During your stay at Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital, you will be cared for by many different people—members of your Transplant Team, as well as others. The first will be a transplant coordinator, a nurse, who will answer questions and begin your pre-transplant evaluation. 

The transplant coordinator will work with you and your family to keep you informed of procedures, medications, diet, exercise, and other important aspects of your treatment. The transplant coordinator will also act as a liaison with the cardiologist at St. Luke's who will coordinate your care, as well as with the cardiologist who initially referred you. The transplant coordinator will also be in charge of your care when you return home.

St. Luke's Heart Exchange

The St. Luke’s Heart Exchange exists for the benefit of heart transplant patients. Its members include heart transplant recipients, those in need of transplants, their spouses, families and friends, and the nurses who work with them.

Our Purpose: The primary purpose of the Heart Exchange is to provide emotional support for heart transplant patient during the difficult wait for a donor heart and to support those who have received heart transplants at St. Luke’s. Members of the group are available to visit patients and families in the hospital and we sponsor a supportive “Heart Exchange Social” each month at St. Luke’s.

Organ Donor Awareness: Our second objective is to educate the general public about organ transplantation and to encourage donorship. We promote organ donor awareness through a wide range of media, including radio and television advertising, educational literature and posters, t-shirts, health fairs and sporting events. We provide speakers to schools, churches, businesses, and civic organizations to further educate these communities about organ transplantation.

Financial Support: We contribute financial support to St. Luke’s and the Texas Heart Institute for the development and improvement of transplantation facilities and research. The Heart Exchange also makes funds available to St. Luke’s transplant nurses to further their professional growth through transplant-related seminars.

The Organization: The Heart Exchange Support Group, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, was chartered in 1986. It is affiliated with St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital. Membership requires no dues, only a desire to further the Heart Exchange’s objectives of patient support, donor awareness, and support of professional education and research. Most of our active members are also members of the St. Luke’s Episcopal Auxiliary.

The corporation is governed by an elected board of directors, comprising a president, vice president/secretary, vice president/treasurer, and 24 general board members. The directors receive no compensation.

Business meetings are held at 5:00 p.m. in the Denton A. Cooley Auditorium, on the second Saturday of each month.

Our meetings, as well as the socials that follow, are open to all. Heart Exchange activities are funded by the proceeds of the Annual Heart Exchange Golf Classic, donations, and memorial gifts. Historically, 98.3 percent of our funds are used directly on support programs, including temporary housing, prescription medications, and financial aid for needy patients and families identified by St. Luke’s Social Services department.

If you would like more information about the Heart Exchange, just call 832-355-3659.