The top-rated kidney and liver transplant program in Pennsylvania has a new home.
The nationally recognized program, which had performed more than 3,000 organ transplants at the now-closed Hahnemann University Hospital in Center City Philadelphia, is moving to the new Tower Health Transplant Institute at Reading Hospital.
According to Tower Health, the program's team of surgeons, hepatologists and nephrologists have joined the Tower Health Medical Group and will provide services in West Reading and Philadelphia. Inpatient services will be provided at Chestnut Hill Hospital in Philadelphia and Reading Hospital. Outpatient services will be provided in Center City Philadelphia and Reading. The institute has incorporated the Center for Liver Disease that was part of the Hahnemann program.
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"With the unfortunate closure of Hahnemann, our goal was to create a home for this nationally-ranked kidney and liver transplant program so it could continue serving patients in eastern Pennsylvania and surroundings areas," said Clint Matthews, president and CEO of Tower Health, in a statement. "We are pleased to welcome these 10 outstanding surgeons and physicians, along with experienced clinical and support staff. These specialists chose to come to Tower Health because they liked what they saw in our people, our facilities, and our vision."
While at Hahnemann, the transplant program became the only 5-star-rated kidney transplant program in Pennsylvania and the third best kidney transplant program in the nation as ranked by the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients, based on patient survival with a functioning kidney one year after transplant, according to Tower Health.
"Our entire group is delighted to remain a team and to join the preeminent Tower Health system that is setting national standards for healthcare quality and patient satisfaction. We are deeply committed to excellence in clinical care, improving access to transplant services, and to the expanding academic mission of Tower Health," said Dr. David J. Reich, medical director of the Tower Health Transplant Institute and professor of surgery at Drexel University College of Medicine.
Dr. Santiago J. Muñoz, an internationally recognized hepatologist, is medical director of liver transplant program and Center for Liver Disease Tower Health Transplant Institute, as well as The Donald Berkowitz Professor of Medicine at Drexel University College of Medicine.
Dr. Karthik M. Ranganna, a nephrologist, is medical director of kidney transplant and associate professor of medicine at Drexel University College of Medicine.
The Center for Liver Disease will provide comprehensive care and leading-edge therapies to manage and treat a variety of liver diseases," Munoz said in a news release.
Pending approval by the Unified Network of Organ Sharing, transplants could begin by the end of 2019, Tower Health said. Outpatient services, such as patient pre-surgical evaluation and monitoring and transplant follow-up will begin this month. Communications are underway with patients about the new locations for their care and how to ensure uninterrupted care.
"We are thrilled that Tower Health is able to preserve, and will work to grow, one of the best transplant programs in the country," Matthews said.