Emily Mosman

HCA HealthONE Presbyterian St. Luke's operating room nurse Emily Mosman, RN, BSN knew for a long time that she would need a kidney transplant. She was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease when she was 12. In the last few years, as her kidney function continued to decline, she was placed on the transplant waiting list. About six months later she found herself with a living donor — her mom. “She was the first person to go through the testing process to see if she was a match and healthy enough. I was very fortunate,” Mosman says. “She was a good antigen match — I think three out of six — and the same blood type. She had to be under 60, without blood pressure issues and didn’t smoke. She also had to have a psych evaluation and a CT scan.”

When everything aligned well, they did the surgery. “My kidney function improved right away. Cadaver kidneys sometimes take a couple of weeks to work, but with a living donor it worked right off the bat. I didn’t have much pain, and my mom had just a little post-op pain but was out of the hospital in three to four days. She doesn’t feel any different now than she did with both kidneys,” she reports.

“I would say people should give becoming a donor some thought. It’s life changing for the recipient, and living donors don’t really feel any different than before donating. We had a wonderful experience at Presbyterian St. Luke's. The team is amazing. They take great care of patients,” Mosman says.