PHM Fellow Baylor College of Medicine Houston, Texas, United States
Background: Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is defined as portable ultrasound examination performed at the patient’s bedside by a healthcare provider to answer specific clinical questions. POCUS curricula have been implemented in over 60 United States medical schools with an emphasis on its use as an extension of the physical exam, and benefits that include lack of ionizing radiation, lower cost, high portability, and non-invasive nature compared to other radiographic studies. As a field, Pediatric Hospital Medicine (PHM) is still in the early stages of implementing POCUS despite numerous potential applications including diagnosing pneumothoraces, pneumonias, pleural effusions, pericardial effusions, volume status, cellulitis/abscesses, and as a tool for improving success in performing lumbar puncture. Clinical competencies and evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for POCUS in PHM are nonexistent. Very little is known about the current use of POCUS in PHM programs nationally. Objective: Determine the current use, barriers and facilitators for use, and applications of POCUS within the field of PHM. Design/Methods: We are conducting a multicenter survey of PHM divisions in both academic children’s hospitals and community settings in collaboration with the Pediatric Research in Inpatient Setting (PRIS) network between October 2023-February 2024. We developed a questionnaire through an iterative process and piloted it to establish content and response validity with a group of national experts in POCUS and survey design. Using REDCap, the questionnaire will distribute to 120 PRIS site leads and data will be collected from one respondent per site. Completion is voluntary and responses are fully anonymized. Analysis with descriptive and inferential statistics is planned for identifying the proportion of PHM divisions using POCUS, the associated characteristics of these groups, and their current applications for POCUS, in addition to barriers and facilitators for POCUS implementation. This study is approved by the Baylor College of Medicine Institutional Review Board.
