Colorado Transplant Nurses Society (CTNS)

Colorado Transplant Nurses Society

Professional Nursing Group

Colorado Transplant Nurses Society was organized to enhance the professional and social development of transplant nurses in the state of Colorado. It provides educational offerings quarterly for its members and other transplant professionals. We engage in networking to promote increased learning and advancement in organ transplantation. CTNS Bylaws

Join International Transplant Nurses Society

Sign up and receive opportunities for more education and to connect with other transplant professionals from around the world!

Support ITNS by becoming a member!

Membership (itns.org)

CTNS Email List Serve Form

CTNS Database Form

CTNS Membership Dues

CTNS Membership

Upcoming Events

Spring: A Time to Blossom

Conference Presentations

- Jamie Cisek, RN (UCHealth) – Living Donation (Living Donation Conference 2026)
- Angela Miskolci, RN (UCHealth) – Nutcracker Syndrome poster (Living Donation Conference 2026)
- UCHealth NPs – Vail Conference (2026)

Upcoming Transplant Events

Transplant Nurses Week Baskets!

For the 3rd year in a row, CTNS celebrates Transplant Nurses Week. On April 15th, Transplant Nurses Day, be on the lookout for a CTNS representative delivering goodies to your unit/department. We want to celebrate YOU!

Fight For Air Climb

Date: Saturday, April 25, 2026
Location: Coors Field in Denver, CO
Time: 7:00 AM MDT
Event: This event, by the American Lung Association, allows participants to climb stairs or walk the concourse to raise funds for lung health, including supporting those with chronic lung diseases.

Transplant Games of America

Date: Thursday, June 18 - Tuesday, June 23, 2026
Location: Denver, CO
Time: varies
Event: Denver will host the 2026 Transplant Games of America. This six-day event is the world’s largest Celebration of Life, bringing thousands of transplant recipients, living donors, donor families, patients on the waiting list, medical professionals, and supporters together for six days of athletic competitions, special events, and educational programming.

Denver Heart Walk

Date: Saturday, June 20, 2026
Location: Sloan's Lake in Denver, CO
Time: 8:45 AM MDT
Event:

Donor Dash Colorado

Date: Sunday, July 19, 2026
Location: Washington Park in Denver, CO
Time: 8:00 AM MDT
Event: An annual 5K run/walk event held in Washington Park that raises awareness and funds for organ, eye, and tissue donation. Organized by Donor Alliance, it brings together thousands of participants—including donor families, transplant recipients, and living donors—to honor lives touched by donation.

Denver Kidney Walk

Date: Sunday, October 4, 2026
Location: Robert F. Clement Park in Littleton, CO
Time: 8:30 AM MDT
Event: The largest local fundraising event for the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) to fight kidney disease. Held annually, it unites families, patients, and supporters to raise funds for research, organ donation awareness, and patient education.

Liver Life Walk

Date: Fall of 2026
Location: TBD
Time: TBD
Event: A signature, in-person fundraising event hosted by the American Liver Foundation (ALF) to raise awareness and funds for the 100 million Americans affected by liver disease. Held annually in the Denver area, it brings together patients, families, and medical professionals for a supportive, festive walk.

ITNS 34th Annual Symposium

Date: September 25-27, 2026
Location: Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland, OH
Event: The 34th International Transplant Nurses Society (ITNS) Annual Symposium is scheduled to take place from Sept. 25–27, 2026, in Cleveland, Ohio. This premier global event gathers transplant nursing professionals to share cutting-edge research, explore emerging pharmacological treatments and discuss technological advances in organ donation and graft survival. Attendees will engage in innovative sessions designed to enhance patient care standards and promote evidence-based practices on an international scale.

CTNS 2026 Meetings

April: Living Kidney Paired Donation & The National Kidney Registry

July: Thoracic topic - TBA

October: Living Liver Donor/Recipient

*Meeting topics are subject to change

ITNS Education & CEs Available

Please see the link below to the ITNS Education Center. Here you can find CEs and classes.

ITNS Education Center

CTNS Membership & Dinner Cost

Membership -

CTNS membership is $25 per year!

Quarterly Dinner -

$20 (includes dinner, a drink, and a CE)

***active CTNS members will utilize a $10 coupon code to redeem each dinner***

Future Educational Offerings

Learning

ITNS Conference 2026

September 25-27, 2026

Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland, OH

Past CTNS Events

Januray 2026 Meeting

Janurary 7, 2026

HIV & Transplant, speaker Dr. Brian Montague
Dinner sponsored by Natera.

October 2025 Meeting

October 8, 2025

Living Donor and Recipient Experience
Dinner sponsored by Natera.

July 2025 Meeting

July 9, 2025

Bridging Young Hearts: The Evolving Role of Ventricular Assist Devices in Pediatric Heart Transplantation, speaker Angeal Reichold MSN, APRN, CPNP-AC/PC
Our dinner will be sponsored by Care Dx.

