Peter Schorsch
Doctors at Tampa General Hospital performed more kidney transplants in 2019 than ever before.
The record 358 transplants is a 42% increase from 2018 and makes Tampa General the No. 6 busiest center for kidney transplants in the country.
It also adds to TGH’s reputation as one of the premier transplant hospitals in the nation — by the middle of the year, the facility had surpassed 10,000 transplants over its history, one of about two dozen U.S. transplant centers to hit that mark.
The high volume doesn’t only look good on the hospital’s brag board, it’s also important to patient outcomes.
Numerous nationwide studies have shown that high-volume transplant centers offer improved safety records and care for patients, along with lower costs.
That has proved true for Tampa General. Every one of the 358 of kidney transplant patients it served last year survived the surgery and the 30-day recovery period that followed, a common measure of transplant surgery success.
“Research shows that when surgeons and surgical teams operate more often, they become more skilled,” said John Couris, president and CEO of Tampa General.
“Simply put, surgeons who work in a high-volume, busy academic medical center have opportunity to practice their skills. They have better outcomes, which ultimately leads to lower cost.”
Tampa General’s previous one-year record was in 2018, when the hospital transplanted 252 kidneys.
The number of kidney transplants last year includes 91 living donor kidney transplants, ranking TGH eighth in the nation for that type of transplant, according to the most recent publicly reported data.
Tampa General also performed more than 100 liver transplants last year, another milestone for the hospital.
“We’ve had an incredible year, meeting the needs of our community. We want to continue to provide the best care possible for our patients and families and save as many lives as we can,” said Dr. Kiran Dhanireddy, executive director of Tampa General’s Advanced Organ Disease & Transplantation Institute.
Tampa General, a 1007-bed nonprofit medical center, is one of the 10 busiest organ transplant centers in the nation. The hospital also performs heart, lung, adult and pediatric kidney and pancreas transplants.
