The Alfred Hospital is the designated tier 1 site for the Victorian ECMO Service, treating their first ECMO patient in 1998, with the formal Alfred ECMO service starting in 2003. Alfred Health covers numerous council areas including Stonnington, Bayside, Port Phillip, Kingston and Glen Eira with over 700,000 people in its catchment.
The current ECMO service provides ECMO support for over 100 patients a year totalling more than 2500 clinical hours annually. This year the Alfred remained the only site in Australia to be designated received Platinum Level Centre of Excellence Award by ELSO, recognising the presence and outstanding achievements in the global ECMO community.
The entire medical team receives extensive training in ECMO and there are 10 designated ECMO specialists who provide clinical advice and support via VECMOS across the state, along with leading education and quality improvement initiatives. There are more than 300 ECMO nursing specialists who provide complex bedside care in collaboration with 200 other Allied Health professionals. The service concentrates on providing a high quality seamless service prioritising those in need from The Victorian community in which we serve.
