title: The focused abdominal sonography for trauma (FAST) examination: considerations and recommendations for training physicians in the use of a new clinical tool.
abstract: Focused abdominal sonography for trauma (FAST) is being used by growing numbers of emergency physicians and surgeons because it has proven to be an accurate, rapid, and repeatable bedside test for evaluating abdominal trauma victims. Controversy exists about the optimal means of FAST education and the number of examinations necessary to demonstrate competency. Most FAST educators agree that FAST education should consist of three phases: didactic, practical, and experiential. This article summarizes options and preliminary recommendations suitable for developing a FAST curriculum.
authors.affiliation: Emergency Medicine Residency of the Lehigh Valley, St. Luke's Hospital, Bethlehem, PA 18015, USA. salenp@slhn.org
authors.forename: P N
authors.initials: PN
authors.lastname: Salen
authors.forename: S W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Melanson
authors.forename: M B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Heller
mesh_terms: D000007:Abdominal Injuries / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D000818:Animals; D002983:Clinical Competence; D003479:Curriculum; D004503:Education, Medical, Graduate; D004635:Emergency Medicine / Q000193:education*; D006801:Humans; D017145:Models, Educational; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014463:Ultrasonography / Q000379:methods*