Perceptions of Point-of-Care Ultrasound Among Internal Medicine Residents and Faculty

Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is an increasingly common tool to address pointed clinical management and diagnostic questions in real time. The implementation of POCUS into graduate medical education, specifically in internal medicine training, has varied. This heterogeneity is likely due to several factors, including availability of ultrasound equipment, faculty with appropriate training, cost of equipment and curriculum development, and perceived utility in its application.

To further address the question of perceived utility, we surveyed internal medicine residents and faculty at an urban academic medical center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin without an established longitudinal POCUS curriculum.

Surveyed residents consisted of internal medicine residents (postgraduate year [PGY] 1-3) and combined internal medicine-pediatric residents (PGY1-4). The faculty surveyed had completed training in general internal medicine and several internal medicine subspecialties. We found a consistent perceived utility in POCUS training, with 89% of residents and 92% of faculty indicating that it would be beneficial to patient care and resident education. In contrast, only 73% of faculty indicated that it adds value to their own patient care.

We find that the perceived value and utility of POCUS regarding patient care is high when the scope of the user is broad, as seen in general internal medicine faculty and residents. Subspecialization in internal medicine, particularly non-critical care medicine subspecialties, were less inclined to utilize POCUS and less likely to perceive it as valuable.