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Multi-Organ Transplant Program

The Multi-Organ Transplant (MOT) program at BC Children’s Hospital was established in 2009 and is the only transplant program in Canada that provides integrated services to kidney, heart, lung, and liver transplant recipients under one program.
Our Program

The MOT program includes a comprehensive interdisciplinary team that strives to provide state-of-the-art care to patients living with a solid organ transplant. We endeavour to promote and improve the quality of life of children and youth living with an organ transplant through excellence in evidence-based clinical care, clinical and basic research, and education and advocacy. This includes: 

  • pre-transplant assessments
  • transplant surgery for kidney and heart transplant recipients
  • post-transplant follow-up care until age 19
  • transition to adult care
  • psychosocial supports

We are committed to enhancing the health and well-being of these children and youth in the MOT program, as well as their families, by providing excellent family-centered clinical care. We seek to rehabilitate children and youth with organ failure after transplantation, including attention to their physical and mental health, and their quality of life.

The MOT program is a training hub for aspiring physicians, surgeons, nursing and allied health professionals seeking to gain special expertise in transplantation care, and these trainees further enhance the quality of care provided under the MOT program. Research is critical to continue improving health and wellness outcomes after organ transplantation, so patients and families are offered different opportunities to participate in cutting-edge research. That includes discovering new ways to preserve graft function, identify and treat rejection earlier and better, addressing barriers to medication adherence, and improving quality of life for children with an organ transplant. Finally, we continue to advocate for organ donation and services that will benefit children and youth with organ failure, in collaboration with community and national partners.

Our Team

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Dr. Tom Blydt-Hansen

Director, Multi Organ Transplant Program

Medical Director, Kidney Transplant Service

Tom.BlydtHansen@cw.bc.ca

Dr. Blydt-Hansen is the Medical Director of the Solid Organ Transplant Program, and Clinical Director of the Kidney Transplant Service. He provides care of kidney transplant recipients and consultation for children with heart, liver and lung transplants. He has been with the MOT Program since October, 2014. 

Dr. Blydt-Hansen's Research Page


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Dr. Scott Wenderfer

Head of Pediatric Nephrology, Kidney Transplant Service
Scott.wenderfer@cw.bc.ca

Dr. Scott Wenderfer is the Head of the Division of Nephrology at B.C. Children's Hospital and a Clinical Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of British Columbia. He has a PhD in Molecular Immunology from the University of Cincinnati and a research interest in immune-mediated kidney diseases. He joined the MOT Program in 2022 where he provides care for patients before and after kidney transplantation.


 

Dr. Laura Kaufman

Kidney Transplant Service
Laura.Kaufman@cw.bc.ca



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Dr. Mina Matsuda-Abedini

Kidney Transplant Service
mmatsuda@cw.bc.ca

Dr. Mina Matsuda-Abedini is a Pediatric Nephrologist at BC Children’s Hospital, and a Clinical Associate Professor of Paediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia. She attended medical school at McGill University and completed her specialty training in Paediatrics at Montreal Children’s Hospital. She then completed a fellowship in Paediatric Nephrology at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF). She was a Pediatric Nephrologist at BC Children’s Hospital (2005-2012), then at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto for ten years prior to re-joining the Division of Nephrology at BC Children’s Hospital in 2022. Dr. Matsuda-Abedini’s research focuses on improving the care of children with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and kidney transplant, including successful transition of their care to adult colleagues.

 

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Dr. Kathryn Armstrong
Medical Director, Heart Transplant Service
Kathryn.Armstrong@cw.bc.ca

Dr. Armstrong obtained her Bachelor of Science & Undergraduate Medical Degree (MBChB) from the University of Aberdeen in 2002. She has also been recruited to the faculty as an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at UBC as a Pediatric Cardiologist specializing in Heart Function and Heart Transplant. Dr Armstrong enjoys teaching and hopes to become a mentor for cardiology fellows. Her academic interests are rooted in the field of autonomic dysfunction and heart transplant.

Dr. Armstrong's Research Page



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Dr. Derek Human
Heart Transplant
dhuman@cw.bc.ca

Dr. Human is the former Head of the Division of Cardiology at BC Children's Hospital, and a Clinical Professor, Department of Pediatrics, University of British Columbia. He remains in active clinical practice and is the past Medical Director of the heart function and transplantation service, which he has been a part of since 1994.

