Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta has appointed René Romero, M.D., Medical Director of Pediatric Liver Transplant,  as Chief of Solid Organ Transplant Services. In his new role, effective Jan. 1, 2016, Dr. Romero will oversee Children’s pediatric kidney, liver and heart transplant programs.

Since 1999, Dr. Romero has served as the Medical Director of the Pediatric Liver Transplant Program at Children’s and the Clinical Director of Pediatric Hepatology at Emory University School of Medicine. Dr. Romero also serves as the Medical Director of the Intestinal Rehabilitation Program and as the Program Director of the Pediatric Transplant Hepatology Fellowship Program at Children’s.

“We are thankful to have Dr. Romero assume the role as Chief of Solid Organ Transplant Services,” said Mark Wulkan, M.D., Surgeon-in-Chief at Children’s. “He has been a great leader to the staff and the patients and families of our Pediatric Liver Transplant Program for more than 15 years, and I am excited he now has the opportunity to serve the staff and patient families of the kidney and heart program as well.”

As Clinical Director for Pediatric Hepatology, Dr. Romero helped recruit and organize a team of six pediatric hepatologists who are actively engaged in clinical and basic research. This team participates in all of the major NIH consortia looking at liver disease in children, including Childhood Liver Disease and Education Network, Cystic Fibrosis Liver Disease Network, Fatty Liver Disease Network, and the Pediatric Acute Liver Failure Study Group. They are also active in the Studies in Pediatric Liver Transplantation, and in industry trials establishing curative therapies for hepatitis C infection in children.

Dr. Romero received his M.D. from the University of Florida and completed a pediatric gastroenterology and nutrition clinical and research fellowship at Harvard Medical School/Children’s Hospital of Boston. He has served in multiple roles with national and international committees, including the North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition and OPTN/UNOS.

In addition to Dr. Romero being named Chief of Solid Organ Transplant Services, Dr. Nicole Turgeon, Emory University Hospital, has been named Endowed Mason Chair of Children’s Transplant Program. Dr. Turgeon is currently an Associate Professor of Surgery in the Division of Transplantation at Emory University School of Medicine and serves as Medical Director of the Kidney Transplant Program at Children’s. She joined the Emory staff in 2007 from the University of Massachusetts, where she served as director of kidney and pancreas transplantation and where she received her research fellowship training, residency training, and medical degree.

Consumers might find online ratings helpful when deciding which products to buy and services to use, but could these ratings also be used find a reputable doctor?

It is estimated that 59 percent of patients consider online doctor ratings somewhat or very important, according to a recent study published by The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). And that is why Piedmont Healthcare has chosen to publish unbiased and uncensored patient-written reviews of its physicians online.

“Piedmont is one of two health systems in the country to publish reviews at this scope,” said Matt Gove, chief marketing officer at Piedmont. “Publishing these reviews is about becoming more transparent about our customer experience and also empowering the public to make informed decisions about their health.”

The reviews are gathered by Press Ganey, an independent patient research company that asks questions about specific aspects of care. Each review is posted on Piedmont’s website, regardless of whether it is positive or negative.

“This is just another way we hold ourselves accountable to the people we care for every day,” said Gove. “Our patients have a choice when deciding where they turn to for care and they deserve the most accurate and reliable information possible to aid them in the decision-making process.”

Unlike ratings posted on independent healthcare review websites – including Healthgrades, RateMDs, Vitals and Yelp – the reviews posted on Piedmont Healthcare’s website are written by verified Piedmont patients. While no patient name or information is revealed due to privacy laws, consumers can be confident the information provided in the reviews came from actual patients like them.

Currently, approximately 210 Piedmont physician profiles showcase patient reviews on the website. Soon, the remaining 800+ physicians also will have their reviews displayed publicly once they earn 30 or more reviews

A secure, HIPAA-compliant software platform has automated the process of transforming Piedmont’s HCAHPS survey data into doctor-specific ratings and comments.