Achieving racial equity in transplantation

The recent events of 2020 have shed a brutal spotlight on the issue of racism in our country and throughout the world. As a community of people who are devoted to saving lives, organ donation and transplant professionals are united in the mission to ensure the equitable allocation of organs to all people, regardless of race and ethnicity, yet must reckon with the fact that racial disparities continue to exist in organ transplantation. Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network Minority Affairs Committee leaders Irene Kim, M.D. and Paulo Martins, M.D., Ph.D., recently offered insight into how the donation and transplant community collaborates to examine potential impacts that OPTN policy changes could have on access to transplant, and discussed the MAC’s role in upholding the Final Rule mandate to ensure “the equitable allocation of cadaveric organs.”

Read more from Kim and Martins.

June 15, 2020

Collaboration in the transplant community during the COVID-19 pandemic

As COVID-19 cases began increasing globally, conversations among health care providers about the pandemic’s potential impact on transplant started to emerge. Within a few days, organ donation and transplant communities from around the world had assembled to collaborate on a webinar series sharing real-world, global experiences for the organ donation and transplant community.

“This sense of the need to educate our communities—both individually and potentially as a group—came up, and we started sending around emails amongst ourselves,” said transplant infectious disease specialist Emily Blumberg, M.D., who recently served as president of the American Society of Transplantation.

Registration for the first live, collaborative webinar “COVID-19: Organ Donation and Transplant Town Hall,” launched on March 23 and the 1,000 available seats filled within a few hours. Collaboration continued over the following weeks, with three additional webinars covering topics ranging from protecting the workforce to conversations around testing. Collectively, the webinar recordings have been viewed more than 25,000 times.

In a recent interview, Blumberg talked about how the organ donation and transplantation community united amidst the COVID-19 pandemic to launch the webinar series.

June 8, 2020

Why I volunteer: Amber Eck, UNOS ambassador

United Network for Organ Sharing volunteers are united around a common purpose — saving lives together. In a new series focused on the people who volunteer their time with UNOS, we highlight how community members unite and strengthen the donation and transplantation community to help get the right organs to the right patients at the right time.

Hear from UNOS ambassador Amber Eck about why she chooses to volunteer her time with UNOS.

June 3, 2020

Collaborating during COVID-19: The importance of learning from one another

Pooja Singh, M.D., medical director of the kidney-pancreas transplantation and living donor kidney transplant programs at Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals’ Jefferson Transplant Institute, discussed consumer willingness to try new models of care delivery during the OPTN COVID Collaborative’s first webinar, “Telemedicine, transplant, and COVID-19: One transplant center’s experience.”

“People want telemedicine now as they continue to avoid potential risk,” said Singh. “This COVID-19 pandemic has triggered removal of some traditional boundaries to care delivery, resulting in expansion of access to health care.”

Other topics covered included information about insurance coverage and rules regarding practicing telehealth across state lines, and how to develop workflows for transplant and post-transplant evaluations post-COVID-19.

“I wanted to share our experience because I knew it would be valuable to others who are currently expanding their telemedicine practices as a result of COVID-19.”

Read an interview with Singh, find out how to watch the webinar and learn more about the OPTN COVID Collaborative.

May 20, 2020

Introducing UNet℠ Image Sharing

In the spring, United Network for Organ Sharing will begin a phased release of UNet Image Sharing to organ procurement organizations across the country. The first national hub for securely sharing high-quality medical imaging studies will subsequently be made available to ten OPOs each quarter through the summer of 2021.

“UNet Image Sharing will make the organ allocation process more secure and more convenient for members,” said service owner Randall Fenderson, who has been leading the application development process and piloting the new service with members for the past two years. “When the application is fully implemented, all OPO and transplant hospital professionals will have a consistent viewer through which to access high-quality medical imaging studies, thus providing users across the country with equitable access to the technology.”

Recently, Fenderson answered a few questions about the upgrades to UNet Image Sharing and provided a glimpse of what to expect in the spring.

April 20, 2020

Why I volunteer: UNOS ambassador Monette Rockymore

United Network for Organ Sharing volunteers are united around a common purpose — saving lives together. In a new series focused on the people who volunteer their time with UNOS, we highlight how community members unite and strengthen the donation and transplantation community to help get the right organs to the right patients at the right time.

Hear from UNOS ambassador Monette Rockymore about why she volunteers.

March 12, 2020

Improving DonorNet Mobile℠

United Network for Organ Sharing will release an upgraded DonorNet Mobile^SM application to the transplant hospital community in the fall. Originally released in 2007, UNOS created DonorNet Mobile for transplant hospital users to evaluate and respond to deceased donor organ offers from a mobile device. The new application will provide additional functionality and an enhanced user experience.

