A Transplant Center’s Dedicated Duo

When Jennie Foertch, R.N., and Alan Stewart, R.N., walk through the waiting room of the Cleveland Transplant Center, the eyes of former patients light up. Hands wave and smiles brighten faces as the two stop for a quick chat, offering a pat on the knee and a word of encouragement.

Cleveland Clinic Lung Heart/Lung Transplant Coordinators Foertch and Stewart are a dedicated duo, a pair who help save lives for a living. From the time a patient is first referred to the Clinic until the day of transplant, these two stay involved, getting to know each patient, seeing them bi-monthly for checkups, becoming friends. The work is non-stop. They put in long hours with very little sleep. And they love it. "On Friday nights, we say: ‘Only two more working days until Monday,’" jokes Stewart.

But the long hours are no joke. These two are "on call" for donors and transplant recipients around the clock. When a donated organ becomes available, they begin a series of phone calls that are just the start of the exacting process of coordinating all the teams necessary for a successful transplant.

Lining up the transplant team, chartering jets and ambulances, and making sure the operating room and staff are ready are just a few of their long night’s tasks. "If we are working two or three transplants at once, we are setting up six or seven planes at a time," says Foertch. There is a four-hour window between the time the donated organ is removed and when it must be transplanted. "The clock starts ticking when they clamp the aorta," she says. "It’s a fine art to try to time it perfectly." She adds with a smile, "It’s organized chaos."

Transplant Center Administrator Art Thomson says Foertch and Stewart are typical of all the hard working folks in The Cleveland Clinic’s transplant programs. "They are a highly qualified, passionate, extremely dedicated lifeline for the patients. You wouldn’t find many people who get enthused about being up all night coordinating transplants," says Thomson.

If a call comes in the middle of the night, they immediately rush into their home offices where a bank of phones, a computer and fax machine crank up. "We can be on the phones for eight hours at a time, dealing with the donor center, getting lab updates," says Stewart.

"Sometimes we can’t even drive into work because there is so much phone action," says Foertch. "I’ve had to pull my car over and do business from the parking lot of a McDonald’s or Giant Eagle."

Informing a wait-listed patient that his or her time has come is a thrill for Foertch. "It’s exhilarating to make the call. It’s my favorite part." There are hours of boredom and moments of panic, says Foertch. "Afterwards you are either dead tired and ready to sleep or your adrenaline is so high you can’t sleep."

The two have files of thank-you notes and they find the accolades amazing. "Our patients say ‘thank you’ so much and we’re just doing our jobs," says Foertch. "It’s touching. We’re just the worker bees, the middlemen."

Fifty-nine year old Fred Saleman was on the receiving end of one of Foertch’s calls. Saleman and his wife, Mary Joyce, flew in from New York and a few hours later he was in the operating room sedated. Within seconds of removing his lung, a call came informing the doctors that the donor had cancer and the lung could not be used. The medical team kept Saleman stable and under sedation, all the while doing something they had never done before. "We put out an ‘urgent need’ call," says Foertch. "These sorts of calls are often used in heart and liver transplants, but not in lung transplants."

After contacting all the Ohio organ procurement organizations, the team found a donor. Forty-eight hours later, Saleman had a successful operation. He knew nothing of the efforts under way on his behalf. "I just took a nap for a couple of days," he jokes. "But my wife saw it all." For Foertch and Stewart, it was just another roller-coaster day at the office.

Source: Cleveland Clinic Magazine, Summer 2004