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About the Point-of-Care Ultrasound (POCUS) Certification Academy™

Point-of-Care Ultrasound (POCUS) Certification Academy offers globally recognized certifications for healthcare providers to independently validate their POCUS knowledge, application, and proficiency. We partner with our constituents through rigorous assessments, continual learning opportunities, and community building around important topics relevant to POCUS. The POCUS Certification Academy is a part Inteleos, a non-profit organization dedicated to the highest quality care for patients around the world through ultrasound standards and certification.

Our family of brands under inteleos

The pioneering organizations working alongside the POCUS Certification Academy in setting strategy and ultrasound standards include:

  • The American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography® (ARDMS®)
    For more than 40 years, ARDMS has set the standard for administering examinations and awarding credentials in areas of ultrasound. ARDMS empowers sonographers to provide exceptional patient care through rigorous assessments and continual learning.
  • The Alliance for Physician Certification & Advancement™ (APCA™)
    Spun out of ARDMS in 2016 to meet the exclusive needs of physicians, APCA is dedicated to continual learning and providing high-quality and compassionate patient care through certification. APCA joins ARDMS in furthering its long-standing mission of raising the global standards of excellence in healthcare and patient safety.
  • The Inteleos Foundation increases access to education, training, and certification to improve patient outcomes and practitioner proficiency.

We believe that the future of ultrasound is portable, mobile, and provides exceptional diagnostic potential to improve healthcare practice.

If you are ready to lead the future of healthcare with the POCUS Certification Academy, please contact us at POCUS@Inteleos.org.

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POCUS Certification Academy Council Members

The POCUS Certification Academy Council has a leading role in the development of the certificates and certifications of the POCUS Certification Academy. The council members are composed of volunteers who are subject-matter experts and are leading the practice by building the future of point-of-care ultrasound in action. They work with Inteleos staff and more than 50 other volunteers to develop high standards and credentials with the goal of improving global healthcare. Due to the dynamic nature of POCUS, we approach development as an ongoing process and we are always refining our programs and clinical offerings to be aligned with current standards and best practice in ultrasound.

brauer1 min
Chair

Ernesto Brauer, MD, FACP, FCCP, ABSM
steffen1 min
Vice Chair

Steffen Sammet, MD, PhD, DABR, DABMRS, FAMP
eugene1 min
Member and Education Committee Chair

R. Eugene Zierler, MD, RPVI
Vlahaki1 min
Member and Assessment Committee Chair

Dean Vlahaki, MBBS, RDMS, FRCP
Mena Ramos Headshot min
Member and Engagement Committee Chair

Dr. Mena Ramos
Brandon Geer Headshot min
Member

Brandon Geer, MSN, APRN-BC, FNP-C, CEN, CSPPM
brauer1 min

Chair

Ernesto Brauer, MD, FACP, FCCP, ABSM

Ernesto Brauer is a graduate of the National University of Mexico City. He trained in internal medicine, pulmonary and critical medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Milwaukee, WI. He has been practicing since 1986 and specializes in the care of critically ill and injured postoperative patients. His interests also include the difficult airway and ultrasound. He is also a clinical associate professor of medicine at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. He is board certified in Internal Medicine, Geriatrics, Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep and Adult Echocardiography.

steffen1 min

Vice Chair

Steffen Sammet, MD, PhD, DABR, DABMRS, FAMP

Dr. Sammet is an Associate Professor of Radiology and Medical Physics at the University of Chicago. He is the Director of Clinical Magnetic Resonance Physics and the Associate Program Director of the Clinical Imaging Medical Physics Residency Program at the University of Chicago Medical Center. Dr. Sammet completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Heidelberg, Germany, in physics, mathematics, and chemistry. He continued his graduate studies in physics at the University of Heidelberg completing his M.S. and achieving magna cum laude distinction in his Ph.D. degree. Following his doctoral work in physics, Dr. Sammet completed his medical degree magna cum laude at the University of Heidelberg Medical School. He has a business administration certificate in total quality management (TQM) from the University of Kaiserslautern, Germany, and a certificate of achievement of the Academy of Radiology Leadership and Management (ARLM), where he is also listed on the honor roll. Dr. Sammet is board certified by the American Board of Radiology (ABR) in diagnostic radiological physics and by the American Board of Magnetic Resonance Safety (ABMRS). He also holds a medical physics board certificate and a medical license in Germany. Dr. Sammet has extensive experience in translational research and serves as principle investigator for several extramural and intramural grants that focus on the development of novel MRI and Ultrasound techniques. He is a research mentor to graduate students in his research lab at the University of Chicago and he has won multiple research and teaching awards. Dr. Sammet is also a member of the faculty at the University of Chicago Center for Global Health and has established an educational neuroradiological imaging program in Ibadan, Nigeria through an NIH/NINDS funded R25 training grant where he served as principal investigator. He also developed a summer school program for Medical Imaging Physics in China during a visiting professorship at Xidian University in Xi’an, China.