April 2025 Meeting

April 9, 2025

Dr. Jason Wellen from Barnes discussing Frailty Sponsored by Veloxis, Michelle Miles
Sheri Bodenstein, LCSW, CAC, CCM and Adrienne Johnson, LCSW, CCTP discussing Alcohol in Transplant

January 2025 Meeting

January 8, 2025

Gilead will be sponsoring our January dinner. Gilead's speaker will be Hepatologist, Dr. Apurva Modi. Brian Eller and Zach Heath from Aveo Capital will speak about Financial Retirement 101.

October 2024 Meeting

October 9, 2024

Dr. Nydam presented on robotic surgery.

July 2024 Meeting

July 10, 2024

Dr. Wiseman presented on PTLD.

April 2024 Meeting

April 10, 2024

Shereena Slyvester presented on Sexual Health in Transplant.

January 2024 Meeting

January 31, 2024

Dr. Pshak presented on his experience learning robotic surgery techniques in the Kingdom of Saudia Arabia.

October 2023 Meeting

Octoberl 11, 2023

Opioid Crisis in Transplant and a Transplant Panel

July 2023 Meeting

Julyl 12, 2023

Dr. Yanik Bababekov presented on Normothermic Regional Perfusion (NPR) and the advanced techniques of increasing the donor pool population in cardiac death donors. He discussed surgical techniques and the outcomes for the transplant centers using this innovative procedure.

April 2023 Meeting

April 12, 2023

AlloSource provided a wonderful tour of their facility where they are one of the largest tissue donation centers in the United States. We learned the amazing impact they provide to the donation process and heard a speaker share their personal story on donation.

January 2023 Meeting

January 11, 2023

Angela Miskolci will present on "The Transgender Living Donor: Acknowledgement, Acceptance, and Challenges"

October 2022 Meeting

October 12, 2022

Sanofi is hosting at Maggiano's in the Denver Tech Center. Dr. Shahib will present on "Frailty and Kidney Transplant" and Gladiz Martinez presented on UCHealth's Transplant Hispanic Clinic Development.

About CTNS

The Colorado Transplant Nurses Society, Chapter of the International Transplant Nurses Society is committed to the promotion of excellence in clinical transplant nursing through the provision of educational and professional growth opportunities, interdisciplinary networking, collaborative activities and nursing research

Our goals are:

A. To provide a network for communication among nurses and associated transplant professionals with a focus and commitment to transplantation.

B. To provide a means of continuing education for nurses and associated transplant professionals with a focus in transplant nursing.

C. To examine trends in all types of transplantation affecting patient care and role of the transplant professional.

D. To promote and support research in transplant nursing.

E. To discuss the results of scientific investigations among

nurses and associated transplant professionals.

F. To foster an awareness of ongoing ethical considerations in procurement, donation, and recipient selection.

G. To maintain fiscal responsibility and establish financial stability in order to support the objectives of the Colorado Transplant Nurses Society Chapter and the International Society.

H. To do all that is necessary and proper for the accomplishment of all of the foregoing or other proper and lawful purposes and objectives of the Society.

Transplant Hospitals

Children's Hospital

When transplantation is the best option for your child to have as healthy a life as possible, the experts at Children's Hospital Colorado are here to help. Our transplant program has been changing lives for 25 years. We have the only pediatric transplant program in the region with this magnitude of experience and expertise. Our unique multidisciplinary approach to care offers patients excellent outcomes and hope for a better, healthier life. We achieve some of the best outcomes in the nation by working with every medical and surgical specialty in the hospital to reimagine children’s lives.

Presbyterian St. Luke's Hospital

HealthONE has adopted a shared mission, values and standards of behavior that brings out the best in us individually and collectively.

We offer these as principles for all of us to live by every day, use in all our decisions, and to guide our daily behavior.

Mission

Above all else, we are committed to the care and improvement of human life.

Values

Integrity – We do the right thing, even when no one is watching.
Compassion – We are empathetic to the needs of others and sympathize with their situation.
Accountability – We take ownership for how actions impact outcomes.
Respect – We value others and embrace diversity.
Excellence – We take personal pride in exceeding expectations.

AdventHealth Porter

Extending the healing ministry of Christ. Our faith-based mission is the foundation for everything we do. We believe health should be measured in terms of the whole person — body, mind and spirit. And it’s our promise to you to help you feel whole. With world-class expertise and uncommon compassion, we're here for you through every phase of life.

Quality & Service Excellence: We consistently deliver exceptional whole-person care and strive for excellence in all we do.
Community Well-Being We are committed to improving the health, prosperity and well-being of the communities we serve.
High Ethical Standards: We are called to uphold the highest standards, with integrity driving every decision we make and every action we take.
Stewardship: We are guided by relentless stewardship in the management of the resources entrusted to us.
Inclusiveness: We celebrate the diverse backgrounds, cultures and experiences of our patients, visitors and colleagues, and embrace opportunities to learn and grow from new perspectives.

UCHeath

UCHealth's is mission is to improve lives. In big ways through learning, healing and discovery. In small, personal ways through human connection. But in all ways, we improve lives. The Transplant Program at UCHealth is committed to becoming the largest and best in the region for organ transplantation. We provide transplant care for heart, lung, liver, kidney, and pancreas patients. We also have a robust living donor program for liver and kidney and our goal is to have the recipient and donor live the best and longest life possible.