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Name of Speaker
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Diwakar Gupta |
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Schedule
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20 May 2026, 10am – 11.30am (60 min talk + 30 min Q&A) |
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Venue
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BIZ1-0302
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| Link to register
(via Zoom) |
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Title
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The Impact of List Diving on Post-Transplant Outcomes
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Abstract
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Transplant programs often turn down deceased-donor kidney offers for their top-ranked potential transplant recipients (PTRs) and utilize them for lower-ranked PTRs. This practice is known as list diving. PTRs in the US are ranked based on an evidence- and consensus-based policy that reflects the collective judgment of stakeholders in the kidney transplant ecosystem. Because list diving upends the consensus ranking, concerns have been raised about its impact on the national system. In this talk, I will present an empirical analysis of the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) data to quantify the impact of list diving decisions on short- and long-term survival of PTRs after accounting for the endogeneity of such decisions. I will also illustrate the impact of list diving on skipped candidates. The analysis shows that list diving worsens 1 and 3-year survival for transplants performed by centers with significant within-DSA competition. A significant minority of first-ranked skipped candidates do not receive transplants and either die or are removed from waitlist. Their average wait time is 8 months longer. The study highlights the need for greater oversight over transplant programs’ utilization decisions. |
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About the Speaker
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Diwakar Gupta holds an appointment as the INBA–Stuart Centennial Professor of Information, Risk, and Operations Management at the McCombs School of Business of The University of Texas at Austin. His research spans healthcare operations, supply chain finance and risk management, and inventory and revenue management. He serves as the departmental editor of healthcare operations department at the Naval Research Logistics journal and as senior editor of healthcare operations management department at the POMS journal. He teaches healthcare analytics at UT Austin. |
