The Transplant Experience of Liver Recipients

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

The transplant experience of 20 liver organ transplant recipients was investigated in a longitudinal study. Five primary themes were identified from analysis of recipients' interviews including concerns about: (1) quality of life, (2) quality of health care, (3) economic factors, (4) social support factors, and (5) psychological factors. These findings are analyzed within the current context of social work in health care characterized by three interactive trends: advances in medical technology, changing health care economics, and a shift in the locus of health care delivery from institutions to the community. All five themes reflect the impact of these trends and give rise to ethical issues with practice implications.