Page 18 - Talk of Tequesta - April '24

Page 18, The Talk Of Tequesta

Tampa geNeral News

Tampa General Hospital

Leads In Living-Donor Liver Transplants In Florida

Tampa General Hospital (TGH) is leading the way in living- of the Comprehensive Liver • Research shows that recipients of living-donor organs
donor liver transplants in the state of Florida. In 2023, the Disease & Transplant Center. have better outcomes.
academic health system performed five lifesaving living-donor With a living-donor TGH is a top five transplant center by volume in the
liver transplants, the most of any hospital in the Sunshine State. transplantation, a healthy United States and is ranked one of the nation’s best hospitals
The first occurred in May 2023, when Derek Sanz gave person volunteers a portion by U.S. News & World Report in 2023/24. The living-donor
his mother, Patty, the ultimate Mother’s Day gift — half of of their liver to someone liver transplant program “is a prime example of Tampa
his liver. After nearly a year, mother and son are healthy and whose liver is failing from General continuing to drive innovation to deliver world-class
grateful that the TGH Transplant Institute offers a living- end-stage disease or cancer. health care,” said TGH President and CEO John Couris.
donor option. Without it, Patty might have waited anywhere After doctors remove the “This program opens up additional access to patients in need
from 30 days to five years for a deceased donor’s organ. donated portion, the donor’s of a liver transplant, and has the potential to transform the
Livers are the second-most in-demand organ for transplants remaining liver regrows close lives of patients and their families in the Tampa Bay region,
(behind kidneys). About 10 percent of individuals on the to its full size and capacity Florida and across the United States.”
national transplant waiting list are waiting for a liver. in a couple of months. The transplanted liver also grows, Both Patty and Derek Sanz have shared their experiences
Receiving a donation from a living donor shortens a restoring normal liver function to the recipient. to encourage others to consider a living-donor liver transplant
patient’s wait time and lessens chances that the liver’s The benefits of live-donor transplantation include: if they have a family member in need. “It worked for us and
condition will worsen. “Living-donor liver transplant is • Transplants take place quicker when a living donor is that’s why we want to get the word out there so that more
another avenue to save the lives of patients with liver disease available. people can be saved,” said Patty.
in our community,” said Dr. Kiran Dhanireddy, vice president • Hospitals schedule transplants based on the recipient’s For more information about the TGH Transplant Institute,
and chief of the TGH Transplant Institute and surgical director and donor’s availability. please call (561) 739-4TGH.

fiNaNCial foCus ®

What Should You Know About Long-Term Care?

By Sally Sima Stahl

We all hope to remain As an alternative to self-insuring, you could purchase This article was written by Edward Jones for use by
healthy and independent long-term care insurance, which can provide benefits for home your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor, Edward Jones,
throughout our lives – but health care, adult day care and assisted living and nursing Member SIPC.
life can be unpredictable. home facilities. However, you will need to consider the issues Edward Jones is a licensed insurance producer in
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some type of long-term care, expensive, though the younger you are when you buy your Jones & Co., L.P., and in California, New Mexico and
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encompasses everything offer, so, if you are thinking of buying this insurance, you’ll Agency of Massachusetts, L.L.C.
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health aide to a stay in an In any case, by being aware of the potential need for long- cannot provide tax advice. You should consult your
assisted living facility to a long residence in a nursing term care, its cost and the ways of paying for it, you’ll be able qualified tax advisor regarding your situation.
home. You may never need any of these kinds of care, to make the appropriate decisions for your financial situation, Contact us at (561) 748-7600, Sally Sima Stahl, AAMS,
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turning age 65 today has almost a 70 percent chance
of needing some type of long-term care services and
support in their remaining years, according to the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services.
And all types of long-term care can involve considerable
financial expense. The median annual cost for a home
health aide’s services is more than $60,000 per year,
and it’s more than $100,000 per year for a private room
in a nursing home, according to Genworth, an insurance
company. Furthermore, contrary to many people’s
expectations, Medicare usually pays very little of these
costs.
Of course, some people expect their family will be
able to take care of their long-term care needs. But this
may not be a viable strategy. For one thing, your family
members simply may not have the skills needed to give
you the type of care you may require. Also, by the time
you might need help, your grown children or other family
members might not live in your area.
So, you may need to protect yourself and your loved ones
from the potential costs of long-term care. Basically, you’ve got
two main choices: You could self-insure or you could transfer
the risk by purchasing some type of long-term care insurance.
If you have considerable financial resources, you
might find self-insuring to be attractive, rather than
choosing insurance and paying policy premiums. You
may wish to keep an emergency savings or investment
account that’s earmarked exclusively for long-term care
to help avoid relying on your other retirement accounts.
But self-insuring has two main drawbacks. First, because
long-term care can be costly, you might need to plan for
a significant amount. And second, it will be quite hard to
predict exactly how much money you’ll need, because so
many variables are involved – your age when you start
needing care, interest rates or inflation, the cost of care
in your area, the type of care you’ll require, the length
of time you’ll need care, and so on.