A road map for point-of-care ultrasound training in internal medicine residency

Abstract

Background Ever-expanding uses have been developed for ultrasound, including its focused use at the bedside, often referred to as point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS). POCUS has been well developed and integrated into training in numerous fields, but remains relatively undefined in internal medicine training. This training has been shown to be desirable to both educators and trainees, but has proven difficult to implement. We sought to create a road map for internal medicine residency programs looking to create a POCUS program. Results Four internal medicine residency programs that have successfully integrated POCUS training describe their programs, as well as the principles and concepts underlying program development and execution. Review of educational teaching and assessment methods is outlined, as well as suggestions for integration into an already busy residency curriculum. Commonly reported barriers to POCUS implementation such as faculty development, equipment purchasing, resident supervision and quality assurance are addressed. Specific POCUS applications to target are touched upon, and a comparison of applications taught within these four programs suggest that there may be enough similarities to suggest a common curriculum. Finally, future needs are discussed. Conclusions POCUS can be successfully taught to internal medicine residents as a part of internal medicine training. Many common elements and principles are evident on review of these four described successful programs. Future support, in the form of endorsed medical society guidelines, will be needed before POCUS is universally incorporated across internal medicine residency training programs.

Point-of-care ultrasound curriculum for internal medicine residents: what do you desire? A national survey

“…Although many ultrasound curricula already exist, some of which are very extensive, it is questionable if every country can fully adopt these curricula due to local and national differences in healthcare structure [9,10]. Also, there is no consensus at this moment on the content of ultrasound curricula specifically for internal medicine [11,12]. It is necessary to make choices in core applications because IM is a large specialty with many subspecialties.…”

Barriers to learning and using point-of-care ultrasound: a survey of practicing internists in six North American institutions

“…Following this acknowledgement from the ACP, the Society of Hospital Medicine issued a similar position statement highlighting their support for the use of POCUS by hospitalists [5]. Nationally and internationally, POCUS is increasingly incorporated in IM residency training programs over the last decade [7][8][9][10][11]. Recognizing the importance of POCUS in medical education, the Alliance of Academic Internal Medicine supports the integration of POCUS across the training continuum [12].…”

Life after a point-of-care ultrasound course: setting up the right conditions!

“…The reliability of the POCUS exam is largely operator dependent and, therefore, requires a solid ultrasound training system [ 1 ]. For internal medicine, it is a relatively new skill and ultrasound curricula are being developed to ensure correct use of POCUS for safe patient care [ 2 – 4 ]. In ultrasound curriculum designing, the first step is choosing the core applications which are relevant for that specific specialty and providing the core knowledge of these applications [ 2 , 5 ].…”