Our Team
The liver transplant team at Stanford Hospital & Clinics includes surgeons, hepatologists, transplant psychiatrists, a physicians' assistant, advanced practice nurses, and a variety of other caregivers and support staff to ensure that patients get the best, most comprehensive care possible.
Surgeons
Transplant surgeons specialize in the intricate surgical and microsurgical techniques necessary to successfully transplant organs from the donor to the recipient. They are also skilled in a variety of liver and biliary tract operations such as resection of liver tumors, repair of biliary tract injuries, and so forth.
Carlos Esquivel, MD
Director, Liver Transplantation ProgramChief, Division of Transplantation
Dr. Esquivel is Director of the Adult and Pediatric Liver Transplant Program at Stanford University Hospital and Clinics and at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford.
He previously was Director of the Liver Transplant Program at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco.
He completed general surgical training at the University of California at Davis and received his doctoral thesis at the University of Lund in Sweden in 1982.
Dr. Esquivel trained under Dr. Thomas E. Starzl at the University of Pittsburgh, where he acquired extensive experience in adult and pediatric liver transplantation.
Andrew Bonham, MD
Transplant Surgeon
Dr. Bonham obtained his MD from the University of Oklahoma and then completed general surgery residency at Cornell University in New York and Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas.
He subsequently was a clinical and research fellow at the University of Pittsburgh Transplantation Institute. He was appointed and served as Assistant Professor of Surgery from 1997 until coming to Stanford in early 2002.
He has been an invited lecturer at national and international transplant meetings and published articles on both basic research and clinical transplantation. He is trained and skilled in both liver and kidney transplantation.
Stephan Busque, MD
Transplant Surgeon
Dr. Busque obtained his MD and completed general surgery training at the University of Montreal.
This was followed by a two-year research fellowship at the McGill Center for Clinical Immunobiology and Transplantation, and then two years of transplant surgery training at California Pacific Medical Center.
In 1995 he returned to Montreal and built a successful kidney and pancreas transplant program. He is also a skilled laparoscopic surgeon with experience in laparoscopic donor nephrectomy.
His primary research interest is clinical immunosuppression. In addition to directing the kidney and pancreas transplant program, he also performs liver transplants.
Waldo Concepcion, MD
Transplant Surgeon
Dr. Concepcion received his medical degree from Autonomous University of Guadalajara in Jalisco, Mexico, completed his residency at Loma Linda University and his fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh.
He originally joined the SUMC multi-organ transplant team in 1995, returning in 2005 after being on faculty at Loma Linda University.
He is a member of both The Transplantation Society, and The International Society for Organ Preservation.
Hepatologists
Hepatologists specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of acute and chronic liver diseases including hepatitis, cirrhosis, liver cancer, and related disorders. At Stanford, our hepatologists are also transplant hepatologists and work closely with transplant surgeons and the rest of the caregiver team.
Allen Cooper, MD
Chief, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology
Dr. Cooper is the Chief of the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at Stanford University School of Medicine.
His training in Internal Medicine was at the Boston City Hospital and UCSF, where he was a Chief Resident in Medicine.
He was a fellow in Gastroenterology at UCSF and then served in the United States Air Force as a hepatologist before joining the Stanford faculty in 1974.
His research interest has been in the role of the liver in lipid metabolism. His current research interest is in the genesis and treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
He is on the editorial board of the Journal of Lipid Research and has served on numerous committees of the NIH and the American Association for the Study of Liver Disease as well as the American Heart Association.
At various times at Stanford he has served as an attending physician in Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology, and Hepatology at both Stanford Hospital & Clinics and the VA Palo Alto Medical Center. Currently his practice is restricted to hepatology and the care of liver transplant patients.
Emmet Keeffe, MD
Chief of Hepatology
Co-Director, Liver Transplant Program
Dr. Emmet Keeffe is a native San Franciscan who completed his training in internal medicine and gastroenterology at the Oregon Health & Sciences University. He completed further postdoctoral liver training at the University of California, San Francisco.
At the Oregon Health & Science University, he was a professor of medicine before he moved back to San Francisco in 1992 as Medical Director, Liver Transplant Program initially at California Pacific Medical Center and then at Stanford.
Dr. Keeffe is also Chief of Hepatology at Stanford.
He has been active in a number of national organizations and is past president of the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy and the American Gastroenterological Association. Additionally, he is a former associate editor of Liver Transplantation and Surgery and serves on the editorial boards of Hepatology and Journal of Hepatology.
Aijaz Ahmed, MD
Dr. Ahmed joined the Liver Transplant Program in July 1999 as a Staff Physician and became an Assistant Professor of Medicine in July 2000.