Dr. Human's Research Page



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Dr. Sylvie Lebel

Medical Director, Liver Transplant and Hepatology
sylvie.lebel.cw.bc.ca

Dr. Sylvie Lebel joined the MOT program in November 2021.



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Dr. Orlee Guttman
Liver Transplant 
OGuttman@cw.bc.ca

Dr. Guttman is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, as well as the Gastroenterology Fellowship Program Director. She has been involved in the MOT clinic since 2009, and is involved in the care of patients after liver transplantation.


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Dr. Mark Chilvers
Lung Transplant 
MChilvers@cw.bc.ca

Dr. Chilvers is the clinic director for the BCCH Cystic Fibrosis program, respirologist, and clinical associate professor at the University of British Columbia.  Dr. Chilvers works with the Multi Organ Transplant team to provide care and support for pre and post lung transplant patients. 

Dr. Chilvers' Research Page



Dr. Connie Yang
Lung Transplant 
Connie.Yang@cw.bc.ca

Dr. Yang's Research Page


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Dr. Hana Mitchell
Transplant Infectious Disease 
Hana.Mitchell@cw.bc.ca

Dr. Mitchell completed her Pediatric residency at McMaster University Children's Hospital in 2016 and Pediatrics Infectious Diseases fellowship at BC Children's Hospital in 2018.  She is a researcher at the Vaccine Evaluation Centre and has a special interest in preventing infections in children with immune compromise and using research to directly inform and improve patient care. She joined the MOT program in 2020.   


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Dr. Estelle Morin
Transplant Infectious Disease 
Estelle.Morin@cw.bc.ca

Dr. Morin trained at McGill University for medical school and completed her General Pediatrics and Pediatrics Infectious Diseases residencies in Edmonton. She has an interest in immunocompromised infectious diseases and immunizations. Dr. Morin joined the MOT program July of 2022.

Dr. Andrew MacNeily
Urologist
amacneily@cw.bc.ca

Dr. Kourosh Afshar
Urologist
Kafshar@cw.bc.ca

Dr. John Masterson
Urologist
jmasterson@cw.bc.ca


Jessie Ahuja
Transplant Coordinator (BScN, RN)
jahuja@cw.bc.ca

Jessie has been working at BC Children's since 1997 starting in bedside care of medical and surgical patients, and then moving over to Ambulatory care positions in gastroenterology and endoscopy.  She has been in the role of Transplant Nurse Coordinator since 2007.  Jessie assists in the coordination of care for all patients who require solid organ transplant (heart, liver, kidney or lung) in both the pre-transplant phase and the post-transplant phase.  




Sarah Fay
Transplant Coordinator (BScN, RN)
sfay@cw.bc.ca

Sarah has worked at the BC Children's Hospital in various nursing roles since 2006, before joining the Multi Organ Transplant Team as one of the Transplant Nurse Coordinators in 2016.  Sarah assists in the overall coordination of care of solid organ transplant (heart, kidney, liver and lung) patients and their families.  



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Marijana Kraljevic
Transplant Coordinator (BScN, RN, MSN)
MKraljevic@cw.bc.ca

Marijana has been working at BC Children's hospital since 1999. She has worked in various capacities in Cardiology and Medical programs, including bedside nursing, Clinical Nurse leader roles, and as a UBC Clinical Instructor.

She has been working in the Multi Organ Transplant program since 2015 and began a permanent position in 2022.

Marijana assists in the coordination of care for all patients who require solid organ transplant (heart, liver, kidney or lung) and their families.



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Dr. Katie Haubrich
Pharmacist (BSc Pharm, PharmD)
Kathryn.Haubrich@cw.bc.ca

In her role as the Clinical Pharmacy Specialist for Nephrology and Solid Organ Transplant, Katie cares for children with chronic kidney disease, and those with kidney, liver, heart and lung transplants to optimize medication therapy, and educate patients and their families about their medications. Her current research areas include immunosuppressant pharmacokinetics (how your body deals with the immune-suppressing drugs you need after a transplant) and monitoring for adverse effects of medications in transplant recipients.  She is also a clinical instructor at the University of British Columbia and mentor students and pharmacy residents training in hospital clinical practice. She completed her Bachelor of Pharmacy and Doctor of Pharmacy degrees at the University of Alberta, and has been with BC Children's Hospital since 2014, and in her current role with the MOT team since 2016. 




