A private medical center and a state-owned academic health sciences center formed a unique partnership in 1989, pairing expertise and technology to establish the Regional Transplant Center in Shreveport, Louisiana. The visionary spirit of Willis-Knighton Medical Center and Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center resulted in a program of organ transplantation that has experienced growth and success over the years.
Willis-Knighton Medical Center, locally-owned not-for-profit hospital, is the flagship institution of the healthcare network that includes seven acute-care hospitals and multiple medical facilities spanning north Louisiana. Willis-Knighton Health System, recognized for its innovative leadership, has been instrumental in bringing to the region medical services not previously offered, including hyperbaric medicine, and in-vitro fertilization. In addition, Willis-Knighton actively promotes the health and well-being of the community through its role in civic, charitable and educational activities.
The LSU Health Science Center in Shreveport has teaching, research and healthcare functions statewide through its three professional schools and its university teaching hospital. The Regional Transplant Center exemplifies the special role of LSUHSC in Shreveport as a resource for the community, the state and the Ark-La-Tex (Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas) area. LSU Health Science Center is among an elite group of fewer than 130 academic health science centers in the nation and provides unsurpassed clinical expertise in a research-oriented teaching environment.