The UNC ECMO Program has been awarded the Platinum Level Center of Excellence designation by the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO), the highest distinction granted through the ELSO Award for Excellence in Life Support. The designation recognizes programs that demonstrate exceptional performance in evidence-based care, quality improvement, staff education, patient-centered care and clinical outcomes in extracorporeal life support, including extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). This places our ECMO Program in the top 5% of all programs globally. The award designation will be effective for a three-year period from January 1, 2027, through December 31, 2029.
This recognition reflects the on-going excellence of UNC Health’s ECMO program and the multidisciplinary teams who care for some of our most critically ill patients. Special congratulations go to Katherine Clement, MD, Professor of Pediatrics and Anesthesiology and Medical Director of the Pediatric Extracorporeal Life Support Program, Lauren Raff MD FACS, Associate Professor of Surgery and Medical Director of the Adult Extracorporeal Life Support Program, and Rebecca Owensby, RN, UNC Health ECMO Program Director, whose leadership has helped guide the program’s continued success.
ELSO is an international nonprofit consortium of healthcare institutions, researchers, clinicians and industry partners dedicated to advancing extracorporeal life support through education, research, clinical guidelines and the world’s largest ECMO patient registry. The organization’s Center of Excellence program recognizes hospitals that maintain the highest standards for quality, training, safety and continuous improvement in ECMO care.
UNC Health provides ECMO therapy for infants, children, and adults experiencing acute cardiac or respiratory failure. ECMO is one of the most advanced forms of life support available, using a specialized heart-lung machine to oxygenate blood outside the body while allowing the heart and lungs time to recover. Originally developed to support infants and children with severe respiratory illnesses, ECMO is now used across all age groups and may also serve as a bridge to heart or lung transplantation when appropriate.
The award will be presented during the 37th Annual ELSO Conference on September 28, 2026, in Nashville, Tennessee.