“UNOS is changing the paradigm of how we work with the transplant community,” said service owner Lloyd Board. “The community has been involved every step of the way in developing the new DonorNet Mobile application.”

Recently, Board answered a few questions about the upgrades to DonorNet Mobile and provided a glimpse of what to expect in the fall.

Feb. 28, 2020

Why I volunteer: Lisa Matthias, Henrico Doctors’ Hospital

Committee volunteers are united around a common purpose — saving lives together. In a new series focused on the people who volunteer their time with United Network for Organ Sharing, we highlight how community members unite and strengthen the donation and transplantation community to help get the right organs to the right patients at the right time.

Hear from HCA Henrico Doctors’ Hospital kidney transplant program director Lisa Matthias about why she chooses to volunteer her time with UNOS.

Feb. 25, 2020

Using data to save lives: Neelam Singh’s business intelligence and data products team 

Neelam Singh manages the business intelligence and data products team at United Network for Organ Sharing, which works with the community to build effective, efficient and user-friendly data tools.

“Business intelligence is the process of transforming data into meaningful information,” Singh says “Some organizations use these insights to make decisions to improve performance and reduce operational costs, but in transplantation — when data literally has the power to save lives — its value is beyond measure.”

Read more about how the business intelligence and data products team is working with the organ donation and transplantation community to leverage data to save more lives.

Feb. 17, 2020

Pediatric surgeon on new liver distribution policy: “Saving children is about preserving our future.”

Pediatric transplant surgeon George V. Mazariegos, M.D., has dedicated his career to saving the lives of critically ill children through the gift of organ transplantation. In an op-ed published in The Hill in August 2019, Mazariegos implored lawmakers to consider the lives of young people who would benefit from the new liver distribution policy that was passed by the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network Board of Directors in December 2018.

The new allocation policy recently went into effect on Feb. 4, 2020. Mazariegos, who serves as chair of the OPTN’s Pediatric Transplantation Committee, says children will start benefiting right away, because all deceased donor pediatric livers will be offered to children first before being offered to less critically ill adults. “This is a life-saving game-changer for children waiting for a liver transplant.”

Read Mazariegos’ Aug. 8, 2019 op-ed.

Learn how the new allocation system is more equitable and saves more lives.

Feb. 10, 2020

Introducing UNOS’ new mission and vision statements: A message from the Board of Directors president

As the organ donation and transplantation community concludes another record-breaking year in organ transplantation, United Network for Organ Sharing Board of Directors President Maryl Johnson, M.D., shares the nonprofit’s new mission and vision statements. “As we seek to learn, grow and share our collective expertise in 2020, my hope is that UNOS’ new mission and vision statements will remind our entire community to continue bringing ideas for ways we can get stronger and better together,” she said.

Read more from Johnson in a recent message to the organ donation and transplantation community.

Jan. 30, 2020

Making liver distribution more fair and equitable: New allocation policy will save more lives

Fewer people will die waiting for an organ transplant, more children will receive a transplant and the geographic location of patients will be less important than how sick they are according to statistical modeling under the new liver and intestine distribution policy. Adopted by the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network Board of Directors in December 2018 and planned for implementation on Feb. 4, 2020 the policy is projected to reduce waitlist mortality by roughly 100 fewer deaths each year. “Until the waitlist goes away, those of us involved in the nation’s donation and transplant system must strive to save more lives each year by reducing the number of patients who die while waiting,” said United Network for Organ Sharing CEO Brian Shepard. “The new liver allocation policy will help accomplish this goal.”

Read more from Shepard in an op-ed he wrote for InsideSources about the new policy.

Jan. 27, 2020

Pushing boundaries to improve organ utilization efficiency

Nearly 20 percent of kidneys recovered from deceased donors are not transplanted, while approximately 13 end-stage renal disease patients die each day awaiting a transplant in the U.S., according to data from the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network.

In November Andrew Placona, United Network for Organ Sharing’s first data science manager, published an article in the American Journal of Transplantation that proves the concept that an innovative natural language processing model could improve upon existing predictive organ utilization models. “Given that kidney utilization is a concern to our community, we gambled on the possibility that the free text data contained in deceased donor registration forms could help us understand the kidney utilization issue in ways that had not previously been characterized,” he said. “We found that these data have potential value.”

Read more about this innovative approach to improving the nationwide kidney utilization rate.

Jan. 17, 2020

Organ donation again sets record in 2019

Nearly 11,900 people provided the lifesaving gift of organ donation upon their death last year, making 2019 the ninth consecutive record-setting year for deceased donation in the United States and representing an increase of 10.7 percent over 2018, according to preliminary data from the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. Organ transplants from living donors also established a new all-time record in 2019, with 7,397 total living donor transplants far exceeding the previous record of 6,992 set in 2004. “A key to continuing to improve the transplant system is to develop new data tools, technology innovations and process enhancements so donation and transplant professionals can make efficient decisions,” said United Network for Organ Sharing CEO Brian Shepard. “We are partnering with experts inside and outside the transplant community to use new tools and ideas to save more lives.”

