Scientific and technical advancements have made organ transplantation the treatment of choice for increasing numbers of patients with end-stage organ failure. As a result, the number of organ transplantations performed annually has increased. Because of this increase, more transplant recipients than before receive ongoing healthcare in local community settings and return to the transplant center for periodic checkups or treatment for marked complications. A transplant recipient may be admitted to a local hospital for a diagnosis unrelated to transplantation and routinely treated in that setting, but regardless of whether the admitting diagnosis is transplant related, the patient’s status as a transplant recipient must be considered when the plan of care is designed.

In this article, we address transplant-specific issues, assessment of patients who are transplant recipients, and key interventions to help healthcare providers successfully care for these patients in collaboration with the transplant center. We focus on those aspects of...

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