Feasibility of an EUS e-training course with live cases

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Gastroenterology
• Medical Simulation

Background:

• COVID-19 pandemic limited traditional in-person endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) mentorship.
• Need for alternative, structured training methods in EUS was identified.
• Virtual training platforms offer a potential solution for remote medical education.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the feasibility of a virtual EUS training course utilizing live cases.
• To evaluate objective endpoints for virtual EUS training effectiveness.
• To determine if virtual training can maintain mentorship standards during public health crises.

Main Methods:

• A 3-month virtual EUS training course with 16 sessions was conducted.
• Twenty-one trainees participated, viewing dual screens of hand movements and EUS display.
• Curriculum covered mediastinal, pancreatico-biliary, and rectal EUS anatomy; assessment via procedure videos.

Main Results:

• 100% of trainees successfully navigated the echo-endoscope to the duodenum.
• Trainees performed an average of 12.5 EUS procedures.
• Successful identification rates for key anatomical areas ranged from 60% to 80%.

Conclusions:

• Virtual EUS training with live cases is a feasible educational model.
• This approach can facilitate training for a large number of medical professionals.
• Further research is required to refine virtual assessment techniques and establish training benchmarks.