Salonen retiring with a legacy that is unmatched

A legend. The heart of the liver transplant program. The Taylor Swift of the transplant world.  These are some of the many ways colleagues have described Laurie Salonen, transplant coordinator, and the impact she has had on the organization.

The liver failure and transplant program wouldn’t exist today if it wasn’t for her contributions over the years. Salonen founded the program alongside Byers “Bud” Shaw, MD, in 1985 and has championed its success ever since.

Now, 38 years later, she’s finally ready to hang up her nursing cap. Salonen will retire Friday, Jan. 5, leaving behind a legacy that is unmatched.

Salonen grew up in Evanston, Illinois. She earned her bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Michigan and her master’s degree from Wayne State University. She knew early in her career that she wanted to work with children and went on to work in the pediatric intensive care units at CS Mott Children’s Hospital at the University of Michigan and Children’s Hospital University of Illinois in Chicago.

“My favorite patients were the teenagers,” Salonen said. “They’re very resilient because they don’t want to be sick. Kids just want to be normal – they want to play and interact. That’s why I ended up in pediatrics.”

Salonen said it was luck that brought her to University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in 1982, where she served as a clinical nurse specialist for all surgical patients in the pediatric hospital. The facility had recently established the nation’s first pediatric liver transplant program. Because the procedure was new and somewhat controversial at the time, there was not an organized system in place to guide nurses on how to provide a standard of care. 

“Here were these very sick kids who had a huge operation, and none of the nurses knew what to do,” she said. “They brought them back and stuck them in a bed and that was that – it was very chaotic. I advocated that they needed somebody to teach nurses how to take care of these patients and support their families.”

This passion for patient care led her to establish the first liver transplant coordinator role for the hospital.

Salonen went on to develop this same role at UNMC (prior to the hospital merger that created Nebraska Medicine) when she and Dr. Shaw were recruited to establish the liver failure and transplant program in 1985. The program was only the fifth of its kind in the country at the time, and it quickly became the second busiest. Salonen played an integral role in the program’s success.

“Laurie was probably the most important individual in the whole program,” Dr. Shaw said. “Performing a liver transplant is easy compared to a lot of things she did.”

From the beginning, Salonen established a culture among transplant nurses centered around her core belief: always do what’s right for the patient.

“You could ask any of the nurses that I’ve worked with here, and they would tell you that’s what I always say,” Salonen admits with a laugh.

The patient-first culture she created is a primary reason the liver transplant program is so highly respected among other health care systems across the country. Many have modeled their transplant coordinator roles after the one she built.

“What she does for patients is above and beyond,” said April Romans, transplant coordinator. “She makes relationships with them and knows their history.”

It’s no surprise that Salonen has grown close to her patients over the years. She still follows more than 400 of them. She often gives patients her phone number, pager number and email so that they can contact her whenever they need something. She sends them personal holiday cards and greetings year after year. One of her most prized possessions is a folder of emails and cards she’s received from her patients over the years. It’s something she said she’ll treasure for the rest of her life.

“It makes me emotional looking through it,” she said. “It’s been humbling and rewarding to have had an impact on so many people’s lives.”

One of those patients includes James Redford, the late son of actor Robert Redford.

“Even Robert Redford thinks she’s a legend,” said Patti Turner, transplant coordinator. “That just speaks to the fame and recognition of our program that she has helped create.”

Salonen’s extraordinary care for others isn’t limited to patients and their families – it extends to her colleagues as well.

“All of us have been in stressful situations and hard times, but she always wraps her arms around you, makes you feel better and gives you the confidence to push through,” said Brandi Gerhardt, transplant coordinator. “She always wants to know the little details about her co-workers, and that is nice because we all need conversation about something beyond work sometimes.”

Over the years, Salonen has served in many leadership roles and received several awards and accolades. She was the editor-in-chief of the Kidney Foundation Transplant Chronicles, president of the North American Transplant Organization, chair of the United Network of Organ Sharing transplant coordinator committee, the March of Dimes nurse of the year – the list goes on.

When Salonen came to the medical center 38 years ago, she planned to stay for only six months. Now, she can’t imagine a different career than what she has experienced here.

“It was fabulous to be a part of this program from the beginning,” she said. “I’ve built wonderful relationships with patients and colleagues over the years. I feel very lucky.”

Although Salonen has no immediate plans for her newfound free time in retirement, she said she and her husband may eventually move to South Dakota to be closer to her kids and grandkids.

“For now, I’m just going to take a little time off and figure it out,” she said.