The American journal of emergency medicine
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While use of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) has become widespread in emergency medicine, its adoption and usage among emergency clinicians is variable. In this study, we explored the barriers and facilitators to POCUS use among emergency medicine clinicians in a tertiary care emergency department in the United States by clinical role and perceived usability of POCUS. ⋯ Participants reported that POCUS facilitates patient disposition and clinical supervision enhances its use. Early POCUS education in professional school and continued POCUS training in clinical practice could facilitate POCUS use clinically. Structured POCUS courses and continued medical education programs may provide protected time to learn and practice POCUS. Moreover, accessible and standardized machines in the clinical environment could improve POCUS usage.
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Recent studies have validated the efficacy of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) as an alternative diagnostic imaging approach to computed tomography (CT) for patients with suspected acute diverticulitis. This study aimed to quantify the national impact of this approach in cost savings, ED length-of-stay (LOS), and radiation risk mitigation using a POCUS-first approach for acute diverticulitis in the emergency department (ED). ⋯ Both POCUS-first models can achieve substantial national annual cost savings, ED LOS reduction, and decreases in radiation exposure compared to the traditional CT-first approach. POCUS should be strongly considered as a first-line imaging modality for acute diverticulitis especially among low-risk patients.