Mercy St. Louis marks 10 years of ECMO program that has served 194 people

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) - Mercy St. Louis is celebrating 10 years of its extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, or ECMO, program, which has served 194 people.

A patient’s path to ECMO

John Wilson contracted COVID-19 in 2020. As he got worse, he was transferred to Mercy St. Louis to be put on an ECMO machine.

His wife, Melissa Wilson, said the time was difficult for her.

“It was very scary. It was very uncertain. It was our last hope for him and his life, really,” Melissa Wilson said.

She said she did not know about the treatment at first.

“I didn’t even know what ECMO was. I was scared for him to even be on the vent. So for ECMO, it was like, ‘what is ECMO?” she said.

ECMO machines take blood from the body and send it through an artificial heart and lung. The machines support a person’s body as it heals.

After 39 days, John Wilson was put back on a ventilator. He later recovered.

John Wilson said the care team made the difference.

“Without them, their skill, the equipment, their knowledge, I wouldn’t be here. I mean, we had two weddings. My daughter graduated. She’s a nurse here now at Mercy. We had a grandbaby. I mean, we’ve had so many things that I would have missed out on if it wouldn’t have been for that,” he said.

Program celebrates successes, remembers losses

Dr. Michael Plisco, an intensivist at Mercy St. Louis, said that while staff celebrate the program’s successes, they also mourn the patients they have lost.

“It’s bittersweet. It’s hard not to think about the losses along the way,” Plisco said.

Staff also celebrate the doctors, nurses and specialists who help make ECMO possible.

Service lines support each patient

Plisco said many departments are involved in the care of each ECMO patient.

“It takes about 25 service lines to support one of these patients and to activate all service lines at the drop of a dime. It’s a miracle in itself that you can get everybody on board immediately,” Plisco said.

Melissa Wilson said she is grateful for the machine and the people who operate it.

“I feel extremely grateful, not only for ECMO, but the team behind ECMO. He wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for ECMO and the team behind it,” she said.

Everyone involved in the ECMO service lines needs to be available whenever the hospital gets a patient. That often meant people would sacrifice sleep, holidays or important events to ensure a patient gets the care they need.