Patient Affairs Committee
All OPTN activities impact transplant patients either directly or indirectly. The OPTN Patient Affairs Committee advises the Board of Directors and engages with its committees from the perspectives of transplant candidates, recipients, living and deceased donors, and families. The Committee works independently, or with other Committees, to develop initiatives and policy proposals of significant importance to patients, including transplant access, outcomes, and safety. The Committee develops and provides patient perspective on OPTN educational content.
Chair
- Garrett W Erdle
- General Public Region 11
Vice Chair
- Molly J McCarthy
- General Public Region 6
Liaison
- Shandie Covington
- UNOS Employee
- shandie.covington@unos.org
| Members | Organization | Position | End Term Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denise Abbey | General Public Region 9 | Region 9 Representative | 6/30/2026 |
| Cheri Coleman | General Public Region 6 | Region 6 Representative | 6/30/2027 |
| Lauren Darensbourg | Division of Transplantation, HHS | Ex Officio (non voting) | 6/30/2025 |
| Mesmin Germain | Division of Transplantation, HHS | Ex Officio (non voting) | 6/30/2024 |
| Tonya R Gomez | General Public Region 10 | Region 10 Representative | 6/30/2026 |
| Lorrinda Gray-Davis | General Public Region 4 | Region 4 Representative | 6/30/2025 |
| Calvin Henry | General Public Region 3 | Region 3 Representative | 6/30/2025 |
| Rachel Hippchen | UNOS Employees | Support Staff - Comms | 6/30/2024 |
| Robert Johnson | Division of Transplantation, HHS | Ex Officio (non voting) | 6/30/2024 |
| Wendy Leavitt | General Public Region 5 | Region 5 Representative | 6/30/2025 |
| Sejal Patel | Mayo Clinic Hospital Arizona | At Large | 6/30/2024 |
| Andreas Price | Kentucky Organ Donor Affiliates | At Large | 6/30/2026 |
| Cathy C Ramage | Nemours Children's Hospital Delaware | At Large | 6/30/2025 |
| Kristen Ramsay | General Public Region 1 | At Large | 6/30/2024 |
| Julie Spear | General Public Region 8 | Region 8 Representative | 6/30/2024 |
| John Sperzel | General Public Region 1 | Region 1 Representative | 6/30/2026 |
| Jenny Templeton | General Public Region 11 | Region 11 Representative | 6/30/2027 |
| Justine van der Pool | General Public Region 2 | At Large | 6/30/2024 |
| Steven Weitzen | General Public Region 2 | Region 2 Representative | 6/30/2025 |
| Justin Wilkerson | General Public Region 7 | Region 7 Representative | 6/30/2026 |
- March 26, 2024 (PDF - 141 K)
- February 16, 2024 (PDF - 241 K)
- January 16, 2024 (PDF - 157 K)
- December 12, 2023 (PDF - 156 K)
- November 14, 2023 (PDF - 158 K)
- October 17, 2023 (PDF - 128 K)
- September 12, 2023 (PDF - 227 K)
- August 15, 2023 (PDF - 120 K)
- July 18, 2023 (PDF - 155 K)
- June 20, 2023 (PDF - 165 K)
- May 16, 2023 (PDF - 188 K)
- April 18, 2023 (PDF - 144 K)
- March 21, 2023 (PDF - 165 K)
- February 21, 2023 (PDF - 177 K)
- January 17, 2023 (PDF - 146 K)
- December 13 2022 (PDF - 164 K)
- November 15, 2022 (PDF - 163 K)
- October 18, 2022 (PDF - 168 K)
- September 15, 2022 (PDF - 209 K)
- August 16, 2022 (PDF - 252 K)
- July 21, 2022 (PDF - 121 K)
- June 21, 2022 (PDF - 119 K)
- May 17, 2022 (PDF - 117 K)
- April 19, 2022 (PDF - 124 K)
- March 30, 2022 (PDF - 138 K)
- March 11, 2022 (PDF - 246 K)
- March 10, 2022 (PDF - 274 K)
- February 15, 2022 (PDF - 149 K)
- January 18, 2022 (PDF - 175 K)
Looking for something else? Contact us at unoscommunications@unos.org or (804) 782-4800. We maintain an archive of historical OPTN documents.