Saint Barnabas Kidney Transplant to Be Broadcast Live to a London Audience

Livingston, N.J. - For the first time, a live kidney transplant operation will be broadcast to a public audience in the UK.

On February 6, visitors to the Science Museum’s Dana Centre in South Kensington, London, England will have the remarkable opportunity to participate in a drama not previously available to the public at any European venue -- the chance to watch and ask questions during live kidney transplant surgery.

The surgery, taking place literally an ocean away at Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, NJ, an affiliate of the Saint Barnabas Health Care System, will be broadcast to the London audience as part of the award-winning educational program developed by Liberty Science Center known as Live From Kidney Transplant. Liberty Science Center is the NJ-NYC region’s largest science education center and an acclaimed innovator in the science museum field, nationally and internationally.

Stuart Geffner M.D., Director of Transplant Surgery for the Saint Barnabas Health Care System, will perform the surgery in the operating rooms of Saint Barnabas Medical Center at 2 p.m.

Shamkant Mulgaonkar M.D., Chief of the Transplant Division for Saint Barnabas Health Care System, will be present in London for further discussion of the live surgery. A highly regarded expert in kidney and pancreas transplants, Dr. Mulgaonkar will be on hand to answer questions from the audience.

Liberty Science Center’s Director of Online Education Nancy Butnick will be also present at the Dana Centre to explain the background of the case, describing procedures, and acting as moderator of questions to surgeons, nurses and anaesthesiologist

Using teleconferencing, the audience will observe the laparoscopic removal of the donor kidney, preparation of the kidney and its implantation into the recipient. Oversized plasma screens and state-of-the-art telecommunications systems will allow medical professionals and audience members to see and hear one another throughout the surgery. Additionally, medical instruments, and materials used in the approximately 2-1/2 hour surgery will be available for examination at the Dana Centre.

The Live From Kidney Transplant program is made possible through the generous support of BD and Roche. This unique learning opportunity is offered by Liberty Science Center as a complement to its other successful Live From… programs, Cardiac Classroom and Neurosurgery. The series is made possible from a grant from Johnson & Johnson Foundation.

February 5, 2007

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