Providence Kidney Transplant
Our Approach
As the only kidney transplant program between Minneapolis and Seattle, the Providence Kidney Transplant team provides advanced care to people with complex kidney conditions, including those preparing for a kidney organ transplant.
We understand that navigating kidney disease and the transplant process can feel overwhelming. That’s why our transplant doctors and care team are dedicated to providing compassionate, personalized support to you every step of the way.
Our nephrologists collaborate closely with multidisciplinary specialists to evaluate kidney conditions in patients who may benefit from transplant surgery. From your first assessment through coordinated services, surgery and long-term care, we’re committed to providing a seamless, supportive experience tailored to your needs.
The Kidney Transplant program is part of a multi-organ transplant center at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center. You’ll receive comprehensive and personalized care and treatment for end-stage renal disease, delivered by our experienced transplant care team that supports you from early evaluation through long-term care.
We’re proud to have our transplant program as part of the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) and serve as an approved Medicare program.
If kidney transplant may be an option for you, our dedicated team will guide and support you through the transplant process with clarity and compassion.
Your kidney transplant journey may include:
- Education about your condition and treatment
- Collaboration with your health care providers
- Comprehensive evaluation
- Preparation for transplant
- Transplant surgery
- Long-term support and follow-up care
We recommend bringing a loved one for support throughout the transplant process, including educational sessions and evaluations, who will also be there during your recovery.
Our transplant coordinators help you arrange transplant education, evaluation testing and appointments with nephrologists and surgeons.
During your transplant evaluation, you’ll complete several assessments scheduled by our coordinators. The transplant program pays for lab, radiology and cardiac tests. Our transplant program doesn’t cover the cost of dental evaluations or cancer screening, which may be required for some patients depending on their age and risk level.
After reviewing your results and overall kidney health, our transplant specialists determine whether a transplant is recommended. If you’re eligible to receive a kidney transplant, our coordinators will walk you through next steps and what to expect moving forward.
Your doctor and care team will evaluate your condition to determine whether a kidney transplant is appropriate and safe. Providence transplant specialists consider many factors and criteria when evaluating if a transplant is recommended.
To be considered for a kidney transplant, patients must generally meet the following criteria:
- 18 years of age or older
- Absence of certain health conditions, like active cancer, liver or heart disease
- Diagnosis of end-stage renal disease
- Evidence of being socially responsible, willing and able to comply with medical treatment
- Have irreversible kidney failure with 20% or less of normal kidney function, requiring or close to requiring dialysis
- Of fair health, no active infections or other major medical problems
To ensure your safety and the success of your kidney transplant, our transplant team have certain health criteria, including:
- Having a weight with a body mass index (BMI) of less than 38
- Mental health conditions must be well managed with an active established care plan that includes routine psychology or psychiatry follow-up
- No current cancer or cancer with a high chance of recurrence
- If you’ve had cancer, a period of observation is required after treatment
- No nicotine usage and no active usage of recreational or illicit drugs, including marijuana
- No severe disease or other unmanaged medical problems, including:
- Blood vessel disease
- Heart disease
- Liver disease
- Lung disease
To help ensure the most successful transplant outcome, our team considers several ongoing care and support requirements, including:
- A good social support system, which may include a group of friends, family, co-workers, church members or other loved ones.
- Being able to understand and manage, or have a loved one help manage, the medical treatments needed for a successful transplant.
- This includes taking medications for life and needing regular lab testing and doctor visits.
- Demonstrating medical compliance by completing and attending all dialysis sessions as prescribed, attending doctor visits, taking medications as prescribed and completing the transplant evaluation as scheduled
- Having a primary care or diabetes care doctor to provide post-transplant care
- Having adequate insurance to cover the transplant, medications, office visits and lab testing needs following the surgery
- Having someone immediately available to support you after the transplant surgery.
- This includes loved ones who can help take you to and from all appointments and evaluations as well as assist with home care needs.
Providence accepts kidney transplant referrals from doctors throughout Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington, as well as doctors from outside of those states. We also accept self-referrals.
