Live from the consensus conference on "Optimal Testing of Live Donors to Prevent Transmission of Infectious Diseases"

How do we tell a recipient that they are at high risk for a transmissible infectious disease when they are accepting a CDC high Risk Kidney?

Evaluating donors can lead to many ethical decisions. As Dr.Blumberg stated today, there is no real evidence as to what to do with high risk donors. We all agree that recipients should be aware of the increased risk if they are receiving a CDC high risk kidney. But how do we tell them? We can not tell a recipient specifics because we must adhere to hipaa regulations. We are obligated to let the recipient know of their increased risk. They can receive general information that their donor may be at higher risk....
Another important thing we can do is remind donors of their high risk behavior. Remind them of their need to avoid this high risk behavior and also that the recipient can be harmed if they continue the high risk behavior. Perhaps another meeting after the initial visit should be initiated to talk to them about their high risk. If they can not make behavioral modifications they should be given the choice to opt out of the donation process as risk may be greater than the benefit.