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BackgroundEmergency point-of-care ultrasound (POC u/s) is an example of a health information technology that improves patient care and time to correct diagnosis. POC u/s examinations should be documented, as they comprise an integral component of physician decision making. Incomplete documentation prevents coding, billing and physician group compensation for ultrasound-guided procedures and patient care. We aimed to assess the effect of directed education and personal feedback through a task force driven initiative to increase the number of POC u/s examinations documented and transferred to medical coders by emergency medicine physicians.MethodsThree months before a chosen go-live date, departmental leadership, the ultrasound division, and residents formed a task force. Barriers to documentation were identified through brain storming and email solicitation. The total number and application-specific POC u/s examinations performed and transferred to the healthcare record and medical coders were compared for the pre- and post-task force intervention periods. Chi square analysis was used to determine the difference between the number of POC u/s examinations reported before and after the intervention.ResultsA total of 1652 POC u/s examinations were reported during the study period. Successful reporting to the patient care chart and medical coders increased from 41 % pre-task force intervention to 63 % post-intervention (p value 0.000). The number of scans performed during the 3-month periods (pre-intervetion, post-intervention 0–3 months, post-intervention 3–6 months) was similar (521, 594 and 537). When analyzed by specific application, the majority showed a statistically significant increase in the percentage of examinations reported, including those most critical for patient care decision making: (EFAST (41 vs. 64 %), vascular access (26 vs. 61 %), and cardiac (43 vs. 72 %); and those most commonly performed: biliary (44 vs. 61 %) and pelvic (60 vs. 66 %). Of the POC u/s studies coded and reported for reimbursement, 15.9 % were billed before intervention and 32 % were billed after intervention (p value: 0.000).ConclusionsThe formation of a workflow solution task force positively affected emergency physician compliance with POC u/s documentation for coding and billing over a 6-month period. Further investigation should assess the long-term effect of the intervention and whether this translates into increased revenue to the department.

Patients presenting to the emergency department with lower extremity symptoms suggestive of venous thromboembolic disease require a diagnostic evaluation. Although contrast venography was the diagnostic standard, this has largely been replaced by duplex ultrasound as the first-line imaging modality. This review presents a summary of the literature on the evolution and performance of B-mode point-of-care compression ultrasound as an alternative to duplex ultrasound evaluation. The 2-point compression and 2-region compression techniques are described. The limitations of point-of-care ultrasound of the lower extremity as a diagnostic modality for this disease entity, the role of a D-dimer assay in the emergency department evaluation and future directions for this diagnostic modality are discussed.

The placement of a central venous catheter remains an important intervention in the care of critically ill patients in the emergency department. We propose an ultrasound‐first protocol for 3 aspects of central venous catheter placement above the diaphragm: dynamic procedural guidance, evaluation for pneumothorax, and confirmation of the catheter tip location.