Cirrhosis of the liver. Cystic fibrosis. Coronary heart disease. These conditions can lead a patient to need a liver, lung or heart transplant operation, respectively, to survive. Unfortunately, if that patient lives in Nevada, they will have to move out of state in order to receive these types of transplantation services. Only one transplant center exists in Southern Nevada, University Medical Center (UMC), which only provides kidney transplantation and services.
Imagine that you or someone you love are forced to choose between the financial, physical and emotional burden of traveling to neighboring states to get needed care or being placed on hospice, a choice that particularly impacts culturally and socioeconomically diverse populations. Currently, more than 600 Nevadans are waiting for a lifesaving organ transplant. As one of the highest-performing organ procurement organizations in the country, Nevada Donor Network’s recovery of organs far exceeds the current waitlist, yet over 90% of all lifesaving organs (liver, heart, lungs, pancreas and intestines) are leaving our state because we don’t have the health care infrastructure in place to serve these critically ill patients.
Steven Peralta
While advancements and rapid breakthroughs in the science of organ transplantation have saved hundreds of thousands of lives across the country, we must note that in the 70 years since the first transplant operation was performed, the business model for organ transplantation delivery has not significantly evolved. Currently, all transplant centers across the country are affiliated with hospitals, hospital systems or universities, which are beholden to financial and governing restraints by the parent institution. That can lead to organ rationing or missed transplantation opportunities.
To address the problems, we must offer an innovative solution. To successfully end the wait for Nevadans in desperate need of a lifesaving organ, we must adopt a “for Nevadans by Nevadans” approach and expand transplantation programs and services here in the state. Enter the Nevada Transplant Institute (NTI), a groundbreaking initiative from Nevada Donor Network (NDN) and the Nevada Donor Network Foundation (NDNF). The NTI will be a network of hospitals, providers and payers working together to partner with existing hospital systems and infrastructure while leveraging health care services that are currently available and in place throughout the state.
So, how will it work? First, the NTI will expand upon the current kidney transplant program at University Medical Center and create a first-of-its-kind liver transplant program in Nevada. NDN and its foundation will recruit qualified physicians, nurses and allied health professionals to Nevada. The NDN team envisions that NTI will be able to perform liver transplants and services in Las Vegas, and be able to offer kidney transplants and services in Reno for the first time, both by the end of the year.
A few years ago, NDNF launched a $35 million “End the Wait” capital campaign to raise the needed funds to develop the NTI. End the Wait highlights include:
• $15 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds were awarded from the state.
• UMC made a $12 million philanthropic commitment, which will be in the form of in-kind programs and services, along with a cash contribution component.
• $500,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funds were awarded from the City of Las Vegas.
With the above commitments, we are well on our way to revolutionizing transplantation services in the state. Once established, the impact of the NTI will reach far beyond the thousands of newly listed and transplanted patients over time. It will be game-changing in the fight to save more people waiting for a second chance at life, and it will allow us to better serve our heroic organ donors and their courageous families.
Expanding transplantation services in Nevada will create a more collaborative and robust health care sector. With support from both public and private sectors, and through highly integrated partnerships with hospitals throughout the state, NTI will contribute to growth in the health care sector, economic development, research and commercialization, and to an expanded physician workforce.
The state in which a patient resides shouldn’t define their ability to receive an organ transplant operation. With the establishment of the Nevada Transplant Institute, we will elevate all health care in Nevada and serve to correct health disparities in access within the diverse populations in desperate need of transplantation-related services.
Steven Peralta is the president of the Nevada Donor Network Foundation, a federally designated 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
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This story appeared in Las Vegas Weekly.