The healthcare industry has always been united by a common goal: implementing the highest quality of healthcare globally. Advancements in technology, medical practices, and science have continually pushed doctors and medical workers closer to this goal. In recent years, point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) has appeared as a driving force, propelling the healthcare community closer to achieving this mission.
The increasing popularity of POCUS across medical specialties has the medical community predicting that it will become as common as the stethoscope. Patients and practitioners alike benefit from this device because it enhances healthcare workers’ abilities to provide accurate diagnostics in a more timely manner.
The power of POCUS to create the global impact that it already has and to continue to pave the way towards a future of providing better patient care is heightened by the passion which medical professionals are undertaking utilizing it and sharing knowledge.
POCUS is Shaping the Healthcare Field
POCUS is influencing the direction of medicine. Given the continual advancements in its technology and the expansion of its usage throughout the medical field, healthcare students and professionals are always looking to ensure their POCUS knowledge and skills are up-to-date. One group within the medical community serves an instrumental role in promoting and educating the best POCUS practices: volunteers.
A wide range of volunteer opportunities that engage POCUS exists on different scales around the world. The Point-of-Care Ultrasound Certification Academy™ (PCA) is one organization that offers a volunteer journey where healthcare professionals at all stages in their POCUS experience can help shape the ultrasound community.
Individual Volunteers Influence the POCUS Community
With volunteers from over 100 countries, the PCA volunteer program is making global waves. Their ability to mold a POCUS community and develop certifications that help to formulate standardization is felt worldwide. PCA volunteers serve as thought leaders, and through their work, they help educate others and connect those filled with POCUS passion. Their efforts are often motivated by their strong convictions about the power, purpose, and impact of this technology.
In part because of its ability to have a global reach, Dr. Bernard Bulwer considers POCUS to be a “transformative and democratizing tool.” He is passionate about how it can help address vital issues such as global health disparities. The enthusiasm with which he has for POCUS was papable in his PCA webinar: When POCUS Becomes “Culture”: Expanding POCUS Utilization through Expanded Curricula.
Dr. James DellaValle also spoke to his passion for the monumental effect POCUS can have in ensuring better care. “The reason it [point-of-care ultrasound] is my passion is that I think it is something we should be employing in all patient care settings as a way of assisting and making a more accurate diagnosis, and thereby providing safer care,” said Dr. DellaValle
When in school, Dr. DellaValle was taught that it was important to spend “a certain percentage of our professional time in a volunteer setting.” This lesson on giving back to the communities and people they serve, instead of only expecting to receive something for their services, has stayed with him to this day and is a mindset intertwined with his passion for POCUS.
Other members of the PCA community also spoke to the importance of spreading awareness on the impact of POCUS. When Dr. Sanjay Patel came across the PCA, he signed up online to be a volunteer as a way to share his experience with others who were pursuing learning the modality but did not have a network to work with or guidance in education.
“I thought it would be nice to share my experience with others and network within a community,” said Dr. Patel. His volunteer journey started by submitting images. Before long, he assisted with compiling clinical cases, reviewing images, providing mentorship to others, and being a podcast guest.
The education value and network opportunity, coupled with PCA’s attitude and encouragement of its volunteers, creates an environment that has volunteers eager to help whenever possible.
Are you passionate about advancing POCUS and shaping the medical field? Learn how to volunteer today!
Ready to get started on your POCUS journey? Check out our many certificates and certifications here.
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