The Transplantation Communication Workgroup (TCW) is a collaboration of Northwestern University faculty from the Institute for Healthcare Studies and the Division of Organ Transplantation. The TCW focuses on research to advance scientific knowledge of the role of the communication process in organ donation and transplantation. Communication between candidates, recipients, donors and the transplant team is complex, compounded by unknown risks, and fraught with ethical concerns. The communication process is shaped in large part by socio-cultural factors and power dynamics; therefore, facilitating communication can help reduce disparities. Our group examines issues including health literacy, numeracy, and informed consent in kidney, liver and other organ systems. By describing current practices, constructing measures to assess knowledge, and developing innovative interventions to improve communication, the TCW strives to improve donor and recipient decision-making, ensure ethically sound clinical practice, and ultimately improve long-term health outcomes.

Leaders
Elisa Gordon , PhD, MPH
Research Associate Professor
Institute for Healthcare Studies
Division of Organ Transplantation, Department of Surgery
Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University

Juan Carlos Caicedo , MD
Transplant Surgeon,
Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Organ Transplantation Center
Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery, Transplant Surgery Division, Feinberg School of Medicine

Members
Nicole Beauvais, PA
Kenzie Cameron, PhD, MPH
Amna Daud, MD, MPH
John Friedewald, MD
John Franklin, MD
Bing Ho, MD
Mike Ison, MD, MS
Colleen Jay, MD
Raymond Kang, MA
Daniela Ladner, MD, MPH
Anton Skaro, MD, PhD

Publications & Presentations
Gordon EJ, Caicedo JC. Ethnic Advantages in Kidney Transplant Outcomes: The Hispanic Paradox at Work? Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation. 2008 (In Press). [PMID: 19075197] e-pub Dec 15, 2008. (http://ndt.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/24/4/1103)

Gordon EJ, Wolf MS. Health Literacy Among Kidney Transplant Recipients. Progress in Transplantation. Special Issue: Education in Transplantation. 2009;19(1):25-34.

Devraj R, Gordon EJ. Health Literacy and End-Stage Renal Disease. American Journal of Kidney Diseases. 2009 (In Press).

Gordon EJ, Ladner D, Caicedo JC, Franklin JE. Disparities in Kidney Transplant Outcomes. Seminars in Nephrology. 2009 (In Press).

Caicedo JC, Gordon EJ, E Wang, Daud A, Abecassis M. Increasing Kidney Transplantation Rates in Hispanics through a Culturally Sensitive Hispanic Approach. Accepted for poster presentation at session: Non-Organ Specific: Disparities to Outcome and Access to Healthcare. American Transplant Congress, June 2, 2009; Boston, Massachusetts