Canada: Saskatchewan kidney transplant program stalled until 2012

[Clark]

http://www.montrealgazette.com/health/Sask+kidney+transplant+program+stalled+until+2012/5081382/story.html

Sask. kidney transplant program stalled until 2012

Saskatchewan’s halted kidney transplant program is now almost certain not to be operational again until 2012.

Surgeries in the Saskatoon-based program had resumed on a limited basis — with transplants from living donors — in the fall of 2010 after the program had been suspended for more than a year.

However, only two transplants were performed in the province this year before the program was again put on hold because the one urologist who was part of the kidney transplant team was on sick leave.

The Saskatoon Health Region confirmed last week that physician officially retired at the end of June.

A Saskatoon-based surgeon is currently training as a transplant specialist in London, Ont. He is slated to return to the province in November, but it is likely the program will be up and running in Saskatoon only in the new year.

The vast majority of kidney transplants come from dead organ donors. Since the provincial program’s 2009 suspension, the province has been sending patients to Alberta for transplants.

Deb Jordan, executive director of acute and ambulatory care with the Saskatchewan Ministry of Health, said the province and the health region are now making arrangements for more living donor transplants to be performed in Alberta since there is little chance the program will resume before the arrival of the transplant specialist.

“That certainly is looking to be the case, which isn’t all that far off in terms of completion of that training, but nonetheless there is an interim period that we have to ensure that the continuity of the service continues,” said Jordan.

Preparatory and post-operation work for transplant patients continues to be done in Saskatchewan.

Kidney transplants have been performed in Saskatchewan by a team that includes a vascular surgeon and a urologist.

There were 35 to 50 transplants done annually in-province before the program was suspended two years ago when contract issues with the vascular surgeons arose. Its resumption on a partial basis was with the agreement of one vascular surgeon and the urologist.

Jordan said there is no other urologist available to take the retired physician’s place in the program.

A transplant specialist will be able to perform the operations without a vascular surgeon and urologist as part of the transplant team.

The province is also trying to recruit a second kidney transplant specialist. Jordan said there is sufficient workload in the province for two specialists, who will perform both live-donor and cadaveric transplants when the program resumes.

This year, 11 Saskatchewan patients have received transplants, with two operations in Saskatoon and the rest in Edmonton.

There are 87 Saskatchewan patients on the waiting list.

The problems of the kidney transplant program have been a political issue in the province, with the NDP accusing the Saskatchewan Party government of allowing the program to fail through neglect.