“Opportunity Lost” thanks to Nashville and Tennessee
Posted 01-28-2013 at 09:52 AM by Kabluey
Memphis has been home to one of the top-10 liver transplant programs in America. Steve Jobs selected Memphis for his liver transplant.
That status will likely end thanks to a state decision. The state is Tennessee, and the capital is Nashville. Unfortunate news, apparently petty politics. This from the Memphis Flyer:
“Eason, director of the center, did a life-saving liver transplant for Apple co-founder Steve Jobs in 2009 that extended his life two-and-a-half years. It was one of roughly 120 such transplants the center did each year under the old statewide organ-sharing agreement. When the Jobs story finally trickled out, it gave Methodist, the transplant center, and Memphis some bragging rights, especially against Nashville, which happens about as often as the University of Memphis rules the state in football.
In December, however, Eason was notified that the new sharing agreement, supported by the Department of Health and Human Services, Vanderbilt, and the Memphis-based Mid-South Transplant Foundation, was final.
“I believe a political decision was made, not an evidence-based decision,” he said.
Meaning what? I asked.
“I will leave it at that. People in Nashville won at the expense of people in Memphis and West Tennessee. There was misinformation that confused and prevented the groundswell of community support.”
Eason estimates that the number of liver transplants performed here each year will fall to 60 or less. Methodist and affiliated Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital have been one of the top 10 transplant programs in the country for 40 years. That status, Eason says, is likely to end. The December fall-off is likely to continue. Meanwhile, Tennessee Donor Services based in Nashville had 14 liver donors. Nine of those went to Vanderbilt and five went out of state. In the past, Methodist would have split those with Vanderbilt.
“We have a young man, an adolescent, waiting at Le Bonheur since December 13th with the highest [eligibility] score in the state, but he can’t get access to those organs unless they are turned down by Vanderbilt, which does not have a pediatric liver transplant program.”
... As the public face of the transplant center, he is not a self-promoter. I (and others) have tried for more than a year to get him to tell the Steve Jobs story in depth, but he won’t do it.
….”
The good news is that, in the recent past, LeBonheur has developed world-class ambitions, similar to St. Jude and the Memphis Zoo. Hopefully, that pursuit continues. There is a lot of promise in the city, despite possible obstacles from its state. Thanks to Dr. Eason and Methodist for helping to create a world-reknowned program in my hometown. Sorry the state can’t support us.
That status will likely end thanks to a state decision. The state is Tennessee, and the capital is Nashville. Unfortunate news, apparently petty politics. This from the Memphis Flyer:
“Eason, director of the center, did a life-saving liver transplant for Apple co-founder Steve Jobs in 2009 that extended his life two-and-a-half years. It was one of roughly 120 such transplants the center did each year under the old statewide organ-sharing agreement. When the Jobs story finally trickled out, it gave Methodist, the transplant center, and Memphis some bragging rights, especially against Nashville, which happens about as often as the University of Memphis rules the state in football.
In December, however, Eason was notified that the new sharing agreement, supported by the Department of Health and Human Services, Vanderbilt, and the Memphis-based Mid-South Transplant Foundation, was final.
“I believe a political decision was made, not an evidence-based decision,” he said.
Meaning what? I asked.
“I will leave it at that. People in Nashville won at the expense of people in Memphis and West Tennessee. There was misinformation that confused and prevented the groundswell of community support.”
Eason estimates that the number of liver transplants performed here each year will fall to 60 or less. Methodist and affiliated Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital have been one of the top 10 transplant programs in the country for 40 years. That status, Eason says, is likely to end. The December fall-off is likely to continue. Meanwhile, Tennessee Donor Services based in Nashville had 14 liver donors. Nine of those went to Vanderbilt and five went out of state. In the past, Methodist would have split those with Vanderbilt.
“We have a young man, an adolescent, waiting at Le Bonheur since December 13th with the highest [eligibility] score in the state, but he can’t get access to those organs unless they are turned down by Vanderbilt, which does not have a pediatric liver transplant program.”
... As the public face of the transplant center, he is not a self-promoter. I (and others) have tried for more than a year to get him to tell the Steve Jobs story in depth, but he won’t do it.
….”
The good news is that, in the recent past, LeBonheur has developed world-class ambitions, similar to St. Jude and the Memphis Zoo. Hopefully, that pursuit continues. There is a lot of promise in the city, despite possible obstacles from its state. Thanks to Dr. Eason and Methodist for helping to create a world-reknowned program in my hometown. Sorry the state can’t support us.
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