St. David’s North Austin becomes first Texas hospital to join elite group of transplant centers

AUSTIN, Texas - St. David's North Austin Medical Center is now the first in Texas to join an elite group of transplant centers across the US.

The Kidney Transplant Center at St. David’s North Austin has joined the Donor Care Network Centers of Excellence, a national group of high-performance transplant centers. 

St. David's North Austin Medical Center is now the first in Texas to join an elite group of transplant centers across the US. (St. David's North Austin )

The Donor Care Network, a subsidiary of the National Kidney Registry, is committed to ensuring all kidney donors are treated with courtesy and respect, and provides extensive guidelines to make donation safer, easier and more convenient, says St. David's. 

"We are proud to join this elite group of living donor programs and help make kidney donation more accessible for Central Texans," Jacqueline Lappin, M.D., surgical director of the Kidney Transplant Center, said. "As a National Kidney Registry member center, we are able to expand the pool of kidney transplants from living donors, thus improving donor-recipient matches for longer lasting transplants."

The National Kidney Registry facilitates paired kidney exchange and making living kidney donation safer and easier. Paired kidney exchange allows donors not compatible with their recipient to exchange their kidney with a donor compatible anywhere in the United States, says St. David's.

St. David’s North Austin Medical Center ranks among the top 25 National Kidney Registry member centers across the country due to high transplant volume, says the hospital.