Intermountain Health has opened a new clinic in Colorado to reduce wait times for patients in the state who are awaiting a kidney transplant.
Patients in Colorado can now complete pre- and post-operative appointments at Intermountain Health Good Samaritan Hospital in Lafayette. Previously, they had to travel to Salt Lake City — where Intermountain’s transplant program is based — for ongoing care. The new outreach clinic is expected to significantly reduce wait times for kidney transplants by enabling patients to be listed at more than one transplant center, according to an Oct. 13 news release.
More than 1,300 individuals in Colorado are awaiting a kidney transplant. The average wait time for a kidney transplant at Intermountain is less than one year, compared to a national average of three to five years.
“Our clinic is dedicated to giving Colorado patients faster access to transplants and top-quality care,” Amy Herbert, BSN, RN, program and nurse manager for kidney and pancreas transplant services at Intermountain, said in a news release. “This approach lets patients stay close to home both before and after their transplants, keeping their support systems intact while they receive excellent transplant care.”
