Organ acquisition cost centers Part II: reducing the burden of cost and inventory

Decreasing organ acquisition costs (OAC) reduces the cost of transplantation. The purpose of this article (Part II) is to build on the platform of definitions and concepts developed in Part I to achieve cost-savings in OAC. We propose several concrete strategies to decrease OAC. We will highlight the value of proactive waitlist management. We will develop the notion that waiting lists share significant similarities with product inventory and that inventory control and management can also decrease OAC. Finally, we will postulate that the value of the waiting list is determined by the number of recipients likely to be transplanted. We have coined the term 'transplantability index' of a recipient waiting list. This index can be applied retrospectively to any waiting list in order to evaluate how actively the waiting list is being managed. This novel metric can also be used indirectly to assess and monitor waitlist inventory.