At Emory, our multi-disciplinary bone marrow transplant staff members work as a team with each patient during the entire transplant process. Weekly meetings are conducted to ensure that everyone knows the patient's individual plan of care.  Each team member has an important role that supports every phase of treatment.

TRANSPLANT PHYSICIAN

The physician is the decision-making leader of the bone marrow transplant team. When a patient is discharged back to the referring physician, the Emory physician will provide a report on the patient's transplant procedure and recommend a plan for future health care.

Emory's BMT physicians have a depth of experience in hematology, immunology and cancer diagnostics, treatment and research.

Click here to review The Emory Physician Team headed by Edmund K. Waller, MD, PHD

NURSE COORDINATOR

The nurse coordinator provides patient education and works with the physician to complete the initial evaluation.  He or she collects results and medical records, contacts the insurance company for transplant approval and collaborates with the BMT team, the patient and family/caregiver until the consent for transplant is given.

REFERRAL OFFICE COORDINATOR

Working with the nurse coordinator, the referral office coordinator schedules tests necessary to complete the evaluation, maintaining patient contact via phone and mail. The referral office provides suggestions for lodging, fund raising and insurance matters. And, the coordinator maintains patient contact for evaluations and tests needed during the first five years following the transplant.

SOCIAL WORKER

A social worker supports the patient and family/caregiver's coping skills, understanding of the process and transition from home to hospital and home again. They address issues such as housing, transportation, employment and finances and assure a support system is in place, including a caregiver. 

NURSE PRACTITIONER/PHYSICIAN ASSISTANT

The nurse practitioner/physician assistant works with the transplant physician to coordinate the patient's care from the pre-transplant evaluation until discharge back to the care of the referring physician. At each visit, he or she performs an exam, supervises medications and answers specific questions about the patient's physical and emotional condition.

PATIENT CARE FACILITATOR

As a nurse specially trained in transplant care, the patient care facilitator instructs the patient and family/caregiver about the process, providing suggestions for problems. The facilitator fully supports the patient's progress until discharge, with daily care and patient education about medication dosages, schedules, side effects, nutrition and daily living activities.

PHARMACY

The Emory Healthcare System has state of the art pharmacy facilities and an experienced staff that helps to provide drug information to each patient. And, a specially trained Doctor of Pharmacy helps to ensure that the safest, most accurate medications are administered.

EMORY PHYSICIAN TEAM: Edmund K. Waller, MD, PHD Director, Bone Marrow and Stem Cell Transplantation Center Professor of Hematology and Oncology Amelia A. Langston, MD Medical Director, Emory Bone Marrow and Stem Cell Transplant Center Associate Professor of Hematology and Oncology Elliott F. Winton, MD Director, Leukemia Services Associate Professor of Hematology and Oncology Sagar Lonial, MD Director, Translational Research B-cell Malignancy Program Assistant Professor of Hematology and Oncology Leonard Heffner, Jr., MD Associate Professor of Hematology and Oncology Christopher Flowers, MD Assistant Professor of Hematology and Oncology Jonathan Kaufman, MD Assistant Professor of Hematology and Oncology Mary Jo Lechowicz, MD Assistant Professor of Hematology and Oncology H. Jean Khoury, MD Associate Professor of Hematology and Oncology Chief of Hematology, Winship Cancer Institute