He is a graduate of Dow Medical College in Karachi, Pakistan and completed postgraduate training in internal medicine at Brown University.
He then completed fellowship training in gastroenterology and hepatology at Stanford followed by one additional year of training in general and transplant hepatology.
He is interested in the management of hepatitis C post-transplant.
Ramsey Cheung, MD
Dr. Cheung is Chief of Hepatology at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System.
Dr. Cheung's research interests focus on liver diseases, with emphasis on hepatitis viruses. His past research utilized the duck animal model to study the mechanism of viral neutralization of hepatitis B virus at the molecular level.
Recently, Dr. Cheung has directed his research interest to hepatitis C (HCV). He plans to use molecular biology approaches to study clinical samples from chronic hepatitis C patients and investigate the host-virus interaction.
As part of his study, Dr. Cheung is currently investigating HCV genetic diversity among veterans in various populations. The ultimate goal is to understand the epidemiology of HCV transmission, its pathogenesis and viral features predicting favorable response to immune modulation.
Dr. Cheung is also investigating the interaction between hepatitic C infection and alcoholic cirrhosis, and the role of therapeutic interventions.
Gabriel Garcia, MD
Dr. Gabriel Garcia completed his medical training at New York University. He did post graduate training at Stanford, where he developed an interest in liver disease.
Subsequently, he joined the faculty at Baylor University in Houston, where he practiced and taught before returning to Stanford in 1991.
He was the transplant hepatologist in the original transplant program at Stanford, and was joined by his colleagues Drs. Keeffe and Imperial in 1995.
Dr. Garcia has a research interest in the natural history of chronic viral hepatitis.
Mindie Nguyen, MD
Dr. Nguyen received her clinical training in gastroenterology, hepatology and liver transplantation at Stanford and her graduate training in epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco.
Her primary research interests are the clinical aspects, molecular epidemiology and pathogenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma with an emphasis on disease determinants, diagnostic and screening tests, and ethnic differences. The goal is to improve screening methods and treatment outcomes of patients with this cancer.
Dr. Nguyen's research interests also include the epidemiological and clinical behaviors of viral hepatitis, particularly in hepatitis C patients with novel genotypes and in understudied populations. Study designs used in past and current studies include cross-sectional studies, case control studies, randomized controlled trials, and multicenter clinical studies employing standardized questionnaires, large-scale survey, and database management.
Transplant Psychiatrists
Because transplant surgery can involve long recovery times and lifelong immunosuppression, transplant psychiatrists are available to help patients cope with what can be a difficult transition and a demanding regimen by working with the them and their families to address the sometimes difficult psychological issues surrounding transplantation and its aftermath.
Jose Maldonado, MD
Dr. Jose Maldonado is a liver transplant psychiatrist for the Stanford Liver Transplant Program.
His education as an undergraduate was completed at the Catholic University of Puerto Rico. He graduated from medical school at the Ponce School of Medicine and completed his residency at Temple University. Dr. Maldonado also completed a fellowship at the New England Medical Center at Tufts University.
His principal areas of research deal with conversion disorders, psychosomatic medicine, trauma and dissociation, especially in the study of minority populations. Currently, he is a member of the Center of Excellence at Stanford University.
Dieticians / Adult Program Nutritionists
Dieticians help transplant patients learn about and maintain a healthful, enjoyable diet to speed recovery after surgery and maintain health throughout life. They also play a critically important pretransplant role in the education of patients to follow low-sodium diets and consume adequate protein to avoid malnutrition.
Patsy Obayashi, MS, RD, CDE, CNSD
Clinical Dietitian Patsy began working as a Clinical Dietitian at Stanford in 1977. She completed her B.S. in Nutrition from Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. She completed her nutrition internship and Master's degree at the University of Arizona. She became a Certified Diabetes Educator in 2000.
Patsy has been working with the Multi-Organ Transplant Program since it's beginning in 1991 providing nutrition assessment pre-transplant, nutrition care and education pre- and post-transplant to the kidney, liver, and pancreas programs. Since 1995, this care has been expanded to include education and care of pre- and post-organ transplant patients through the Transplant Diabetes Program.
Along with Anna Simos, she has co-authored abstracts detailing Transplant Diabetes research presented nationally at the 2003 and 2005 American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions. Patsy has written a chapter on Nutrition Care of the Pancreas Transplant Recipient in the Handbook of Transplant Nutrition, written a review article for the Nutrition Support Newsletter on Transplant Diabetes in 2002, and will be presenting a poster session on Transplant Diabetes Education at the 2005 Food and Nutrition Expo and Conference.
