Caring for the cardiac transplant patient

The care of a child after cardiac transplantation is similar to the care of any child after cardiac surgery. In this article, the program at The Children's Hospital in Boston and the nursing management have been discussed. The focal points of nursing care are: (1) to continually monitor and assess the child's cardiovascular stability; (2) to prepare the child and family for the first endomyocardial biopsy and subsequent care; (3) to begin teaching about denervation and heart function, dietary modification, medications, infection, and rejection; and (4) to prepare the child and family for transfer from the CICU. The nursing care of a child who had a cardiac transplant is an exciting challenge for critical care nurses. As advances in the various aspects of transplantation are made, critical care nurses will assume more responsibility and actively participate in these advances. It is the art and science of critical care nursing that will contribute to the family integrity and the healthy lifestyle of the child.