Development of skills to utilize point-of-care ultrasonography in nephrology practice

The use of ultrasonography (US) by non-radiologists has increased due to the need of physicians to integrate "new" clinical information into the diagnostic process. A defined and validated ultrasound training program has not been established in Nephrology. This study aimed to present the results of assessment of the development of skills to utilize point-of-care ultrasonography (POCUS) in Nephrology practice.

Nine residents, four from Nephrology and five from internal medicine program, attended a 16-hour course that covered theoretical and practical aspects of ultrasonography. The course addressed topics related to urinary tract, lung, heart, and blood vessel ultrasonography and use of ultrasound to guide kidney biopsy and central venous catheter insertion. The resident evaluation consisted of cognitive tests (CT) with multiple-choice questions and image association tests, before and after the course, and assessment of skills in generating ultrasound images and performing procedures using the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE).

All residents completed the course. A significant improvement in knowledge was observed by comparing the residents' scores obtained on the CT (p < 0.004) and image association tests (p < 0.02) before and after the course. With the exception of the station regarding the lungs, they demonstrated very good performance on the assessment of the skills using the OSCE exams.

A 16-hour nephrology POCUS training course that was not limited to topics involving the urinary tract enabled the development of skills to obtain images and perform Nephrology procedures. The program developed can be used as a model for learning POCUS in Nephrology.