Read more about the widespread increase in organ donation in 2019.

Jan. 10, 2020

Efficient organ allocation

Information technology professionals at United Network for Organ Sharing work with organ allocation and transplant community members around the country to develop the technological platforms that match organs and save lives every day. “Within the last two years I’ve seen the UNOS team at work on electronic notification algorithms, APIs to help with seamless data exchange for image sharing, organ offer filters and mobile applications, to name a few,” said Walter Herczyk, who is the director of laboratory services at Gift of Life Michigan — Michigan’s only federally designated organ and tissue recovery program. “All of this work helps to improve and make organ allocation as efficient of a process as possible,” he said.

Read more from Herczyk about how he has seen UNOS’ IT departments evolve over the years to improve the technology development process and deliver innovative solutions to the organ donation and transplant community.

Dec. 19, 2019

Transforming policy into algorithms: A message from UNOS CTO Alex Tulchinsky

United Network for Organ Sharing works as the convener of the organ allocation and transplantation community, translating policy decisions made by transplant professionals into technology platforms that save lives. “Our job is to take the policies and convert them from English into computer algorithms,” said Chief Technology Officer Alex Tulchinsky. “By integrating policy development with the way IT works and by infusing technological practical approaches to how policy is being worded we are able to offer options to the committees to help them determine ways for an expeditious implementation.”

Hear from Tulchinsky about how UNOS’ Information Technology Department collaborates with the transplant community to swiftly create technological platforms that saves lives.

Nov. 27, 2019

Improving our technology infrastructure: A message from UNOS CEO Brian Shepard

United Network for Organ Sharing CEO Brian Shepard responds to the Department of Health and Human Services’ announcement that it will issue a request for information. The RFI will ask for ideas and information about how to improve the national information technology system for matching transplantable organs and managing detailed, confidential medical data on transplant patients and organ donors. “We are glad to have national attention devoted to how our system can further improve,” Shepard said. “We’re also glad to share our experience and expertise in managing the vital, complex and rapidly evolving technology needs of the community we serve.”

Read more from CEO Brian Shepard.

Nov 8, 2019

Creating the first national donor image sharing hub: “I was amazed when I saw the images.”

A medical image sharing pilot project underway now at United Network for Organ Sharing may soon give organ procurement organizations, and donor and transplant hospitals, universal access to high-quality medical imaging studies during the organ offer process. Daniel Jacoby, M.D., who is the director of the Comprehensive Heart Failure Program at Yale School of Medicine, was one of the first physicians to interact with the system. “I was amazed when I saw the images,” he said. “They look like you’re looking directly at an echo screen. This is a step forward for our patients.”

Read more on the pilot project that offers quick access to high-quality medical images.

Feb 5, 2019

When every minute matters: “We measure just about everything we do.”

Roger Brown directs the United Network for Organ Sharing Organ Center, which has been in continous operation 24/7 for more than 35 years. “We measure just about everything we do,” he said. “How much we do. How fast we do it. How accurate that work is and is that work meeting the needs of the community?” In this series of videos, Brown and the Organ Center team discuss how they work with the donation and transplant community to meet the daily challenge of matching organs and saving lives.

Learn how Organ Center staff are trained and hear what motivates them. 

Aug 30, 2019

Better offer screening: “We want programs to understand what their practice is and to refine it.”

Some transplant programs field many thousands of offers in a year, but might accept only a few hundred for their patients. In June, United Network for Organ Sharing launched the first phase of a pilot project to develop an innovative tool that will help change that by altering how offers are filtered. The project is testing ways to avoid unwanted offers, accelerate organ allocation and transplant more organs. The goal? Increase kidney utilization by helping organ procurement organizations find an accepting candidate more quickly. “We want programs to understand what their practice is and to refine it — so organs are directed to centers that will take them, faster,” said UNOS business architect Rob McTier.

Read more about the pilot project that is testing ways to avoid unwanted offers, accelerate organ allocation and transplant more organs.

Jun 28, 2019

New England Donor Services president and CEO Alexandra K. Glazier shares success strategies

“The work of organ donation improvement is hard work. It is roll-up-your sleeves, boots-on-the-ground work, finding specific operational strategies that collectively make incremental change. There is no easy fix or a single solution — those of us in the OPO trenches know that, but many in the broader community may not.”

Read more about Glazier’s strategies for success.

Apr 30, 2019