• Author
    Amber Aduja
  • Discovery PI

    Allan Chiem, MD, MPH

  • Project Co-Author

    Flor Lema, MD; Jackie Shibata, MD, MS

  • Abstract Title

    Developing POCUS Expertise Among Faculty: Outcomes of a Longitudinal Faculty Development Initiative at an Academic Safety-Net Hospital

  • Discovery AOC Petal or Dual Degree Program

    Medical Education Leadership & Scholarship

  • Abstract

    Keywords: Faculty Development, POCUS, Medical Education

    Background:

    Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is an increasingly essential diagnostic and procedural tool across acute and inpatient settings, yet many practicing physicians lack formal training and confidence in its use and teaching. Existing educational models often rely on short, intensive courses that improve short-term knowledge but do not support sustained skill development or clinical integration. At the Olive View-UCLA Medical Center, a large academic safety-net hospital, there was a need for a longitudinal, accessible faculty development program to improve POCUS competency, promote interdisciplinary collaboration, and support integration into clinical workflows.

    Objectives:

    To evaluate the feasibility and impact of a longitudinal, multidisciplinary POCUS curriculum aimed at improving faculty knowledge, confidence, clinical utilization, and teaching ability.

    Design:

    A 13-week longitudinal curriculum was implemented from September 2025 to April 2026 for 20 attending physicians across internal medicine, emergency medicine, family medicine, and urgent care. This curriculum included three modules (abdominal, cardiothoracic, and soft tissue/MSK/DVT), each following a four-week rotating format, with an additional week dedicated to ultrasound-guided procedures. Instructional methods incorporated asynchronous learning, interactive didactics, gamification, supervised hands-on scanning, independent clinical image acquisition, and teaching practice. Participants received protected time (0.1 FTE weekly). Program outcomes were evaluated using the Kirkpatrick model, including pre- and post-course surveys to assess participant satisfaction and perceived value (Level 1: Reaction); post-course assessments of knowledge acquisition (Level 2: Learning); and clinical imaging utilization before and after course completion (Level 3: Behavior).

    Impact/Effectiveness:

    Participants demonstrated increased self-reported confidence across 16 POCUS domains, with the greatest gains in procedural applications and cardiac assessments. Post-course surveys indicated strong agreement that the curriculum improved clinical confidence, teaching ability, professional well-being, and interdisciplinary collaboration. Early data suggest increased clinical utilization of POCUS following course completion, though objective behavioral outcomes are still being analyzed.

    Lessons Learned:

    Key strengths included longitudinal structure, protected time, hands-on practice, and institutional support. Challenges included a limited sample size, reliance on self-reported outcomes, and barriers to measuring objective behavioral changes, particularly related to image documentation workflows.

    Summary:

    A longitudinal, multidisciplinary POCUS faculty development program is feasible and effective in a safety-net hospital setting. This model supports sustained skill acquisition, improves confidence in clinical application and teaching, and fosters interdisciplinary collaboration. Future work should focus on objective measures of clinical utilization and patient outcomes, as well as scalability across institutions.

Back