JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

The ultrasound (US) is ubiquitous across all disciplines of medicine; it is one of the most commonly used non-invasive, painless diagnostic tools. Yet, not many are educated and trained well enough in its use. The US requires not only theoretical knowledge, but also extensive practical experience. The simulated setting offers the safest environment for healthcare professionals to learn and practice using US.

Objective:

With this intervention, we aim to assess the need and enthusiasm of healthcare professionals towards practicing using the US via simulation, and to gauge their perception and acceptance of simulation as an integral element of US education in medical curricula.

Methods:

A day-long intervention was organized at AUBMC to provide a free of charge interactive US simulation workshop—using CAE Vimedix® high fidelity simulator—for healthcare providers, including: physicians, nurses, ultrasound technicians/sonographers, residents and medical students. Following the intervention, the attendees completed an evaluation, which included 4 demographic questions and 16 close-ended questions based on a Likert Scale [Agree-Neutral-Disagree]. The results are based on this evaluation forms.

Results:

Forty-one attended the workshop (46% physicians, 30% residents, 19% sonographers and 5% medical students), mostly from AUBMC (88%), with an average experience of 2.27 (3.45) years, and 30 (46) scans per attendee. Thirty six percent of participants were from obstetrics and gynecology, 27% internal medicine, 10% pediatrics, 10% emergency medicine, 5% surgery and family medicine, and 12% were technicians. Majority agreed that US provided a realistic setting (98%), allowed for training and identification of pathologies (88%), 100% agreed that it should be part of the curriculum either in medical school or residency, and most agreed it was useful for training (98%) and teaching (97%).

Conclusions:

Attendees were satisfied with the intervention. There was a positive perception towards the use of simulation for training and teaching medical students and residents in US and there was a definite need and enthusiasm for integration into curricula. Simulation offers an avenue for teaching and more importantly practicing US for both medical students and healthcare providers.