Developing neonatal point-of-care lung ultrasound training using Kern's six-step approach: the experience from a UK...

Despite the increasing recognition of the importance of neonatal lung ultrasound (LU) in the management of the unwell neonate, LU is not included in the UK neonatal curriculum. Here we describe the educational resource developed in our level 3 neonatal unit using Kern's six-step approach.

We initially mapped the interest in learning this skill through a questionnaire. Using Kern's six-step approach for curriculum development, we defined a multimodal training programme. At the end of the 6-month placement, a feedback questionnaire was sent to all trainees working in the unit.

We confirmed a wide interest in learning LU skills among trainees at all levels of seniority. The training package included 1) face-to-face teaching; 2) a guideline outlining the main indications for LU, including pictorial depictions of normal lungs and common lung pathologies; 3) a video tutorial describing how to set up and use the ultrasound machine, and how to perform LU in practice; 4) a logbook to evidence practical skills acquisition. The end of placement questionnaire showed that 82 % of the trainees used the available LU curriculum, with 71 % using LU to guide decision-making under supervision.

Kern's six step approach is an effective method to guide the development of an educational curriculum. The strength of our training program lies in it is low cost, reproducibility and potential to be adapted to meet the needs of other neonatal units.