Point-of-care Ultrasound Training During an Emergency Medicine Clerkship: A Prospective Study

Aim This study evaluated the effects of three-hour instructor-led training courses in the Extended Focused Assessment Sonography for Trauma (EFAST) and Rapid Ultrasound in Shock and Hypotension (RUSH) protocols on knowledge gain and retention by final-year medical students. Methods This prospective study evaluated 79 final year medical students participating in an emergency medicine (EM) clerkship during the 2017-2018 academic year. None of the included students had prior formal ultrasound training or hands-on experience. All students participated in three-hour training courses on the EFAST and RUSH protocols, with training on each protocol involving one hour of didactic training and two hours of practical training. Knowledge improvement was measured by testing before and after each course, and knowledge retention was evaluated on a final clerkship multiple choice question (MCQ) examination. Results Median scores were significantly higher after rather than before both the EFAST (15; range, 12-19 vs. 7; range, 2-18; p < 0.0001) and RUSH (16; range, 6-20 vs. 6; range, 1-13; p < 0.0001) courses. EFAST knowledge was significantly higher than RUSH knowledge before (p = 0.04) but not after (p = 0.82) taking the respective course. The RUSH score was significantly lower than the EFAST score on the final clerkship MCQ examination (p < 0.0001). Conclusions Three hours of instructor-led ultrasound training given during an EM clerkship significantly increased knowledge of both the EFAST and RUSH protocols. Knowledge retention after two weeks was higher for the EFAST than the RUSH protocol. A longer period of RUSH training may improve the retention of knowledge.