Transforming Patient Care: Dr. Tatiana Havryliuk on the Power of Point-of-Care Ultrasound
In a recent episode of Healthcare Hodgepodge podcast by Healthcare Purchasing News, Dr. Tatiana Havryliuk discussed the transformative role of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) in modern healthcare. With over 15 years of experience utilizing POCUS, Dr. Havryliuk emphasized its capacity to enhance patient care by enabling clinicians to make immediate, informed decisions at the bedside.
Understanding POCUS
POCUS involves the use of portable ultrasound devices by clinicians to perform focused examinations directly at the patient's side. Unlike comprehensive ultrasounds conducted by technicians and reviewed by radiologists, POCUS allows for rapid assessments—often within two to five minutes—facilitating timely clinical decisions and safer procedural guidance.
Expanding Applications Beyond Hospitals
The advent of affordable, pocket-sized ultrasound devices has extended POCUS applications beyond hospital settings. Primary care practices, sports medicine, and even aesthetic procedures now leverage POCUS for its diagnostic precision and procedural safety. For instance, in urgent care scenarios, POCUS can accurately locate foreign bodies like glass fragments in wounds, enhancing both safety and efficiency.
X-ray vs. POCUS in identifying a wooden foreign object. Wood is not see on X-ray, but it is visualized easily with POCUS!
Benefits of POCUS Implementation
Dr. Havryliuk highlighted several key advantages of integrating POCUS into clinical practice:
Enhanced Patient Care: Clinicians can initiate appropriate treatments more promptly, improving patient outcomes.
Increased Efficiency: POCUS reduces the need for patients to visit separate radiology departments, streamlining the diagnostic process.
Cost Savings: By minimizing additional diagnostic procedures, POCUS offers financial benefits to both patients and the healthcare system.
Improved Patient Experience: Studies indicate that patients value the immediate insights provided by POCUS and trust their clinicians more when POCUS is used. Read more on why patients love POCUS and dive deep into some of the evidence on POCUS here.
Training and Implementation
Proper training is essential for effective POCUS utilization. Guidelines from organizations like the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) recommend a combination of online learning, hands-on workshops, and supervised practice. Clinicians are encouraged to perform a specified number of educational scans (25-50 for diagnostic studies) and receive feedback to ensure proficiency before making clinical decisions based on POCUS findings.
For healthcare facilities considering POCUS integration, Dr. Havryliuk advises securing buy-in from key stakeholders, involving IT and biomedical departments early in the process, and adhering to established guidelines to ensure a seamless and effective implementation. Read more about on this in our previous post.
Conclusion
POCUS is revolutionizing patient care by providing clinicians with immediate, actionable insights. Its expanding use across various medical fields underscores its value in enhancing diagnostic accuracy, procedural safety, and overall patient satisfaction. As Dr. Havryliuk aptly stated, "POCUS is here to stay," marking a significant advancement in the clinician's toolkit.