A new program at Northwestern Medicine aims to address racial disparities in organ transplantation by making lifesaving procedures more accessible to disadvantaged Black Americans. The African American Transplant Access Program (AATAP), created in 2019, is the first initiative of its kind designed to redesign the transplant process for Black patients facing structural and institutional barriers.
Black Americans are nearly four times more likely to develop kidney failure and heart failure compared to white Americans, yet they are much less likely to receive organ transplants. AATAP seeks to change this by providing targeted support to patients with “modifiable barriers to transplant access” related to distrust, psychosocial challenges, or poor health literacy.
The program is built on four key pillars: psychosocial support, trust-building, cultural congruence, and health literacy improvement. Since its inception, AATAP has helped nearly 300 patients, with 90 gaining access to transplant waiting lists and over 50 receiving kidney or liver transplants.
Dr. Daniela P. Ladner, a senior author of a paper describing the program, stated, “AATAP has shown that with a thoughtful approach and a dedicated physician champion, we can provide access to transplant for patients who would otherwise be left behind.”
Dr. Dinee C. Simpson, AATAP’s founding director, emphasized the program’s unique focus on Black Americans’ needs. “In the diverse city of Chicago, this program has shown to successfully facilitate access to transplantation for African American patients with kidney failure who face barriers,” she said.
The program’s creators hope its publication will inspire other transplant centers to adopt similar approaches to mitigate racial inequities in organ transplantation.
See “First-of-its kind program makes organ transplants more accessible to disadvantaged Black Americans” (August 27, 2024)
