The organ transplant program that closed Friday was established by St. Francis Medical Center more than four decades ago and was operated by Hawaii Medical Center.
"It is the only program of its kind in the state," said Art Ushijima, president of the The Queen's Medical Center. "Without it, hundreds of Hawaii residents will need to seek this service on the mainland. Queen’s is very mindful of its importance and has taken steps to continue this vital program for the people of Hawaii."
About 424 Hawaii patients are on waiting lists for kidney, liver, pancreas and heart transplants.
One of them already flew to the mainland in an air ambulance after the HMC transplant center closed on Friday, according to Dr. Linda Wong, who headed the liver transplant program at HMC and is working to start a new operation at Queens.
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