Norton Children’s Heart Institute, affiliated with the UofL School of Medicine, heart failure, cardiomyopathy and heart transplant team includes highly skilled providers in pediatric heart care. Our team includes specialists from many fields in addition to cardiology and cardiothoracic surgery, including electrophysiology, critical care, anesthesia, infectious diseases, psychology and more. Your child will receive care focused on their overall health and wellness — not just their heart condition.
Meet the Pediatric Heart Failure, Cardiomyopathy and Heart Transplant Team
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Pediatric Heart Failure, Cardiomyopathy and Transplant Program Team
- Jennifer D. Thomas, DNP, R.N., CCRN, transplant administrator
- Sara Chandler, transplant dietitian
- Jenna Walsh, LSW, transplant social worker
- Stephanie Johnson, PharmD, transplant pharmacist
- Cassie Blandford, R.N., heart failure and transplant nurse manager
- Emily Yates, R.N., heart failure and transplant nurse clinician
- Sarah Chia, RN, BSN, heart failure and transplant nurse clinician
- Teka Siebenaler, MPH, RRT, ECMO/VAD program manager
Why Choose Norton Children’s Heart Institute
- Norton Children’s Hospital has been a pioneer in pediatric cardiothoracic surgery, performing Kentucky’s first pediatric heart transplant in 1986 and becoming the second site in the United States to perform an infant heart transplant.
- The American Board of Thoracic Surgery has certified our cardiothoracic surgeons in congenital heart surgery.
- The Adult Congenital Heart Association has accredited Norton Children’s Heart Institute’s Adult Congenital Heart Program as the only comprehensive care center in Kentucky and Indiana treating adults born with a heart defect.
- More than 5,000 children a year visit Norton Children’s Heart Institute for advanced heart care.
- Norton Children’s Heart Institute has offices across Kentucky and Southern Indiana to bring quality pediatric heart care closer to home.
- The Jennifer Lawrence Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU) at Norton Children’s Hospital is the largest dedicated CICU in Kentucky, equipped with 17 private rooms and the newest technology available for heart care.
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Pediatric cardiologist Sarah J. Wilkens, M.D., MPH, has trained to care for the sickest children — heart failure and transplant patients. “Ultimately what motivates me are the patients and trying to support their families in […]
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