title: Seeing Is Believing: Evaluating a Point-of-Care Ultrasound Curriculum for 1st-Year Medical Students.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Point-of-care ultrasound has been a novel addition to undergraduate medical education at a few medical schools. The impact is not fully understood, and few rigorous assessments of educational outcomes exist. This study assessed the impact of a point-of-care ultrasound curriculum on image acquisition, interpretation, and student and faculty perceptions of the course.
  
  
  METHODS
  All 142 first-year medical students completed a curriculum on ultrasound physics and instrumentation, cardiac, thoracic, and abdominal imaging. A flipped classroom model of preclass tutorials and tests augmenting live, hands-on scanning sessions was incorporated into the physical examination course. Students and faculty completed surveys on impressions of the curriculum, and all students under-went competency assessments with standardized patients.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  The curriculum was a mandatory part of the physical examination course and was taught by experienced clinician-sonographers as well as faculty who do not routinely perform sonography in their clinical practice.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Students and faculty agreed that the physical examination course was the right time to introduce ultrasound (87% and 80%). Students demonstrated proper use of the ultrasound machine functions (M score = 91.55), and cardiac, thoracic, and abdominal system assessments (M score = 80.35, 79.58, and 71.57, respectively). Students and faculty valued the curriculum, and students demonstrated basic competency in performance and interpretation of ultrasound. Further study is needed to determine how to best incorporate this emerging technology into a robust learning experience for medical students.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Emergency Medicine , Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai , New York , New York , USA.
authors.forename: Bret P
authors.initials: BP
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.affiliation: b Department of Pediatrics , Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai , New York , New York , USA.
authors.forename: Joanne
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hojsak
authors.affiliation: a Department of Emergency Medicine , Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai , New York , New York , USA.
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dei Rossi
authors.affiliation: c Department of Medicine , Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai , New York , New York , USA.
authors.forename: Reena
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Karani
authors.affiliation: c Department of Medicine , Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai , New York , New York , USA.
authors.forename: Jagat
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Narula
mesh_terms: D004501:Education, Medical; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate; D004521:Educational Measurement; D005180:Faculty, Medical / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D019095:Point-of-Care Systems; D013337:Students, Medical; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014463:Ultrasonography
keywords: Medical education; curriculum; physical examination; ultrasound