Dr. Anisha Varghese
Psychologist (PhD, R Psych)
Anisha.Varghese@cw.bc.ca

Dr. Anisha Varghese is a Registered Psychologist who completed her doctoral training in Clinical Psychology at the University of Waterloo in Ontario. Since moving to Vancouver for her residency training at BC Children’s Hospital, she has worked at a number of clinics and areas, which has included developmental disabilities (Sunny Hill Health Centre, Complex Developmental and Behavior Conditions Program), mental health, and medical psychology. Dr. Varghese has a particular passion for medical psychology and has worked in this department for five years. She enjoys working alongside youth with a wide array of chronic health conditions and their families in both inpatient and outpatient settings. She uses evidence-based strategies (cognitive behavioural, emotion focused, acceptance and commitment) to help build upon inherent strengths and resiliencies. Dr. Varghese is very much looking forward to joining the Multi-Organ Transplant and Renal teams.  



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Natalie Sousa
Dietitian (RD)
Natalie.Sousa@cw.bc.ca

Natalie is a Registered Dietitian who has been working within various areas of pediatrics at BC Children's Hospital. Natalie has recently joined the MOT team in February 2022 and is excited to be working with the team. Her role within the team is to develop nutrition care plans that meet the nutritional, medical and cultural needs of the patient and family during all stages of the transplant process. She is passionate about working with children and their families to optimize growth, improve nutrition status and provide education on healthy lifestyle choices. 




Kat Broad
Social Worker (MSW, RSW)
katherine.broad@cw.bc.ca 

Kat has been a social worker in pediatrics for the past 8 years covering a variety of clinical areas from the ICU to Acquired Brain Injury and General Pediatrics. With a Masters in Social Work from Flinders University, she has experience both here in Canada and her home country of Australia, and is an enthusiastic and devoted member of the team. Kat has specialised interest in trauma-informed practice, attachment and child development, and works hard to meet all her patients and families exactly where they are at in their transplant journey. When she's not working, you'll find Kat skyping her family back home, hiking, camping or running a marathon.



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Rita Marchildon 
Child life therapist (BA, CCLS)
rmarchildon@cw.bc.ca

Rita has been a child life specialist at BC Children's Hospital since 1989, and is certified with the Association of Child Life Professionals. She has been a part of the MOT program since 2015, and has often worked with families in the Renal Dialysis Unit.


Child life specialists promote effective coping with health care experiences through play, preparation, education, and self-expression activities. They provide emotional support for families, and encourage optimum development of children and youth facing a broad range of challenging experiences. Working collaboratively with the health care team, child life specialists address the psychosocial and emotional needs to make hospital experiences more positive for patients and their families.



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Julie Fairbairn
Physiotherapist (PT)
jfairbairn@cw.bc.ca

Julie has worked at BC Children's Hospital since 2005.  She works in a variety of clinical areas and joined the MOT team in 2015.  Physiotherapists work with children and their families in hospital after transplant to facilitate and support early mobilisation.  Julie assists in the rehab process by collaborating with the MOT team, patient and family to set individual goals that support motor development, physical activity, exercise and participation.  


Monica Ho

Research Coordinator
sotresearch@bcchr.ca


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Mike Guron
Research Assistant
Mike.Guron@bcchr.ca

Mike is a biochemistry graduate from UBC and joined the Blydt-Hansen research team as a Research Assistant in July 2018.  He is working on multiple projects focused on chronic kidney disease and renal transplants.  A few of the studies he is currently involved with include CKiD, PROBE, SOT biobank, HOPE SOT, and NAPRTCS.



Candice Wiedman
Research Assistant
Candice.Wiedman@bcchr.ca

Candice joined the Blydt-Hansen research team in July 2019. She works on multiple projects, including HOPE SOT, VIRTUUS, SOT Biobank, and NAPRTCS. 


Lani Coloma 

Nursing Unit Clerk, Pre-Transplant
Lani.Coloma@cw.bc.ca

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Miranda Lloyd-Kafka

Administrative & Data Entry Clerk
MOTadmin@cw.bc.ca


Ivy  Leong Liu

Booking & Data Entry Clerk, Post-Transplant
MOTclinic@cw.bc.ca

Follow Up

We follow most patients every 3 to 6 months in the clinic (children under 6 every 3 months), depending on your child's age, how far away you live, and your doctor's wishes. We will arrange a follow-up visit with you before you leave. 

If needed, proceed to the outpatient pharmacy located on the ground floor of the Ambulatory Care Building to pick up your medications. Please remember to order your medications 1-2 weeks before coming to your transplant clinic appointment.


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