Dallas hospital suspends kidney transplant program after transplant error

The Transplant Institute at Methodist Dallas Medical Center has voluntarily suspended its kidney and pancreas transplant program, according to a news report by WFAA-TV in Dallas/Ft. Worth. The decision to suspend the program comes a week after a transplant patient was mistakenly given a mismatched kidney. The Transplant Institute has performed more than 2,700 transplants since its founding in 1981. According to its website, the institute performs more than 70 kidney transplants each year, making it one of the most active transplant programs in the southwestern United States. In 2010, OptumHealth Care Solutions, one of the nation’s largest health and wellness companies, designated Methodist Dallas Medical Center a Center of Excellence for Adult Kidney Transplants.

According to the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), the organization responsible for overseeing transplant waiting lists, there are currently more than 73,000 active candidates awaiting organ transplants. UNOS reports that there were 6,838 transplants performed in the first quarter of 2012.

Read the complete WFAA article at http://www.wfaa.com/news/health/Kidney-transplanted-into-wrong-patient-Methodist-Dallas-suspends-program-161457015.html