Development of a Musculoskeletal Ultrasound Curriculum for Internal Medicine Residents

Abstract

Introduction/Background: As the utilization of point of care ultrasound (POCUS) increases in internal medicine, residency programs have begun to implement aspects of training within the curriculum. Most residency programs focus on cardiac and lung, but few have strong outpatient curriculums as evidenced by literature search. Study objective/hypothesis: Our hypothesis is that by implementing a musculoskeletal (MSK) ultrasound lecture and basic skills workshop among the first-year residents at our program, knowledge of MSK POCUS in the outpatient setting will increase. Methods: This study includes internal medicine residents from Indiana University. Likert scale surveys were provided to participants to assess current knowledge, perceptions, and current utilization of diagnostic musculoskeletal ultrasound in practice. Residents then participate in a mandatory lecture session which is followed by a simulation session. A post survey utilizing a Likert scale survey will be provided to assess resident’s knowledge acquisition and utility of the session. Chi square analysis was done on pre and post survey questions. Results: 74% of PGY-1 residents had not been trained on MSK POCUS prior to residency. Prior to residency, 44% of PGY-1’s were extremely uncomfortable obtaining and interpreting MSK POCUS images, and 39% and 27% of PGY-1s were somewhat uncomfortable. Following the session, knowledge and skills improved (p<0.05). Prior to the session, 61% of respondents were uncomfortable with performing physical exam maneuvers to identify common orthopedic pathologies of the knee. After the session, 83% of respondents stated they were more comfortable (p<0.05). Conclusions: MSK POCUS can be easily incorporated into the residency curriculum. Though the power of this study was low due to low sample size, there was improvement in knowledge and skills before and after the session. In the future, this curriculum could be replicated with more residents to better assess efficacy of this pilot program.