Getting on the List: Questions to Ask Your Transplant Team

from http://www.transplantliving.org/beforethetransplant/list/questions.aspx

Getting on the List
Questions to Ask Your Transplant Team

Patients usually have many questions about transplantation and their health as they go through the transplant process. In addition to financial questions, below is a list of issues and concerns you may want to discuss with your transplant team:

Who will tell me and my family about the transplant process?
What other options do I have besides transplantation?
What are the risks of transplantation?
What are the benefits of transplantation?
What are the transplant success rates at this hospital?
How many transplants do you perform at this hospital each year?
How long has this hospital been doing transplants?
Does the hospital do living donor transplants?
Is a living donor transplant a choice in my case? If so, where will the living donor evaluation be done?
What is involved in the evaluation and testing process?
How do my test results affect whether or not I am put on the list?
How long is the local waiting list?
How do you decide whether you will accept an organ offered to me?
Who are the members of the transplant team and what are their jobs?
How many attending surgeons are available to do my type of transplant?
Do I need to stay close to the transplant hospital while I am put on the waiting list?
How soon must I be at the transplant hospital after being called?
Do I need to stay close to the hospital post-transplant? If so, for how long?
What medications will I take after I leave the hospital and how much will they cost?
What is the usual immunosuppressive treatment?
Is there a special nursing unit for transplant patients?
What is the length of hospitalization after my transplant?
Can I tour the transplant center?
What follow-up examinations and tests will I undergo? How frequently?
Will I need to return to the transplant center if I have complications?
Will the transplant center team advise my local health care providers of my care requirements?
Will I be asked to take part in research studies?
How much will the transplant cost? How much will I have to pay?
What financial coverage is accepted by the hospital (such as Medicare, Medicaid, private insurance, etc)?
What happens if my financial coverage runs out?
How do the costs vary if I have a living donor?