BWH's Lung Transplant TeamBWH Nurse - For and about the Nursing Staff of Brigham and Women's HospitalBWH's Lung Transplant TeamBWH Nurse - For and about the Nursing Staff of Brigham and Women's Hospital

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BWH's Lung Transplant Team

Profiles in Practice

One successful lung transplant recipient now has an 12-year-old son. Another is leading an active lifestyle after years in a wheelchair. And a third patient, a woman with cystic fibrosis who was on a ventilator for a week, defied the odds and received a donor match at the last possible minute. Now that woman has a two year old and is well on her way to recovery. These are the patient stories that make Kathleen A. Boyle's job as BWH's Lung Transplant Coordinator second to none.

“We have a great team here and we do incredible things,” said Boyle, an RN who has been in her current position for eight years. BWH's lung transplant team includes doctors, surgeons and nurses from Thoracic Surgery, Emergency Department, Operating Room and the Thoracic ICU on Tower 11.

Boyle, a BWHer for 25 years, joined Thoracic Surgery eight years ago after stints in the Tower on the seventh and 11th floors. As lung transplant coordinator, Boyle is charged with managing the hospital's lung recipient list, pre-transplant care and post-transplant care. She coordinates with referring physicians and hospitals, reviews the medical backgrounds of the referred patients to make sure they match up with organ recipient protocols and criteria and sees them for their initial BWH visits. Often times these patients come to BWH with emphysema, chronic obstruction pulmonary disease (COPD) and cystic fibrosis.

The BWH lung transplant list has approximately 100 patients from all over New England and New York waiting for a donor, and these patients come to BWH every three months as the lung transplant team monitors their health. Also, the team routinely sees about a dozen lung recipients who moved to Boston for one reason or another following their transplant surgery.

“The hard part is not being able to help everybody,” said Boyle, who explains that lungs are fragile and successful transplants don't result each time. “And, we have to rely on the willingness of donors and we're at the mercy of the tragic circumstances surrounding the donor,” Boyle added.

Despite the obstacles, Boyle and other dedicated members of the lung transplant team continually rise to meet the challenge. Last year, BWH performed 26 lung transplant operations, including five in one weekend.

“Our whole team, from our pharmacists, pulmonologists and pulmonary therapists to our surgeons, provides our patients with phenomenal care,” Boyle said.