Kidney Clinic Visits
After you are discharged from the hospital, you will be regularly followed in the Outpatient Transplant Clinic located on Blake 6. The purpose of the clinic visits is to monitor your progress and provide treatment when needed. At the time of discharge you will be given instructions as to when to return for your first clinic visit. Initially you may come back frequently; sometimes daily. Eventually, as things become stabilized, you will be assigned to a specific clinic day [Monday-Friday] to be followed by a consistent staff physician. At this time, we will probably start alternating visits with your referring physician -- for instance, your nephrologist, hepatologist, or PCP.
Before Your Appointment
On the day of discharge you will be given lab slips to have your blood drawn prior to coming up to the clinic. The outpatient laboratory is located on the second floor of the Wang Ambulatory Care Center[ ACC ]. The laboratory opens at 7:00 A.M. and we ask that you arrive there no later than 8:30 A.M. Always have your blood drawn in the ACC before coming up to the clinic. You will be given blood slips on your day of discharge and also after each clinic visit for your next appointment. Do not take your Cyclosporin, Neoral or Prograf prior to having your blood drawn. Bring it with you to take after your blood is drawn.
The clinic opens at 7:00 A.M. Always bring your blue MGH identification card with you to each visit. Upon arriving at the clinic, after having had your blood drawn, please sign in on the clipboard provided. You will be seen in the order in which you have signed in, with a few exceptions. We will teach you how to take your temperature and weight and record them beside your name on the clipboard. Your blood pressure will be checked at some point after that.
The physicians start clinic between 9-9:30 A.M. This allows time for your blood results to return. Any patient who arrives after 10:30 A.M. may not be seen that day and may need to be rescheduled. Do not show up at the clinic without an appointment. This creates confusion and is unfair to those with appointments. If you have a problem, call first. We will always see you if necessary.
Allow Plenty of Time
While you are waiting to be seen by the doctor you may wish to speak
with the social worker, dietitian or a nurse. Please let us know so we can help arrange it. Periodically you will need a chest X-ray, ultrasound or other test such as a urine culture. The clinic nurse will tell you when this is necessary. It is possible that the ultrasound or chest X- ray needed will take extra time. You may also need to stay for IV medication if you have a slight rejection episode or infection.
Always Bring Your Green Medication Card
If there are any medication changes made at your clinic visit we will update your medication card. If you need prescriptions at your appointment please let us know ahead of time so that it doesn’t hold you up when you are finished. It is your responsibility to be sure that you never run out of medications. Let the clinic nurse know if a prescription needs to be called into your local pharmacy. If you receive a phone call after you have left the clinic instructing you to change the dosage of one of your medications, we ask that you change your green medication card.
When leaving the clinic please remember to check out with the secretary and/ or the nurse so that we can give you a follow-up appointment, blood slips and any additional instructions. At times we ask you to have your blood checked in between clinic visits and this can usually be done in a laboratory close to your home. It is important to let us know where you might like to have it done and give us the name and phone number of the laboratory so that we can track the results efficiently. It is best to have your blood drawn early in the morning so that we can obtain the test results by the morning of the next day. Then, if the medication dose needs to be changed based on your blood work or you may need to return sooner to clinic, we can let you know faster.
Once you are discharged, please call the transplant clinic directly with your questions and /or concerns. The clinic hours are 7:00 A.M. - 4:00 P.M.; you may leave a message on the answering machine. The number is [ 617 ] 726-5277.
If there is an emergency, after clinic hours, you will be instructed to call the Transplant Unit at [617 ] 724-8610.
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