Stress reduction with heart transplant patients and their families: a multidisciplinary approach.

Stress reduction is an important part of the treatment plan for heart transplant patients at Loyola University Medical Center, Maywood, Illinois. This individualized stress reduction program is offered to both patient and family members through the complementary efforts of the social work and occupational therapy departments. The objectives of this program are to educate the participants in a variety of coping and stress reducing techniques to help prepare them for the multitude of stressors encountered during the entire transplant experience. Patients and family members have positively responded to this program, both verbally and in practice.