eugene1 min

Member and Education Committee Chair

R. Eugene Zierler, MD, RPVI

R. Eugene Zierler, MD, RPVI, is Professor of Surgery in the Division of Vascular Surgery at the University of Washington School of Medicine and Medical Director of the D. E. Strandness, Jr. Vascular Laboratory at the University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle. He received both his undergraduate and medical education at the Johns Hopkins University, receiving an A.B. degree in 1973 and the M.D. degree in 1976. Dr. Zierler’s research interests have focused on the clinical applications of noninvasive diagnostic techniques for vascular disease. Over the last 30 years, he has been involved in a series of projects based on the use of ultrasonic duplex scanning for screening and follow-up of vascular problems, including carotid artery disease, lower extremity arterial disease, surveillance of vein bypass grafts, deep vein thrombosis, and renal artery disease. Dr. Zierler is the author or co-author of over 100 journal articles and 50 book chapters, and he is the editor of 6 textbooks. He has served on the Board of Directors of the American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography (ARDMS) and Inteleos. He is also a Past President of the Intersocietal Commission for the Accreditation of Vascular Laboratories (ICAVL).

Vlahaki1 min

Member and Assessment Committee Chair

Dean Vlahaki, MBBS, RDMS, FRCP

Dean Vlahaki, MBBS, RDMS, FRCP, graduated from the University of Queensland Medical school in Brisbane, Australia in 2011. He completed his Emergency Medicine residency training and POCUS specialty training at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada in 2017. Vlahaki now practices at multiple sites in a network of academic tertiary care hospitals in Hamilton, Canada. He is also an Assistant Clinical Professor with McMaster University and a major contributor to the Emergency Medicine Point-of-Care Ultrasound Fellowship program at McMaster University.

Mena Ramos Headshot min

Member and Engagement Committee Chair

Dr. Mena Ramos

Dr. Mena Ramos is a family physician based in the San Francisco Bay Area. After completing her residency at the UCSF Contra Costa Family Medicine Residency in 2015, she pursued a fellowship in Global Health at the UCSF Contra Costa Global Health Fellowship where she taught POCUS to family medicine faculty in Malawi. As the co-founder of Global Ultrasound Institute (GUSI), her biggest passion is in POCUS education as a means to transform health systems for patients with limited access to healthcare. As a POCUS advocate for family physicians and primary healthcare providers, Dr. Ramos co-wrote the POCUS guidelines for the American Association of Family Practice and was founding secretary of the AAFP POCUS Member Interest Group. She has taught thousands of medical providers at national conferences including AIUM, ACP, AAFP, and STFM and through virtual learning. Outside of medicine, Dr. Ramos is a professional musician, percussionist, and educator who enjoys making learning a fun experience.

Brandon Geer Headshot min

Member

Brandon Geer, MSN, APRN-BC, FNP-C, CEN, CSPPM

Brandon Geer, MSN, APRN-BC, FNP-C, CEN, CSPPM, has been practicing as a Registered Nurse since 2012 in Emergency Medicine. In 2020 he graduated from The College at Brockport and began practicing as a Nurse Practitioner in Urgent Care and Emergency Medicine, and is expected to complete his Doctorate of Nursing Practice in 2024. He has been utilizing and teaching POCUS since 2018 both in the United States and internationally. He is also an adjunct Professor of Nursing at Roberts Wesleyan College, and guest lecturer in residency programs and nursing conferences across the world.

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