Prehospital Standards for Point of Care Ultrasound

Abstract

Point of care ultrasound (POCUS) has become an increasingly recognized tool for the rapid bedside assessment of undifferentiated patients. With the advent of affordable portable devices, this tool has expanded to the prehospital world, offering an opportunity to improve patient care prior to arrival in the emergency department. To assess how this tool has become incorporated into paramedical care in Canada, we conducted a cross-sectional survey of paramedical licensing bodies across Canada investigating POCUS accreditation, licensing, scope of practice, and quality assurance regulation for paramedics. Overall, few provincial paramedical licensing bodies include POCUS in the scope of practice for prehospital practitioners, and those who do are not involved with POCUS training, licensing, or quality assurance. Our findings highlight the need for defined competence standards and quality assurance metrics to ensure safe and effective use of this bedside tool.