Educational assessment of medical student rotation in emergency ultrasound.
BACKGROUND
Medical student ultrasound education is sparse. In 2002, we began the first medical student rotation in emergency ultrasound.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate if medical students can learn and retain sonographic skills during a two- or four-week elective.


METHODS
We gave students an exam on the first and last days of the rotation. Six months later, students took the exam a third time. A control group was used for comparison.


RESULTS
Over a 19-month period, we enrolled 45 students (25 on the two-week and 20 on the four-week elective). The four-week student post-test score was significantly better than the two- week post-test score (81% vs 72%, p=0.003). On the six-month exam, the four-week student post-test score was significantly better than the two-week post-test score (77% vs 69%, p=0.008). The control group did not statistically improve.


CONCLUSIONS
Medical students can learn bedside ultrasound interpretation with clinical integration and retain the knowledge six months later.
Fox
J Christian
JC
Department of Emergency Medicine, University of California, Irvine School of Medicine.
Cusick
Seric
S
Scruggs
William
W
Henson
Travis W
TW
Anderson
Craig L
CL
Barajas
Graciela
G
Zlidenny
Alexander
A
McDonough
Joanne
J
Langdorf
Mark I
MI