The development of a pragmatic, clinically driven ultrasound curriculum in a UK medical school

Abstract

Whether ultrasound (US) should be incorporated into a medical undergraduate curriculum remains a matter of debate within the medical education arena. There are clear potential benefits to its early introduction particularly with respect to the study of living anatomy and physiology in addition to the learning of clinical skills and procedures required for the graduate clinical practice. However, this needs to be balanced against what is perceived as an added value in addition to financial and time constraints which may potentially lead to the sacrifice of other aspects of the curriculum. Several medical schools have already reported their experiences of teaching US either as a standalone course or as a fully integrated vertical curriculum. This article describes and discusses the initial experience of a UK medical school that has taken the steps to develop its own pragmatic vertical US curriculum based on clinical endpoints with the intent of using US to enhance the learning experience of students and equipping them with the skills required for the safe practice as a junior doctor.

Development and Reliability of the Joint Tissue Activity and Damage Examination for Quantitation of Structural Abnormalities by Musculoskeletal Ultrasound in Hemophilic Joints

“…This observation emphasizes the fact that experience and hands‐on practice are required beyond didactic instruction to optimize the accuracy of the readings and the interpretation of musculoskeletal US images. This and other observations support the belief that point‐of‐care (musculoskeletal) US imaging can be learned and correctly applied by nonradiologists but requires appropriate education, continued practice, and accumulation of experience to ensure accurate clinical assessments …”

“…This and other observations support the belief that point-of-care (musculoskeletal) US imaging can be learned and correctly applied by nonradiologists but requires appropriate education, continued practice, and accumulation of experience to ensure accurate clinical assessments. [49][50][51][52][53] A final step was the establishment of interoperator reliability, which examined the extent of agreement of image interpretation between providers when acquiring images independently. The operators were experienced in musculoskeletal US and acquired the images from patients with hemophilia during a 1-day workshop.…”

Future‐proofing clinical education

“…We anticipate that these devices will become commonly used over time, so we believe that it is important that future clinicians are trained appropriately. Although ultrasound has been integrated well into undergraduate medical education in the USA, this cannot be said for the UK, with few medical schools integrating longitudinal ultrasound education into the curriculum here . Furthermore, the use of HHU may lead to significant savings to the health system, when used appropriately …”

“…Although ultrasound has been integrated well into undergraduate medical education in the USA, 2 this cannot be said for the UK, with few medical schools integrating longitudinal ultrasound education into the curriculum here. 2 Furthermore, the use of HHU may lead to significant savings to the health system, when used appropriately. 3…”

Pre-clinical medical student cardiac point-of-care ultrasound curriculum based on the American Society of Echocardiography recommendations: a pilot and feasibility study

“…With growing student interest in cardiac ultrasound examination [8], multiple studies have demonstrated feasibility and bene ts of integrating cardiac POCUS into the undergraduate medical education (UME) curriculum [9][10][11][12][13][14]. A comprehensive review article on cardiac POCUS in medical school education described that 12 medical schools in the United States, Canada, Norway, United Kingdom, Israel, Poland, and China have incorporated cardiac POCUS curricula [15].…”