• Brian T Rice, Ha Vu, Lai Duc Tran, Quang Xuan Vo, and Hani Mowafi.
• Department of Emergency Medicine, New York University School of Medicine, New York, New York, USA.
• Emerg Med Australas. 2015 Dec 1; 27 (6): 580-583.

ObjectivesEmergency medicine (EM) is rapidly developing as a specialty in Vietnam. Point of care ultrasound (POCUS) is currently taught as part of formal EM curriculums though limited literature exists to describe current POCUS usage in EDs in Vietnam. A survey was developed to understand current POCUS utilisation and guide future training efforts.MethodsA survey was administered to 104 Vietnamese physicians attending a national emergency medicine symposium regarding POCUS utilisation, access, training and preference. Data were analysed using multiple logistic regression to identify independent variables associated with POCUS usage.ResultsIncreased access to ultrasound machines was significantly associated with increased POCUS usage, with 'all the time' access (OR = 92.9, 95% CI 7.15-1207.6, P = 0.001) being more strongly associated than 'sometimes' access (OR = 41.4, 95% CI 4.08-419.8, P = 0.002). Formal training did not significantly increase POCUS usage and 50.0% of respondents who regularly used POCUS had no formal training. There was no significant difference in physician preference or comfort for any single application of POCUS. There were 98.0% of trainees and 96.3% of independently practising physicians who reported a desire for additional POCUS training.ConclusionsRegular access to ultrasound machines increases the frequency of POCUS usage in EDs in Vietnam. POCUS training was not as clearly associated with POCUS usage as those without formal training were equally likely to use POCUS as those with formal training. No single POCUS application stood out as strongly preferred by physicians in this survey.© 2015 Australasian College for Emergency Medicine and Australasian Society for Emergency Medicine.

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