To be considered for kidney transplant surgery, contact our transplant team using the phone number above.
It takes tremendous courage and compassion to make the choice of becoming an organ donor. You can elect to be a living donor – offering a non-vital organ such as a kidney while you’re alive – or you can give permission for your organs and tissues to be donated after your death to help others in need.
Your decision to become an organ donor is profound and has the power to restore health, offer hope and transform lives.
To become a living kidney donor, complete the confidential online health history form. After the form is submitted, call Providence Kidney Transplant at the number located at the top of this page.
Choosing to donate a kidney while you’re living is an incredible act of generosity – and it comes with meaningful benefits for the person receiving your gift.
- You’ll have a life-changing impact. Your donation can dramatically improve someone’s health and quality of life.
- You may help someone avoid years on the transplant waiting list. Living donations can provide an immediate, compatible kidney, helping reduce or eliminate the long wait for a deceased-donor organ.
- You can improve the chances of a successful implant. Kidneys from living donors often function better and last longer than kidneys from deceased donors, giving recipients a stronger start and a better long-term outcome.
To donate a kidney to a relative or someone else, you must meet the following living donor requirements:
- At least 18 years old
- Good overall physical and mental health
You may be related to the recipient, but it’s not a requirement for organ donation.
All of your evaluation and hospitalization costs are paid for by the Providence Kidney Transplant program. The insurer of the person receiving the organ typically covers these medical expenses after the transplant.
Costs that you should consider when donating include:
- Childcare
- Lodging
- Lost wages
- Transportation
Financial help is available for your travel, lodging, meals and other non-medical expenses. You’ll receive information from the National Living Donor Assistance Center, which helps make your donation more affordable.
Paired kidney donation is a life-saving kidney transplant option for patients who have a willing living donor but aren’t a compatible match. Through a national matching program, incompatible donor-recipient pairs are linked with others in similar situations. This allows donors to give a kidney to someone they match with while their loved one receives a compatible kidney in return.
This innovative approach can significantly reduce transplant wait times, improve patient outcomes and expand access to living donor kidney transplants.
By learning about paired kidney donation and choosing to participate, donors and patients can help save lives and give more people a second chance at health.
Learn more about paired kidney donation from the Living Kidney Donors Network and the Alliance for Paired Kidney Donation.
Whether you receive or donate an organ, Providence financial coordinators will guide you through the process to ensure a successful experience.
Our services include:
- Answering your insurance-related questions
- Assessing your coverage to ensure that surgery and recovery costs, including post-transplant medications, are covered
- Identifying the best financial plan that works for you
We’ve created videos to provide education and information as it relates to receiving a kidney transplant through Providence Sacred Heart Transplant Services.
Get started by watching the pre-transplant education videos.
You can find helpful resources related to organ transplantation from these organizations:
Our Spokane Kidney Transplant care team ensures you have the support and continued care you need. We connect you with additional Providence locations and related services across the region as part of your tailored care plan.
Some of the doctors, providers and specialists involved with our Kidney Transplant program include:
- Advanced practitioners
- Anesthesiologists
- Chaplains
- Diabetes education specialists
- Endocrinologists
- Financial coordinators
- Hospitalists
- Intensivists
- Living donor coordinators and specialists
- Nephrologists
- Nephrology social workers
- Nurse practitioners
- Pharmacists
- Physician assistants
- Radiologists
- Registered nurses
- Renal dietitians
- Technicians
- Transplant coordinators
- Transplant surgeons
- Urologists
- Vascular surgeons
Patient Stories
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Compassion of a coworker: A living organ donation storyHear a compassionate story about kidney donation and learn more about the importance of living donors.
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Married couple really are the perfect match!Becoming a living organ donor is a decision that for many can take some time. Or for Margie Arnzen, maybe just seconds.
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Tiffany and DaisyMeet Tiffany and Daisy in this short video from Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center & Children's Hospital. You’ll hear how much it matters to people who have received the most generous gift of all – the gift of life.
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