Abstract 244: Geospatial Access to Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation in the United States

Introduction: Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) is a form of complete cardiopulmonary support which has been associated with improved survival in both severe acute respiratory distress syndrome and refractory cardiac arrest. ECMO is a resource-intensive therapy limited to specialized centers in urban environments, restricting its availability in suburban and rural areas. We examined the proportion of the U.S. population within a 15-minute, 30-minute, and 45-minute drivetime area to an ECMO-capable center.

Methods: Using geographic information systems (GIS), we created shapefiles with polygons representing 15, 30, and 45-minute drivetime areas to ECMO-capable centers. Census block group centroids were then overlaid to determine the proportion of the population with access to ECMO-capable centers.

Results: We found that 22%, 52%, and 67% of the U.S. population live within 15, 30, and 45 minutes of ECMO-capable centers, respectively. One hundred and ten million people, more than one third of the U.S. population, live further than 45 minutes away from an ECMO-capable center. Puerto Rico, Wyoming, North Dakota, and Alaska have 0% population access. Texas, California, and Florida have the highest number of people with low access (9, 8, and 5 million, respectively).

Conclusion: Population access to ECMO-capable centers in the U.S. is highly variable and limits time-dependent interventions, which are essential for successful deployment of extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation in refractory cardiac arrest. Our GIS model can be used for future planning of ECMO systems to optimize access for the U.S. population or to comparatively evaluate proposals to improve access.