In addition to not performing enough transplants, the hospital also failed to let patients know the status of the pancreas transplant program.
UNOS, the organization in charge of the transplant system in the United States, recently carried out a review of Sharp Memorial. During the review, UNOS discovered periods of more than six months during which there were no pancreas transplants performed. In 2005, only one pancreas transplant was performed. This was in spite of the fact that there were up to 12 people waiting for pancreas transplants. Meanwhile, in the same time frame, other hospitals with similar transplant programs performed up to eight pancreas transplants.During the past two years, two patients who were on the waitlist for a pancreas transplant died before the transplants could be performed. Sharp Memorial turned down two pancreases because there were no surgeons available to perform the transplant. The hospital went almost 15 months without performing a pancreas transplant.
Even though it had not performed a pancreas transplant in well over a year, Sharp Memorial continued adding patients to the waiting list. These patients were never informed that the pancreas transplant program had been essentially inactive for almost two years. UNOS was also not notified about the lack of pancreas transplants.
Following Sharp Memorial's refusal to voluntarily shut down its transplant program, UNOS put the hospital on probation. During the probationary period, the hospital is still allowed to perform pancreas transplants and receive organs. UNOS has told Sharp Memorial that it must notify all patients on the waitlist that there is only one surgeon performing pancreas transplants. Sharp Memorial is also required to keep UNOS better informed of the transplant situation at the hospital.
Sharp Memorial is the fourth hospital to be put on probation since 2000. At least one pancreas transplant must occur every six months in order for a pancreas transplant program to stay active.
Transplant programs have come under more scrutiny in the last year following the shut down of the University of California Irvine's liver transplant program last November. From 2004 to 2005, UCI was offered 122 livers but only 12 transplants were performed. As many as 30 patients died while waiting for a liver transplant. Surgeries couldn't be performed because UCI did not have an on-site surgical team.
UNOS is responsible for procuring organs for transplant surgeries. It also has a contract with the U.S. Department of Health that allows the organization to inspect transplant programs. If the programs inspected are not deemed to be run properly, UNOS has the authority to sanction the hospitals involved.