Deborah Majure RT, CV, RDMS, RCC is a diagnostic medical sonographer who knows the importance of ultrasound in resource-limited environments. She recently returned from a charitable medical mission to Belize, sent by First Presbyterian Church, Pascagoula, Mississippi, which is affiliated with Word at Work ministry. This was their fourth mission to Belize.
Allison Byrne is a physical therapist and co-leader of a medical team from the Park Community Church in Chicago. She recently returned from a medical mission to assist the Light Evangelism Ministry (LEM) clinic in Fendell, Liberia. The LEM clinic provides diagnoses and treatment via IV and oral medications to any patients who come to be seen with only limited electricity from a generator.
Dr Mandy Masters purchased a Sonosite iViz in 2018 while attending a Rural Hospital Conference trade show where Sonosite was exhibiting. Intrigued by this new compact ultrasound device, her husband, Dr Jonathan Masters, began to borrow the iViz for his own clinical work at a private practice.
They now have a weekly iViz ‘sharing’ system in place.
We asked both doctors how they use point-of-care ultrasound in their respective jobs.
Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is widely used in nephrology for guiding the creation of fistulas and informing decisions on their viability and performance for dialysis.
An advocate for the expansion of the use of point-of-care ultrasound, Dr. Yasmin Endlich is an anesthesiologist who practices medicine in Australia and regularly travels to Papua New Guinea to provide medical training to local physicians. Here, she explains why nerve blocks are a crucial tool an in a rural anesthetist’s arsenal:
Ultrasound is a vital tool for vascular surgeons in the 21st century. In the following essay, Dr. Fidel Fernández Quesada, a sixth-generation vascular surgeon and associate professor at the University of Granada, Spain, describes the difference that ultrasound has made to his clinical practice, and reflects on what his forefathers would have made of such technological advancement.
Any medical professional with hospital experience knows how crucial peripheral IV access can be. Getting fluids and medications into a critically ill or injured patient can make or break the effectiveness of their treatment.
Dr. Alfredo Tirado is from Florida Hospital in Orlando, and has been leading an emergency response mission in Puerto Rico to help with Hurricane Maria relief.
Becker's Infection Control and Clinical Quality
Judy Padula, MSN, RN and Matthew Ostroff, ARNP
With hospitals continuing to be measured on patient safety related criteria such as number of central-line associated blood stream infections, it is important for hospital leadership to be ready to implement programmes with nurse lead ultrasound-guided vascular access teams. Vice President, Patient Services and Chief Nursing Officer of St. Joseph’s Healthcare System in Paterson, NJ, Judy Padula, MSN, RN and Matthew Ostroff, ARNP, Vascular Access Specialist, share their experiences implementing a system-wide ultrasound guided vascular access programme offering the 4 secrets to its success – with success being increased patient satisfaction and cost savings.