University Hospital heart program on hold - for mold

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http://enquirer.com/editions/2001/07/03/loc_hospital_heart.html

Tuesday, July 03, 2001

Hospital heart program on hold

By Tim Bonfield

The Cincinnati Enquirer

Surgeons will not resume performing heart transplants at University Hospital

until sometime this fall, at least three months longer than initially

anticipated.

In February, hospital administrators announced that Cincinnati's only heart

transplant program would be suspended for three to four months so

construction crews could renovate a post-transplant intensive care unit that

had been contaminated with a common, sometimes dangerous fungus.

CAUTION THE KEY

Some forms of Aspergillis fungus, found in University Hospital rooms used by

transplant patients, can lead to dangerous infections in people with

suppressed immune systems. Doctors said the species detected at UC was not

dangerous, but caution prevailed.

The renovations are complete, but the program still lacks a surgical

director to perform the operations. A letter sent last week to insurance

companies and patients on waiting lists states that job candidates will be

interviewed beginning this month and transplants may resume this fall.

Heart transplant programs are among the most prestigious high-tech

services in all of medicine. Even a temporary halt in the program can be a

blow to the image of a medical center.

Normally, the UC program performs about 20 heart transplants a year.

It performed 17 in 2000, but only four so far this year.

Since the program was suspended, two patients went to Cleveland

Clinic to receive transplants. Four others have transferred to other

programs. As of Monday, 17 patients remained on University Hospital's heart

transplant waiting list.

Part of the program's problem has been related to Aspergillis fungus

found during routine renovations in rooms normally used by transplant

patients.

The other part of the problem: personnel.

Earlier this year, Dr. Tom Ivey, chairman of a group of doctors who

performed heart transplants and other cardiac surgeries at UC, decided to

move his practice to Christ Hospital, which does not have the necessary

permits to perform heart transplants.

Dr. Ivey has not been replaced but a new chairman of surgery at UC,

Dr. s, started his job this week. Among his first tasks will

be bringing in the people needed to restart the heart transplant program.