A Systematic Needs Assessment for Point of Care Ultrasound in Internal Medicine Residency Training Programs

Background: Point-of-Care Ultrasound (PoCUS) is an ultrasound examination performed by the clinician to answer a question or guide a procedure. Few Internal Medicine (IM) programs teach a formal PoCUS curriculum. The objective of this study is to conduct a systematic needs assessment for the introduction of a PoCUS curriculum to an IM program. Methods: A survey was distributed to all IM staff and residents. Participants rated their comfort, training, and use of PoCUS. Descriptive statistics were calculated using SPSS software. Results: Participants self-identified as “neutral” on comfort for using PoCUS for diagnostic applications and many lacked formal diagnostic training (9.7% in residents vs. 32% in staff, χ 2 =10.5, P=0.002). Despite this inexperience, 26.9% of residents use PoCUS for diagnostic applications. Conclusion: A third of residents are using PoCUS despite a lack in formal training, suggesting that PoCUS should be introduced to the IM curriculum.