HEART TRANSPLANT
“The transplant team continued to extend its
outreach efforts and expand its referral base,
which accounted for the growth in the number
of patients on the transplant wait list in 2016,”
said Dr. Gonzalez-Stawinski.
A critical support program for the transplant
service, the ventricular assist device (VAD)
program was reinvigorated in 2016. A total of
66 patients benefited from VADs, external
mechanical pumps that assist the heart in pumping
blood through the body. The Baylor Dallas VAD
program made history when Brian Tyo became the
first patient in North Texas to receive an artificial
heart as a bridge to heart transplantation.
“Patients came to us in 2016 from across the
country and around the world,” said Dr. Hall.
“We were willing to look at complicated,
higher-risk cases that other centers may have
been unwilling or unable to accommodate.
Our outcomes were exactly as expected for a high-
risk transplant center. In addition, our reputation
continued to grow both regionally, nationally
and globally. That’s why we were able to attract
outstanding specialists to our transplant team.”
The transplant team grew to include seven
cardiologists, with more expected to join in the
coming months. Dr. Hall attributed the medical
community’s increasing interest in the Baylor
Dallas heart transplant program to the variety
and volume of cases and to a robust research
initiative. “Under the leadership of Dr. Brian
Lima, director of clinical research for heart
transplantation and mechanical circulatory
support and surgical director for the ventricular
assist device program at Baylor Dallas, heart
transplant research protocols, presentations and
publications grew exponentially,” said
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Dr. Gonzalez-Stawinski. “For example, 22
abstracts submitted to the International Society for
Heart & Lung Transplantation were accepted for
presentation in 2016, compared to eight in 2015.”
Recognizing that heart transplantation is the
treatment of last resort for cardiac patients,
Baylor Dallas increased resources in 2016 to
support the growing patient volumes in the
Centers for Advanced Heart and Lung Disease.
A comprehensive array of services including
consultation, diagnostic testing, chronic disease
management and rehabilitation were offered
to patients in this conveniently located facility.
Baylor Scott & White – Fort Worth also saw
increased patient volumes in its outpatient clinic
where consultations, diagnosis and education
were provided to cardiac patients. Members of
the Baylor Dallas heart transplant team extended
their expertise throughout Texas by traveling to
outreach clinics in Longview, Abilene, Amarillo
and Lubbock. The Baylor Dallas transplant
team began forging new relationships in 2016
with other regional health care providers. These
agreements enabled patients who met established
criteria for VAD or transplant to be referred to
Baylor Dallas for evaluation and care planning.
Using Baylor Dallas VAD protocols and processes,
patients returned to the clinic at their referring
location for management by a nurse practitioner.
Thanks to the dual listing program, patients
on the wait list at other transplant centers were
also eligible to be added to Baylor Dallas’ list,
expanding their opportunity to find a suitable
heart. A shared caring arrangement with other
dual listing centers enabled patients who received
a heart transplant at Baylor Dallas to return to
their original transplant center for follow-up care.