Skippack native named president of UNOS
The nonprofit serves as the nation’s organ donor network
A Washington, D.C. transplant surgeon who grew up in Skippack and graduated from Lansdale Catholic High School has been named president of the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) Board of Directors.
A 1986 graduate and valedictorian at Lansdale Catholic, Dr. Matthew Cooper currently serves as the Director of Kidney and Pancreas Transplantation at the Medstar Georgetown Transplant Institute based at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington.
UNOS is the mission-driven nonprofit serving as the nation’s transplant system. Last year, the national transplant system set an all-time record for the most lives saved by deceased organ donors.
“During the ongoing global health emergency, we are reminded again and again just how important organ donation and transplantation are to patients, families, and communities,” said Dr. Cooper. “I am eager to work alongside the UNOS board, colleagues, physicians, policymakers and members of the community to improve and expand equitable access to this lifesaving care.”
Since 2004, Dr. Cooper has been closely involved with UNOS, serving as a representative on the Living Donor Committee, and later as vice chair and then chair of that committee. In 2012, he began a two-year period of elected service on the UNOS Board. He has served on the inaugural Kidney Paired Donation (KPD) subcommittee, the Policy Oversight Committee, the Membership and Professional Affairs Committee, and as co-chair of the Ad-hoc Systems Performance Workgroup, among other roles.
“I grew up in Skippack and attended St. Mary’s School in Schwenksville before Lansdale Catholic,” Dr. Cooper said in an email to MediaNews Group. “As an only child of two Catholic parents I was taught early the value of a Catholic education
that perhaps I didn’t fully appreciate until later in life.
“I graduated as the valedictorian for the LC class of ‘86 and I’m certain the lessons I learned in the classroom, on the athletic fields, and in my interactions with teachers and fellow students sparked my initial interest in a field of service. I distinctly remember it was then that I was taught a phrase that I continue to share with my students today and which has defined my pathway: ‘People want to know you care before they’ll care what you know.’ ”
Dr. Cooper received his medical degree from the Georgetown University School of Medicine in 1994.
He completed his general surgery training at the Medical College of Wisconsin, followed by a fellowship in multi-organ abdominal transplantation in 2002 at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. After director positions at both Johns Hopkins and the University of Maryland, he assumed his current role in Washington in 2012.
“We are excited to have Dr. Cooper as the new president of the UNOS Board of Directors,” said UNOS CEO Brian Shepard. “His record of service to the transplant community, innovative work at the Medstar Georgetown Transplant Institute, and ongoing advocacy for patients will help move UNOS and the donation and transplant community forward over the coming year.”
United Network for Organ Sharing is the missiondriven nonprofit serving as the nation’s transplant system under contract with the federal government. We lead the network of transplant hospitals, organ procurement organizations, and thousands of volunteers who are dedicated to honoring the gifts of life entrusted to us and to making lifesaving transplants possible for patients in need. Working together, we leverage data and advances in science and technology to continuously strengthen the system, increase the number of organs recovered and the number of transplants performed, and ensure patients across the nation have equitable access to transplant.