UNOS approves opening after ECMC voluntarily suspended program
BUFFALO, NY – Sept. 5, 2014 – Erie County Medical Center today announced it resumed its living-donor program at the Regional Center of Excellence for Transplantation and Kidney Care. The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) stated it will continue to monitor the program.
ECMC officials proactively suspended the living-donor program May 27 after the unrelated death of an organ donor. In the spring of 2013, a living donor successfully provided a transplant organ to a family member. About six months later, the donor died from an overdose of an illegal drug.
After conferring with the national United Network for Organ Sharing, the non-profit organization that regulates live organ donation in the United States, ECMC decided to briefly suspend living donor recoveries until the hospital and the network could review the matter.
ECMC alerted all potential living donors and potential recipients of living donor organs in writing about the suspension and through personal contact. Those patients had a choice of awaiting reactivation of living donor recoveries or transferring to another transplant program.
ECMC officials emphasized that all other transplant services at the Regional Center of Excellence for Transplantation and Kidney Care continued uninterrupted. Patients came for checkups, dialysis continued and other transplants from non-living donors took place.
“ECMC proactively decided to suspend living donor recoveries while a full investigation was completed and guidance from UNOS could be obtained,” said Richard C. Cleland, president/chief operating officer and interim chief executive officer, ECMC Corp. “We’re pleased that the program review is complete and we are cleared to resume the ECMC transplant program. This was a blip in an otherwise smoothly operated program at our transplant center, of which we are justifiably proud. Our families and patients can have every confidence in our outcomes and high level of service.”
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