What are the odds that two Waimea High School graduates would meet half an ocean away, one needing a new heart to continue living, and the other the doctor performing the surgery? Well, that’s just what happened, as Dr. Jaime
What are the odds that two Waimea High School graduates would meet half an ocean away, one needing a new heart to continue living, and the other the doctor performing the surgery?
Well, that’s just what happened, as Dr. Jaime Moriguchi and Scott Brown met, just in the nick of time for Brown.
And he couldn’t have happened upon a more skilled surgeon, as Moriguchi, associate clinical professor of medicine at the University of California at Los Angeles School of Medicine, also happens to be in charge of pre- and post-operative care at the UCLA Heart Transplant Program. It is one of the world’s largest, having performed 1,147 pediatric and adult transplants since it began in 1984.
Brown was near death when the two met, and formed a friendship based on their blue-and-white upbringing on Kaua‘i’s Westside. Moriguchi made it a special point to make sure all involved in the pre- and post-operative care of Brown knew both had gone to high school at Waimea, saying they needed to take special care of the fellow “Waimea boy,” Brown said.
The two spent a lot of time together before and after the surgery, as Moriguchi also serves as medical director for the UCLA Mechanical Cardiac Assist Program, which supports patients until a suitable heart donor is available.
Additionally, Moriguchi is co-principal investigator for the UCLA Total Artificial Heart Program, which is researching the possibility of finding alternatives to human hearts for those with heart failure.
As co-director of the Clinical Heart Failure Program at the Ahmanson-UCLA Cardiomyopathy Center, Moriguchi works with hundreds of patients with end-stage heart disease, tailoring care to fit individual patient needs.
After graduating from Waimea, Moriguchi attended Stanford University, receiving his bachelor’s degree before earning a medical degree with honors and cardiology fellowship training at UCLA.
Moriguchi has authored or co-authored more than 70 articles, abstracts and manuscripts, and has lectured extensively on management of end-stage heart failure, transplantation and mechanical heart-support devices.
Outside of work, Moriguchi enjoys golfing, scuba-diving and keeping fit. He is married and has two daughters.
Paul C. Curtis, associate editor, may be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 224) or pcurtis@pulitzer.net.
