UPMC transplant program on probation

The federal Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network placed UPMC’s transplant program on… The federal Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network placed UPMC’s transplant program on probation Tuesday following a hepatitis C-infected kidney transplant that the center performed earlier this year.

UPMC voluntarily shut down its living-donor kidney transplant program in May after a recipient received an infected kidney. The program reopened in July when the United Network for Organ Sharing and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, federal agencies that oversee organ transplants, both concluded federal investigations into UPMC’s transplant program.

After a board meeting on Monday, OPTN’s Board of Directors put UPMC on probation, signifying that UPMC violated OPTN policies and bylaws or had a serious lapse in patient safety. UPMC is still permitted to conduct transplants but with oversight from UNOS.

The discipline comes after UPMC performed a living-donor kidney transplant that resulted in the kidney recipient contracting hepatitis C.

Michael Yocabet, the kidney recipient, and Christina Mecannic, the kidney donor, filed negligence lawsuits against UPMC Presbyterian hospital on Sept. 21. The suit charges that UPMC knew of the infected kidney and allowed the procedure to go on.

After the kidney transplant, UPMC added new steps in the transplant process, consisting of redundancies so that more people look at the screenings before the transplant occurs, UPMC spokeswoman Jennifer Yates said.

“[The probation] gives UNOS the opportunity to make sure we’re putting our plan into place and that it’s working,” Yates said.

She said the probation serves as oversight and allows UNOS to keep a close eye on the program, monitor the transplant process and make sure everything is working as it should.

OPTN/UNOS president John Lake said in a statement released Tuesday that the probation comes after a series of medical peer reviews.

“The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center has identified a need for process improvement in communicating key clinical information among transplant staff members. While the center has acted quickly and responsibly to identify and implement a corrective action plan, we believe probation is warranted,” he said.

Yates said that UPMC expected some sort of action from UNOS and is welcoming their oversight of the program.