Heart and Kidney Transplant Patient to Ride in Rose Parade Skip to main content Close Select your preferred language English عربى 简体中文 繁體中文 فارسي עִברִית 日本語 한국어 Русский Español Tagalog Menu Close Call 1-800-CEDARS-1 toggle search form Close Los Angeles, 31 December 2018 06:30 AM America/Los_Angeles Heart and Kidney Transplant Patient to Ride in Rose Parade Robert Hill PhD is Cedars-Sinai s Donate Life Float Rider in the 2019 Tournament of Roses Parade download Your browser does not support HTML5 video. Cedars-Sinai's Donate Life Float Rider in the 2019 Tournament of Roses Parade When Robert Hill, PhD, arrived at the Cedars-Sinai Emergency Department in February 2017, he was suffering from pains in his stomach but expecting to be treated and sent home. Instead, Hill was told his heart was failing and without a transplant, he had about 48 hours to live. That dramatic news led to a several-month stay at Cedars-Sinai and, ultimately, a new heart and kidney. Hill, who was 51 at the time, knew he had cardiomyopathy (a type of heart disease), but thought his condition was being well-managed with medication. He led a full and busy life as dean of student services at Glendale Community College and as father and stepfather to seven daughters. Hill waited in his bed at Cedars-Sinai for more than two months for a heart. He remembers the wait as filled with emotional highs and lows and says he made it through with the support of his family and the Cedars-Sinai staff, who all wore bracelets bearing the words, "Hill Strong." Finally, when the heart transplant team felt they couldn't wait any longer, they prepped Hill for an LVAD, a left ventricular assist device, to help keep his heart pumping until a donor heart became available. As Hill remembers it, he was wheeled into the operating room thinking he was getting an LVAD, and when he woke up, he found out he had received a new heart as well as a new kidney. Robert Hill, PhD, is Cedars-Sinai's Donate Life Float Rider in the 2019 Tournament of Roses Parade. Photo by Cedars-Sinai. Robert Hill, PhD, Cedars-Sinai's Donate Life Float Rider, decorates floats for the 2019 Tournament of Roses Parade. Photo by Cedars-Sinai. Robert Hill, PhD, Cedars-Sinai's Donate Life Float Rider, decorates floats for the 2019 Tournament of Roses Parade. Photo by Cedars-Sinai. Today, nearly two years later, Hill says he's doing great. "I feel better than I have in 15 or 20 years," Hill said. "I feel so blessed and so grateful to my surgeon, Joshua Chung, and to the nurses. I believe it was the hand of God that led me to the Cedars-Sinai Emergency Department that night." Of course, Hill's gratitude extends to his donor and the donor's family. Hill received a letter from the family and knows his donor had a young daughter. Today, Hill is praying for the possibility of meeting them and hopes to start an educational fund for the little girl. Hill will represent the Cedars-Sinai Comprehensive Transplant Center on the 2019 Donate Life Tournament of Roses parade float on Jan. 1. His family will be there to cheer him on. Hill says he believes that such a tremendous gift of life comes with responsibility, and that is why he is volunteering with transplant organization One Legacy. Related Stories RSS feed - Related Stories (opens in new window) View all headlines - Related Stories Cedars-Sinai Lung Transplant Outcomes Rated Outstanding July 13, 2022 06:15 AM America/Los_Angeles A new report on lung transplantation success rates confirms that Cedars-Sinai patients experienced one-year survival outcomes of 91.49%, an achievement above the national average of 89.46%. The … Read more COVID-19 Immunity Test Inventor It s Not Just About Antibodies July 05, 2022 07:01 AM America/Los_Angeles When it comes to COVID-19 immunity, antibodies do not tell the whole story, according to Cedars-Sinai professor of Medicine Stanley C. Jordan, MD.Jordan should know. As director of the Comprehensive … Read more Cedars-Sinai Transplant Clinicians Earn National Recognition June 14, 2022 13:30 PM America/Los_Angeles Two physician leaders from the Cedars-Sinai Comprehensive Transplant Center have been honored by two prestigious national groups.Irene Kim, MD, director of the Cedars-Sinai Comprehensive Transplant … Read more Show previous items Show next items Contact the Media Team Email: [email protected] Contact Soshea Leibler Soshea.Leibler@cshs.org Share this release Heart and Kidney Transplant Patient to Ride in Rose Parade Share on: Twitter Share on: Facebook Share on: LinkedIn Search Our Newsroom Social media Visit our Facebook page (opens in new window) Follow us on Twitter (opens in new window) Visit our Youtube profile (opens in new window) (opens in new window) Latest news 07 Oct 2022 - HealthDay: Black Women Less Likely to Get Laparoscopic Fibroid Surgeries 07 Oct 2022 - Faculty Publications: Sept. 29-Oct. 6 07 Oct 2022 - Fine-Tuning Organ-Chip Technology 06 Oct 2022 - KCRW: Want New Omicron Booster? Wait at Least 2 Months After Last Shot 05 Oct 2022 - Cedars-Sinai Schedules Free Flu Vaccine Clinics 04 Oct 2022 - Cedars-Sinai Showcases Hispanic and Latinx Art Newsroom Home