Sharon Swain, R.N., M.S.N. has developed a unique approach that follows a novice to expert, goal-directed training process model that fosters critical thinking to attain optimal outcomes for donors and recipients. Her entire philosophy revolves around honoring and maximizing the gift of organ donation and recipient safety during the donor screening, management and recovery process. Ms. Swain has worked as the Clinical Nurse Educator for Donor Network West for nearly a decade.
Ms. Swain is also involved in coordinating and managing bedside randomized controlled trials in deceased donor populations and works in collaboration with UCSF Medical Center in San Francisco to operationalize these studies. She most recently co-authored the New England Journal of Medicine’s 2015 article: Therapeutic Hypothermia in Deceased Organ Donors and Kidney-Graft Function. The ground-breaking randomized controlled trial is the first of its kind to evaluate kidney function using targeted temperature control during the medical management of deceased donors. She is a passionate an advocate for both a systematic approach to deceased donor trials as well as for standardization of research practices in the deceased donor population.
Ms. Swain has authored and co-authored a number of peer-reviewed articles and is a member of Sigma Theta Tau International Nursing Honor Society, American Society of Transplantation, TTS and ISODP.
Ms. Swain co-founded the Education and Training Council for AOPO (Association of Organ Procurement Organizations) and has served as Vice Chair and Chair of the council. She also serves on the Operations and Safety TransNet work group for UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing) and has been instrumental in the development and deployment of the electronic labeling and tracking system for solid organs.
Ms. Swain’s career spans 20 years during which she has worked as a bedside donor coordinator for Donor Network West and a critical care and emergency nurse at Highland Hospital, a trauma center and county safety net hospital for the indigent population in Oakland, California. She also served as adjunct faculty and clinical instructor in both the undergraduate and masters programs at Holy Names University and Samuel Merritt University in Oakland, California.
