PSYCHOSOCIAL ASSESSMENT OF ORGAN TRANSPLANT CANDIDATES - CURRENT STATUS OF METHODOLOGICAL AND PHILOSOPHICAL ISSUES

Psychosocial assessments of candidates for organ transplant surgery ar e conducted to ascertain that potential patients are likely to benefit from the surgery through adequate coping, good compliance, and commit ment to rehabilitation. Such assessments must be based on a realistic analysis of the behavioral demands of the transplant patient's role. R eliability of psychosocial assessments has been established within som e programs, but wide discrepancies in the psychosocial criteria that a re used exist among transplant centers. Validation studies are needed, with particular emphasis on outcomes for the patient and family as a whole, that go beyond the question of mere survival.