News

Kirsti Millar, a 35-year-old of Kansas City, was 23 weeks pregnant with her second child in early 2023 when her water suddenly broke. What should have been a season of joy and anticipation became a medical emergency.

Janette Platter is the community chaplain at Saint Luke’s Bishop Spencer Place, a vibrant senior living community just steps from the Country Club Plaza. But in early 2025, she was just another mom seeking the very best care for her child. Fortunately, she knew it wasn’t too far away.

What should have been a dream getaway became a nightmare when a car accident forced Kelsey O’Connor and her friend off the road and into emergency care in a foreign country.

A recent study led by Andrew Sauer, M.D., cardiologist at Saint Luke’s Mid America Heart Institute, showed that for patients with heart failure, hospital participation in the IMPLEMENT-HF initiative improves patient care.

Matthew Wilkinson, MD, a surgeon with Saint Luke’s kidney and liver transplant program, and Erica Sparks, a transplant coordinator with Saint Luke's, discuss the transplant process and importance of organ donation.

While thousands linger on organ waiting lists, the national transplant network is ditching 40-year-old systems and struggling to remake itself. The Beacon talked with local health leaders about the state of organ transplantation today.

Anthony Weatherspoon, who received lifesaving heart and kidney transplants, is grateful for the gift of life this April.

After a fainting spell, Angela Alvarez was ultimately diagnosed with cardiomyopathy and congestive heart failure. Her original plan of action was to undergo a heart transplant, but she sought a second opinion at Saint Luke’s Mid America Heart Institute.

A local man with heart failure who was told numerous times he only had months to live gets a second chance at life after treatment at Saint Luke's.

When Debbie O’Neal was diagnosed with heart failure at 75, she feared her life was ending. She was the same age that her mother had been when she died of heart disease.