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work with patients to improve compliance if they have a history of noncompliance with dialysis. Our goal is to help patients get to t he poi nt where t hey 've done everything they need for the selection committee to consider them for listing for a new organ." T he pre -t ra n spla nt coord i n at ors present patients during the selection committee's week ly meetings, when the multidisciplinary team gathers to discuss candidates for transplant. They summarize each patient's history and evaluation process for the committee. "Once listing takes place, we maintain an active wait list of patients, which cur- rently features more than 300 people on the adult kidney transplant list alone," Rivera says. "We maintain up-to-date information for each patient and help ensure that they continue to undergo any necessary routine testing. Our objective is to make sure every patient on the list is always ready to receive a transplant if an organ becomes available." POST-TRANSPLANT CARE After receiving a transplant, patients transition into the care of a post-trans- plant coordinator. "Before patients are discharged from the hospital, we educate them on how to document their temperature, blood pressure and heart rate; how to recognize signs and symptoms of infection; and what rejection means," says Lavell Jones, MSN, RN, CCTC, Living Donor Coordinator at the Upstate Transplant Program. "This helps them stay on the right track to have a successful transplant." The post-transplant coordinator also ensures patients leave the hospital with the medications they need to maintain the donated organ and prevent rejection. A patient meets with the post-transplant coordinator and a physician in the clinic on a regular basis, as often as twice a week at first. The post-transplant coor- dinator monitors the patient's lab results, discusses the results with the physician, and relays changes in therapy — such as adjustments to immunosuppressant dosage — to the patient. Moving forward, the post-transplant coordinator serves a s t he patient 's point of contact for questions about symptoms, medications and lab results. " Initia l ly, patients fol low up w ith the transplant surgeon, and then later, long-term follow-up takes place with the transplant nephrologist," Rivera says. "Consequently, the transplant coordi- nators work closely with the physicians in our program. Once patients are stable, few medication changes are necessary. If a referring nephrologist is interested in assuming that aspect of long-term care for the patient, our team works with the nephrologist to facilitate the transition of care back to the community nephrologist." LIVING DONOR CARE COORDINATION The Upstate Transplant Program's vol- umes are increasing, and that's especially true of living donor transplants. In 2021, the program's organ transplants increased by 50%, and living donor transplants rose by 78%. Living donors work with a living donor coordinator as they move through the donation process. While Jones assists with care coordina- tion for organ recipients, she specializes in living donor coordination, caring for the donor from referral to donation. " W hen a referra l a rrives, I screen the donor for factors that might rule out donation, review their cases with another provider on the team to deter- mine whether we can move forward, and then coordinate lab testing, collection of a 24-hour urine test and evaluation," From left, Rauf Shahbazov, MD, PhD, MRCS Ed, FEBS; Sharon Loerzel, PA; Matthew Hanlon, MD; and Reza Saidi, MD, FACS, FICS, with the da Vinci Xi surgical system. Dr. Rauf Shahbazov, surgeon and assistant professor of surgery at Upstate Medical University, speaking with Transplant Coordinator Tanya Mercurio, MSN, RN. 0 8 ❱❱❱❱❱ C O V E R S T O R Y