ECMO Program Manager

Methodist Health System•Dallas, TX

3d•Onsite

About The Position

The ECMO Program Manager provides administrative, operational, educational, quality, and clinical leadership for the Methodist Dallas Medical Center Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) Program. In partnership with the ECMO Medical Director and leaders across critical care, cardiovascular services, respiratory care, perfusion, and nursing, this role develops, implements, maintains, and grows a high-performing ECMO program consistent with Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) guidelines and industry best practices. The manager is the program’s primary operational leader and is accountable for program quality, staff competency, regulatory readiness, data management, process improvement, and strategic advancement. The role leads program operations, clinical practice, staff education and competency management, quality and safety initiatives, regulatory compliance, outcomes reporting, and equipment and resource management. It also supports program growth, regional partnerships, transport capabilities, and ECMO team development. The position reports to the Director, Critical Care Services and has a dyad relationship with the ECMO Medical Director.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Nursing, Respiratory Therapy, Perfusion Science, or a related healthcare field.
Minimum five years of critical care experience.
Minimum three years of ECMO specialist experience.
Demonstrated experience in program leadership, education, quality improvement, or clinical operations.
One of the following current credentials: Registered Nurse license, Registered Respiratory Therapist credential, or Certified Clinical Perfusionist credential.
Current BLS certification.
Current ACLS certification.

Nice To Haves

Experience in an ELSO-recognized ECMO program.
Experience with ECMO registry management and outcomes reporting.
Experience leading quality improvement and patient safety initiatives.
Experience supporting ELSO Center of Excellence activities.
CCRN, CSC, CMC, FCCS, CHSE, or another applicable specialty certification.
Adult Certified ECMO Specialist (CES-A) or ELSO Adult ECMO Practitioner Certification (E-AEC).

Responsibilities

Provide operational leadership for the ECMO program across applicable patient populations and care settings, and oversee daily operations in alignment with organizational goals and service line strategies.
Partner with the ECMO Medical Director to establish strategic goals, annual objectives, and program priorities.
Facilitate multidisciplinary collaboration among physicians, advanced practice providers, nurses, respiratory therapists, perfusionists, pharmacists, rehabilitation specialists, and ancillary departments.
Coordinate ECMO committee activities, including agendas, meeting facilitation, and follow-up action plans; represent the program on hospital and system committees.
Support business planning, resource allocation, capital equipment planning, and program budget development.
Serve as a clinical expert and resource for ECMO patient management and ECMO specialist practice; promote evidence-based care and standardized management practices.
Participate in multidisciplinary rounds and clinical case discussions as appropriate, and collaborate with physician leadership on patient selection criteria, clinical pathways, and best practices.
Support safe ECMO initiation, maintenance, transport, and decannulation processes, and assist with implementation of new technologies, equipment, and clinical innovations.
Develop and maintain ECMO education for specialists and multidisciplinary care teams; oversee onboarding, initial training, annual competency validation, continuing education, and remediation.
Coordinate simulation training, emergency response drills, water-drill exercises, and professional development; maintain competency records and promote certification and professional advancement.
Lead ECMO quality improvement initiatives; establish and monitor performance indicators and outcome metrics; coordinate case and mortality reviews, multidisciplinary debriefings, trend analysis, and improvement action plans.
Maintain ECMO policies, procedures, protocols, and clinical practice guidelines; ensure compliance with hospital policies, accreditation standards, regulatory requirements, and ELSO recommendations; support ELSO Center of Excellence designation goals.
Oversee ECMO registry participation and submissions; ensure data collection and reporting are accurate, complete, and timely; perform outcome analysis, benchmarking, and performance reporting.
Develop dashboards and reports for leadership and clinical teams, use data to drive program improvements, and support ECMO-related research, publication, and scholarly activities.
Collaborate with Supply Chain, Biomedical Engineering, Respiratory Care, and Perfusion Services to ensure equipment readiness; oversee inventory, maintenance schedules, disposables, and emergency preparedness.
Evaluate equipment, technologies, and vendor solutions; participate in capital equipment planning and replacement strategies; ensure equipment safety and documentation compliance.
Identify opportunities for program growth, innovation, and service expansion; strengthen referral pathways and regional partnerships; support transport capabilities and promote community awareness, physician outreach, and program visibility.
Provide leadership, mentorship, and professional development for ECMO specialists and program staff; promote safety, accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
Facilitate conflict resolution and interdisciplinary communication, serve as a change agent for evidence-based practice and operational excellence, and participate in recruitment, retention, and succession planning.
Be accountable for ECMO patient outcomes and quality metrics, staff competency completion, education effectiveness, registry compliance, regulatory readiness, preventable complication reduction, policy compliance, program development, team engagement and retention, and continuous improvement.