Piedmont Hospital Transplant Services opened its newest satellite transplant clinic in Dalton, Ga. The Clinic opened on October 23 and will be the nearest transplant facility for Catoosa County residents increasing convenience and access for patients in the North Georgia area. This new clinic will provide pre- and post-transplant care to end-stage kidney and pancreas patients.

These area clinics will make access to care more convenient for those patients who live long distances from Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta and reduce the initial evaluation time for kidney transplant candidates from two days to one.

“We are pleased and privileged to bring Dalton its first transplant clinic, increasing access to services for transplant patients across north Georgia and southeastern Tennessee,” said Mark Johnson, M.D., program director of Piedmont’s Transplant Services. “This clinic will provide pre- and post-transplant care to end-stage kidney and pancreas patients.”

Piedmont’s first satellite clinic opened in Savannah, Ga., in December 2007, and a second clinic opened in Albany, Ga., in February 2009. Each clinic offers education classes for those interested in the advantages and risks of transplantation, provides extensive information about the costs of post-transplant medication and how one can plan to meet those costs. Initial candidate screenings will be performed by a transplant physician and/or nurse specialist, allowing patients with potential disqualifying issues to take corrective action before making an appointment for a full evaluation at the Piedmont Hospital Mason Transplant Clinic in Atlanta.

Piedmont Hospital has one of only two adult liver transplant programs and one of three kidney/pancreas transplant programs in Georgia.

The new satellite transplant clinic in Dalton is located at 1109 Burleyson Road, Suite 101 Dalton, GA 30720, and will initially offer services for those with kidney and pancreas disease. For more information on the Piedmont Hospital Transplant Services Dalton Satellite Clinic, call 888-605-5888.