UPMC disciplines 2 members of kidney transplant team

[Karol]

UPMC disciplines 2 members of kidney transplant team

Thursday, May 26, 2011

By Jonathan D. Silver, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

UPMC today confirmed it has disciplined a surgeon and a nurse involved in a kidney transplant earlier this month in which a positive test result for hepatitis C in the live donor that might have stopped the surgery was missed by the medical team until it was too late.

In addition, the hospital system said it has voluntarily suspended its prestigious live-donor liver program as a precaution. UPMC temporarily shut down its live-donor kidney program following the hepatitis C snafu.

That program remains closed.

UPMC spokeswoman Jennifer Yates today refused to divulge any details about the identity of the surgeon or nurse. She would not characterize the demotion or release specifics of the suspension. It is not clear whether the surgeon and nurse were part of the team operating on the kidney donor or the recipient.

"It's a personnel issue, and I really can't say anything more than that," Ms. Yates said this morning.

On May 6, UPMC informed federal authorities about the hepatitis C problem, prompting county, state and federal investigations, as well as a review by the United Network for Organ Sharing.

Ms. Yates could not say when the live-donor liver program was halted, but said it was a temporary situation.

"We also voluntarily suspended the live-donor liver program as a precautionary measure. There have been no issues with that program," she said.

Ms. Yates did not have information on what prompted UPMC to take that step.

However, on May 11, two days after news that a kidney had been transplanted from an infected donor, Elizabeth Concordia, UPMC's executive vice president, briefed board members of the hospital system on the situation.

She told them, according to one board member, that the positive test result for hepatitis C was missed by two people on the transplant team during a dozen steps in the process. She called that a "systemic" problem in the way the protocols failed in that one case, the board member said.

Ms. Yates said there is no date established for restarting its live-donor transplants. The kidney program is on hold at least until the UNOS review is complete.

"Once we hear something from them we'll make a decision," Ms. Yates said.

Jonathan D. Silver: jsilver@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1962.


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