Point-of-Care Ultrasound (POCUS) Mentorship Program

Learning Objectives

1. Demonstrate ability to correctly acquire, interpret, and clinically integrate normal and abnormal ultrasound images for the following core internal medicine POCUS examinations:
   • Pulmonary ultrasound
   • Focused cardiac ultrasound
   • Kidney and bladder ultrasound
   • Evaluation of abdomen for free fluid
   • Focused vascular evaluations of the lower extremity for deep venous thrombosis
2. Demonstrate ability to troubleshoot commonly occurring problems in obtaining optimized images across multiple sonographic windows
3. Describe nuances of clinical integration for various POCUS findings
4. Generate a plan for personal implementation of internal medicine POCUS into local clinical practice and a plan for continual skill refinement

Is This Course Right For You?

Substrate

• You have sufficient POCUS knowledge and hands-on scanning experience to make remote training practical (See Prerequisites tab)  

AND

• You have sufficient familiarity with virtual meeting programs and a general willingness to help troubleshoot common connection/technological issues

Setup

• You have access to someone willing to serve as a scanning model and access to compatible ultrasound equipment in a quiet space with a reliable and robust internet connection.
• You have access to one of the following eligible ultrasound devices:
  • Butterfly with a personal/non-institutional account
  • Philips Lumify with an active REACTS account
  • Laptop or Cart-based System

Note, that, unfortunately, because of technical limitations, EchoNous Kosmos is no longer an acceptable device for the program.

Goals

• You have the drive/desire to incorporate POCUS into your practice but don’t have readily available POCUS mentors to help guide your learning.

AND/OR

• You prefer to practice your scanning skills outside the clinical environment to optimize the basics before scanning patients.
• You are practicing your scanning skills in the clinical environment and wish to accelerate your progress obtaining diagnostic quality images consistently.
• You would like targeted feedback on scans you are obtaining and customized practice sessions to work on your specific training needs.
• You would like targeted feedback on improving your techniques for teaching/training others.

The course may not be right for you if:

• You have no prior hands on scanning experience or have taken a course many years ago without regular practice.
• You are looking for image overreading or purely image feedback without hands-on practice.
• You are looking for virtual consults/real-time scanning in the clinical environment to inform patient care.
• You have highly advanced or specialized ultrasound areas of focus outside of core Internal Medicine POCUS applications (e.g. ultrasound of the pancreas).

Course Directors

Faculty Members

TBD

CME Information

The program is approved for 8 CME and MOC credits.

The American College of Physicians is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

The American College of Physicians designates this live activity for a maximum of 8 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to 8 medical knowledge MOC points in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program. Participants will earn MOC points equivalent to the amount of CME credits claimed for the activity. It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting ABIM MOC credit.

Ultrasound Equipment Requirements

• Butterfly with a personal/non-institutional account
• Philips Lumify with an active REACTS account
• Laptop or Cart-based System

Note, that, unfortunately, because of technical limitations, EchoNous Kosmos is no longer an acceptable device for the program.

Registration Information

Register Now

Course Requirements

• Complete ACP’s POCUS Online Learning Modules, #1-6  
• Complete a technical refresher quiz that will be sent to you approximately one month prior to the start of the course
• Attend a one-hour orientation session
• Participate in one 1-hour mentorship session per month, May through October. Note that there is flexibility in scheduling these sessions.  You will coordinate with your mentor each month to determine a mutually convenient time.
• Submit 15 images for each of the Image Review Sessions and participate in the sessions.
• Participants will be responsible for obtaining a live model to scan during the sessions. Live models will be required to sign an Ultrasound Model Waiver and this signed waiver should be emailed to acppocus@acponline.org prior to the start of the program. If using several different models throughout the program, each model will need to sign a release prior to their session.

Prerequisite Requirements

• Students and Residents are not eligible
• Must have completed ACP's POCUS: Foundational Skills for Internal Medicine Physicians course or POCUS: Advanced Skills for Outpatient Practice course.

Alternate 2-day introductory courses that include a minimum of 50% hands-on time might be considered as a surrogate for and ACP course. A course agenda and certificate of completion must be submitted for approval. Attestation of significant experience might also be considered as a surrogate at the course director’s discretion. Please submit this information to ACPPOCUS@acponline.org. You will receive a response within 10 days. If you are not approved for the course, you will receive a full refund.

Cancellation Policy

Through April 8, 2025: Full refund.

April 8 - April 16, 2025: Refund registration less $100 administrative fee.

Beginning April 17, 2025: No refund.

Important Course Dates

More information to come.

FAQs

Who is eligible to participate in the POCUS Mentorship Program?

Registrants of the POCUS Mentorship Program must have completed one of the following courses:

• ACP’s POCUS Foundational Skills for Internal Medicine Physicians
• ACP’s POCUS: Advanced Skills for Outpatient Practice
• An alternate 2-day course that included at least 50% hands-on instruction

When will my mentorship sessions be scheduled?

Using an interactive calendar, you’ll work with your mentors to schedule your sessions at a mutually convenient time.

What if I have a last minute conflict and am not able to participate in a scheduled mentor session?

If this happens, please contact your mentor and ACP at ACPPOCUS@acponline.org to reschedule your session. Reschedules will be limited to one per month.

Who can be an ultrasound model?

Anyone can.  You can ask a medical student, resident, fellow, colleague, family member or friend.  Just be sure that you obtain a completed Ultrasound Model Waiver from the individual serving as your ultrasound model and submit it to ACPPOCUS@acponline.org.

What type of ultrasound devices can be used?

• Butterfly with a personal/non-institutional account
• Philips Lumify with an active REACTS account
• Laptop or Cart-based System

Note, that, unfortunately, because of technical limitations, EchoNous Kosmos is no longer an acceptable device for the program.

How do I set up my ultrasound unit for the course?

Instructions for the set-up will be sent to you approximately one month prior to the course.

How do I claim CME for this course?

Instructions on how to claim CME/MOC for this course will be sent to participants towards the end of the course.

What if I’m not able to attend the Orientation Session?

The orientation session will be recorded and the recording will be made available to all registrants.

What if I’m not able to attend the Image Review Sessions?

The image review sessions will be recorded, and the recording will be made available to all registrants. Please note, however, that as part of the Course Requirements, if you are unable to attend the Image Review Sessions, you will still need to submit 15 images for each of the sessions.

Other questions?

Email ACPPOCUS@acponline.org