Point-of-Care Ultrasound (POCUS) – Nurses
£687.00 (+VAT)
Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is rapidly becoming an essential tool in emergency and critical care practice. This highly practical course will give vets and nurses the confidence to obtain key ultrasound views, recognise important findings and start using POCUS to support real clinical decisions in practice.
This one day practical course is designed for veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses. You also have the option to attend as a vet/nurse team at a discounted rate.
Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS)
Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is rapidly becoming an essential tool in emergency and critical care practice, allowing clinicians to answer key clinical questions quickly at the patient’s side.
This highly practical course is designed to give vets and nurses the confidence to incorporate POCUS into everyday clinical decision-making. Through focused teaching and extensive hands-on scanning, you will learn how to obtain key ultrasound views, recognise important findings and apply POCUS techniques to real clinical scenarios.
By the end of the course, you’ll be able to use ultrasound as a rapid diagnostic tool to support triage, guide procedures and improve patient care in emergency situations.
What you’ll learn
Core scanning skills
- Selecting appropriate probes and optimising ultrasound machine settings for POCUS applications
- Performing systematic lung and pleural space ultrasound examinations
- Acquiring basic cardiac POCUS views including subxiphoid imaging
- Performing focused echocardiographic assessments including LA:Ao measurement and subjective contractility assessment
Abdominal POCUS techniques
- Performing abdominal POCUS to detect free fluid using a four-point abdominal fluid scoring system
- Identifying and assessing the caudal vena cava using correct scanning sites and technique
- Estimating urinary bladder volume using ultrasound
Ultrasound-guided procedures
- Performing ultrasound-guided vascular access
Participants will also develop the ability to integrate POCUS findings with physical examination and clinical data to guide emergency decision-making
Who the course is for
This course is suitable for vets and veterinary nurses working in emergency, critical care or general practice who:
- Are new to veterinary POCUS and want a structured introduction
- Currently use POCUS but lack confidence
- Want to improve their practical ultrasound skills
No prior ultrasound experience is required. This course is designed as a foundational POCUS programme and does not assume advanced echocardiography or abdominal ultrasound training.
Course Tutor
Laura Cole MA VetMB MVetMed PgCert (VetEd) Cert VPS Cert AVP (ECC) DACVECC DECVECC MRCVS FHEA
