Inconsistent Ranking of Heart Transplant Recipients Unjust

April 17, 2018

(Medscape) – Access to heart transplantation can be unfair in the United States, with patients in some regions ranking higher in priority because cardiologists “overtreat,” which makes patients look sicker and therefore more suitable for emergent intervention than others on the wait list, new research shows. Cardiologists are not doing anything wrong; the system encourages these practices, said William Parker, MD, Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellow at the University of Chicago. “I think they all have good intentions and are trying to do what’s best for their patients.”