Experiencing Transplants as a Student and a Daughter

Seemab Imran, Pharm.D. Candidate 2024

I found myself in the unique situation of completing my APPE rotation in heart transplant pharmacy while my mother underwent the process of getting a liver transplant. My mom had already been on the transplant list for about a year before she was able to get her transplant. A patient’s position on the transplant list can change based on factors like their health status and labs, for example. Because of this, patients and their families never really know when they are going to get that availability call. It was such a coincidence that my mom received the call for liver availability one week before my rotation was set to begin. It was such a blessing that as my mom recovered from her liver transplant, I was able to learn about the drugs used to manage transplant patients and how to care for and counsel these patients. This included how patients should take their new medication and about the follow-up care required afterwards. This is because the dosing for immunosuppressants like tacrolimus and mycophenolate changes based on the patient’s lab work and how the body reacts to the transplanted organ (whether it accepts or rejects the organ). With this knowledge, I can help my mother in a way I could not have imagined before.