Patsy grew up in Arroyo Grande on a strawberry farm, on the Central Coast of California.
Anna Simos, MPH, CDE
Diabetes Educator, Clinical Research & Program Coordinator
Anna has always believed that individuals should take an active role in their healthcare choices. In this spirit, Anna has worked to develop a team-based, patient focused program of diabetes care through the Transplant Diabetes Program.
As a native of the San Francisco Bay area, she graduated in 1996 from San Jose State University with a Master's in Public Health that focused in health education and research. In 1997 she came to Stanford to pursue her post-graduate work in diabetes education, while she helped to research and formalize a program of individualized care for transplant patients with diabetes.
In 2000, Anna became a Certified Diabetes Educator. With Patsy Obayashi and other team members, she continued the development of what would become the first diabetes program for transplant recipients in the nation. Anna has authored and co-authored abstracts and articles, helping to bring the Transplant Diabetes Program into national awareness. Presently she divides her time between program development, diabetes education and her role as research coordinator assisting in the development of study protocols conducted through the School of Medicine.
Anna has spoken at national meetings and symposia regarding the importance of interdisciplinary diabetes care for those in the transplant process, and the impact immunosuppression and glycemic control has on individuals with pre-existing or post-transplant diabetes.
She enjoys working with her team at Stanford along with people who have diabetes. Her other interests are hiking, music, dancing, and gardening.
Nurse Coordinators
Nurse coordinators are specially trained and experienced in caring for transplant patients, and provide a wide range of services. They also offer patient education essential to the treatment plan. They are the primary contact person with patients on the waiting list, and also see their patients at clinic visits.
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Lupe Hogan, RN, BSN
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Nia Maninang, NP
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Fatima Rosa, RN, BSN |
Jocelyn Purins, RN Clinic Manager |
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Specialized Social Workers
Social workers offer counseling to patients and families regarding financial concerns, local lodging, community resources, psychological and emotional support, or home-care problems. They also conduct a variety of patient support groups and classes in coping skills for patients and their families.
Evonne David, MSW, LCSW
Social Worker
Evonne is a licensed clinical social worker who has been with the Stanford Adult Liver Transplant Team since June 2004. She brings 20 years of social work practice from diverse specialty areas of clinical social work to the Team and to the patients and families she serves. Evonne earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Work from San Francisco State University and her Master of Social Welfare degree from the University of California, Berkeley.
Evonne has had extensive experience in the specialty practice areas of Domestic Violence, Children's Protective Services, In-Patient Psychiatric Social Work, Chemical Dependency, Home Health Care & Hospice and Medical Oncology.
In the summer of 2007 Evonne embarked on a project with her colleague in heart transplant Rodney Plante, RSW and Transplant psychiatrist Jose Maldonado, MD to standardized the psychosocial evaluation process of all solid-organ transplant candidates at Stanford Hospital & Clinics. As a result of their efforts, the Stanford Integrated Psychosocial Assessment for Transplantation (SIPAT) was formed. Included in the standardization is a comprehensive pre-transplant solid organ evaluation battery. Along with the screening battery, Evonne and her colleagues established stringent psychosocial criteria designed to standardize the patient selection process to bring social fairness and scientific predictability to the process.
Evonne earned the newly created title of Advanced Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the Fall of 2007 which reflects her work and contribution with the Adult Liver Transplant Program and Stanford Hospital & Clinics beyond her expected clinical duties as an LCSW. Evonne has been a member of the Department of Social Work and Case Management's Leadership Council since 2005 and joined Stanford Hospital & Clinics Ethics Committee in the Fall of 2007. She is on the Faculty for Stanford Hospital & Clinics Center for Education and Professional Development and is a Lecturer with Stanford University Medical School.
Jenny Kwak, MSW, LCSW
Social Worker
Jenny is a licensed clinical social worker who has been with the Stanford Adult Liver Transplant Team since July 2006. She has worked in multiple areas of social work practice. Prior to Stanford she had worked for over five years in Pediatric Social Work at Kaiser in San Francisco as well as in the Kidney Transplant program. She has also worked for many years in the Asian Pacific Islander Community in San Francisco and in Seattle, Washington where she was raised. Jenny earned her Bachelor of Arts degree at University of Washington and her Masters in Social Work from San Francisco State University. She lectured at San Francisco State from 1999 until 2006 and was also a field instructor and advisor. She has extensive experience in inpatient and outpatient settings as well as a group facilitator.
Jenny incorporates mindfulness based stress reduction in her work as a method to cope with the challenges of transplant. She enjoys working collaboratively with her team at Stanford to help the patients and families they serve.