The Norton Children’s Hospital emergency department’s clinical ultrasound program has been recognized for excellence in supervision, safety and education by the American College of Emergency Physicians Clinical Ultrasound Accreditation Program (CUAP).
The Norton Children’s Hospital emergency department’s clinical ultrasound program has been recognized for excellence in supervision, safety and education by the American College of Emergency Physicians Clinical Ultrasound Accreditation Program (CUAP).
The CUAP Management Award emphasizes best credentialing process, safety and best overall application.
The CUAP last year accredited the Norton Children’s Hospital ultrasound program. The CUAP provides standards for the administration of ultrasound programs; education and training of health care providers; performing and interpreting ultrasound examinations; equipment management; transducer disinfection; image acquisition and retention; and confidentiality and privacy. Norton Children’s Hospital is the second free-standing pediatric hospital to receive the accreditation.
“As pediatric emergency medicine physicians, we are on the front lines taking care of critically ill patients. We can rapidly evaluate patients to make a difference in their care earlier with point-of-care ultrasound,” said Fred H. Warkentine, M.D., M.S., director of point-of-care ultrasound with Norton Children’s Emergency Medicine, affiliated with UofL School of Medicine.
According to Dr. Warkentine, the accreditation affirms the excellent point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) program that Norton Children’s Hospital has had for many years. Rebecca Starr Seal, D.O., associate director of pediatric point-of-care ultrasound with Norton Children’s Emergency Medicine, manages the educational portion of the program. She teaches pediatric POCUS to medical students, residents, fellows and faculty.
While POCUS can help emergency medicine physicians assess patients in an efficient manner, according to Dr. Warkentine, it’s not a replacement for any additional imaging that a patient needs.
“It helps us get that first look on where we need to go in treatment,” Dr. Warkentine said. “It can help us rapidly assess if a patient will need surgery or will need additional imaging through our colleagues in radiology or cardiology. POCUS is a tool that helps us accelerate care for the critically ill and shorten stays for noncritical patients.”
