Abstract from Crystal Atwood, MD, Stephanie Conner, MD, Maya Fiore, Benjamin Hoemann, MD, and Mohamed Ramadan, MD
The research team proposed that utilizing point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) can help triage inpatient transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) necessity. TTE is a clinical tool used for cardiac evaluation of hospitalized patients; the TTE worklist, however, can get lengthy and TTE orders are frequently associated with greater hospital length of stay. POCUS is a clinician performed, limited bedside ultrasound that answers targeted clinical questions. Studies have demonstrated that trained hospitalists and residents can perform and interpret cardiac POCUS exams with non-inferiority to cardiologists for specific clinical indications. The goal of the study is to demonstrate the feasibility of a POCUS guided TTE triage protocol and model impact on inpatient TTE utilization.