Transplant Psychiatry Service
Director: Lesley Omary, MD
Faculty and Professional Staff:
Sarah Carpenter, PMHNP
Katie Davidson, PMHNP
Daniel Daunis, MD
The Transplant Psychiatry Service is an integral part of the multidisciplinary Vanderbilt Transplant Center, and has been involved since the Center was developed over 30 years ago. Over 500 transplants (liver, lung, kidney and heart) were performed in 2018.
Service: Patients undergoing life saving organ transplantation experience a variety of psychological, social and interpersonal changes during the transplant process. Transplant Psychiatry’s main goal is to identify and address these concerns. We provide pre-transplant psychiatric assessments to identify mental health issues that could increase potential risks associated with organ transplantation. Also, we facilitate treatment and referrals to improve quality of life and outcomes for our patients. We follow patients both pre-and post-transplantation for medication management. In addition, we provide psychiatric assessments for potential living kidney and liver donors prior to donation to ensure minimal psychological risks to the donors. Patients are seen in both outpatient and inpatient settings.
Members of Transplant Psychiatry work closely and collaboratively with the organ transplant teams to evaluate and address the psychosocial issues our patients face. We participate fully in all transplant program and living donor committee meetings.
Education: Psychiatry residents and fellows are trained in transplant psychiatry through inpatient consults, outpatient clinic, and participation in transplant committee meetings.