Need to relocate for transplant (heart & liver) at Mayo Clinic?

Hi. I live in CO and needed a liver transplant. My insurance co works with Mayo on a regular basis. I was approved by Mayo and they asked me to relocate to AZ. I had to many balls in the air in CO but had to commit to being able to get to AZ within 24 hrs if they found me a liver. I did , they found one 18 days later and my wife and I made it to Scottsdale in about 24 hrs and all went well after that. Just guessing but they may ask you to relocate. If you decline your son must commit to and be able to get there within 24 hrs. Have your go bags backed. Mayo is the best and always puts the patient first so they will know the AZ or MN part . Very best of luck to your son. Prayers up.

I live in Texas and was told 6 hours at Mayo Rochester. But I understand from the doctors that there is some flexibility in the exact number of hours.

My son HLHS is 24. He just got his liver transplant in Rochester and we live in KY. But he had is heart transplant 7 years ago in KY. We only stayed in Rochester for a total of 6 weeks for his living donor liver transplant. Good luck and love and hugs.

@dmccoy87 thanks for your questions! While each patient is different, we do have some general information in a blog post from several years ago. You can find that here:
- Q&A for Out-of-State Patients https://connect.mayoclinic.org/blog/transplant/newsfeed-post/qa-for-out-of-state-patients/.

Once he has the evaluation for his transplant, the doctors will let him know what he might be able to expect as far as moving here temporarily once he gets to the top of the waiting list. His follow up care after the transplant should be able to be arranged for the Mayo Clinic in Arizona. His care team can help coordinate that. We transplant out of state patients all the time, so even though the process is a bit different for everyone, we have lots of options to help.

They may want you there a bit pre-transplant or for sure commit to a travel timeline when the graft becomes available. Many people travel for transplants. We all have to spend some living there during assessment and healing time of course. They have a wonderful, very financially feasible transplant house that many stay at, some long term. It provides transportation and blood who can be done there rather than traveling to clinic.

Hi, @dmccoy87. I'd like to extend my welcome to Connect where you have already met some members and received some helpful advice! My experience is as an out-of-state recipient. I live in Kentucky and received a liver/kidney transplant at Mayo Rochester. My husband and I spent 11 weeks in Rochester and stayed at the Gift of Life House during my entire time. If you were to ask, Yes, I highly recommend that you look into the Gift of Life for lodging.