The Victorian ECMO Service (VECMOS) commenced in early 2020 after an extensive planning and consultation period commissioned by the Victorian Department of Health, through Safer Care Victoria. It is a state-wide collaboration of hospitals and ambulance service that provides ECMO for critically ill people.
ECMO (or extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation) is a machine that gives temporary life support to patients who have the most severe (life-threatening) forms of lung and heart failure. It is a high-risk procedure that requires specific training and skilled care delivery. Patients that require ECMO are among the most complex and challenging in the health care system and require attention and expert care anywhere, at any time in Victoria.
In recognition of the complexities of delivering ECMO to the most critically ill members of our population, VECMOS has been established to deliver timely, accessible and expert ECMO patient care by creating a network of hospitals in the state that provide accredited ECMO initiation, transport and subsequent care in a coordinated and governed system. It works with Ambulance Victoria and can be accessed by any hospital in the state.
If you would like to read Implementing the Victoria ECMO Service by Safer Care Victoria, please download the following PDF documents:
