Melissa McQueen
Melissa McQueen
Executive Director / Founder Transplant Families
Transplant
Fontan Referral for Advanced Care
Patients with Fontan physiology may develop symptoms that require life-saving cardiac care such heart failure medicines, VAD support and/or transplantation. ACTION is working on timely referral for this cohort which is extremely important for optimal outcomes.
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Preparing Patients for Transplant & Maximizing Donor Acceptance
Transplant outcomes are improved if patients are strong going into the surgery. We have many projects focused on the right time for transplantation. Donor availability is an ACTION priority and can be improved by sharing experiences on donor acceptance and perfecting best donor recipient size match.
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A New Heart, A New Community: Raylan’s Story
From the moment Raylan was born, he fought for his life. Born with cardiomyopathy, Raylan was placed on the transplant list at seven weeks old. His parents, Bonnie and Craig, could only sit and wait for answers about their baby. After agonizing challenges, numerous roadblocks, and more than a few long nights, Bonnie and Craig brought their baby home and found a new community along the way.
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Finding Light in the Dark: Brynn’s Story
One weekend, Jimmie noticed his 16-month-old daughter, Brynn, was breathing strangely. One week later, Brynn was heading into surgery to be placed on a VAD. For half a year, Jimmie and his wife, Kristyn, waited by the phone for the transplant call. The family had many long nights, learned how to navigate their lives with a VAD, and finally reached the end of a dark tunnel.
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Learning networks in pediatric heart failure and transplantation
“Learning networks in pediatric heart failure and transplantation” was published June 17, 2021 in Pediatric Transplantation. This ACTION publication defines “learning networks” and how they’re different from traditional clinical research
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Psychological Outcomes in Pediatric Patients with VADs and Their Families
“Psychological Outcomes in pediatric patients with ventricular assist devices and their families: A systematic review” was published in Pediatric Transplantation on Mar 11, 2021. This systematic review of literature identified
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A Novel Method of Donor‒Recipient Size Matching in Pediatric Heart Transplantation
Did you know the second most common reason for refusal of donor hearts in pediatric heart transplantation is donor size mismatch? Donor-to-recipient size matching is almost exclusively weight-based, but there
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Right Heart Failure Considerations in Pediatric VADs
Right heart failure (RHF) after LVAD implantation can negatively impact a child’s transplant candidacy and survival. Successful LVAD outcomes require anticipation, prevention, early identification, and management of RHF, but there
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Cost-Effectiveness of Implantable VADs
The use of VADs as a bridge to transplant among children is increasing and is associated with high resource utilization. We know implanting a VAD before a child reaches a
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