Cardiac point-of Care Ultrasound Training Pathway for Emergency Department Advanced Practice Providers

NCT07159269 | Recruiting DMC

• 1 other identifier: Pro00118464
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 75
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The aim of this study is to assess emergency medicine physician and advanced practice provider (APP) knowledge and technical skill in performance of a point-of-care ultrasound simulation and just-in-time training pathway to determine the feasibility, acceptability, and usability of the ultrasound training program. By performing this study, we hope to create a standardized training model which could potentially facilitate point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) clinical performance and thereby improve patient care.

Conditions

Cardiovascular Disease Acute; Emergency Department Patient; Cardiac Tamponade; Pericardial Effusion; Diagnostic Imaging; Medical Training; Implementation Science; Heart Failure Acute; Pulmonary Embolism (Diagnosis); Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS)

Keywords

point of care ultrasound; focused cardiac ultrasound; advanced practice provider training; medical education; implementation science

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (4)

• Aim 1: Assess the feasibility of implementing a just-in-time cardiac point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) clinical training pathway for advanced practice providers (APPs) using the Reach Effectiveness Adoption Implementation Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework.

  Participants will complete a cardiac POCUS simulation session and a hands-on structured clinical skill exam post-training (OSCE) led by ultrasound-trained faculty. Then as part of standard clinical care, APPs will perform POCUS while supervised by EM attending physicians. The primary outcome assesses program feasibility and acceptability. Participants will complete a pre/post and 6-month post-survey and semi-structured interview. Survey questions are structured based on the Acceptability of Intervention Measure (AIM), Intervention Appropriateness Measure (IAM), and Feasibility of Intervention Measure (FIM) survey tool. This is scored on a Likert scale from 1-5.

  1-2 years for each study site

• Aim 1: Acceptability of the Intervention as measured by the Acceptability of Intervention Measure (AIM)

  The AIM is scored on a Likert scale from 1 to 5, where a higher score indicates greater acceptability.

  1-2 years for each study site

• Aim 1: Appropriateness of the Intervention as measured by the Intervention Appropriateness Measure (IAM)

  The IAM is scored on a Likert scale from 1 to 5, where a higher score indicates greater appropriateness.

  1-2 years for each study site

• Aim 1: Feasibility of the Intervention as measured by the Feasibility of Intervention Measure (FIM) survey tool

  The FIM is scored on a Likert scale from 1 to 5, where a higher score indicates greater appropriateness.

  1-2 years for each study site

Secondary Outcomes (8)

• Aim 1: Feasibility of implementing a just-in-time cardiac point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) clinical training pathway for advanced practice providers (APPs) using the Reach Effectiveness Adoption Implementation Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework.

  1-2 years for each study site

• Aim 2: Educational impact of the training model on point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) use and diagnostic performance

  1-2 years for each study site

• Aim 2: Clinical impact of the training model on point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) use and diagnostic performance - number of clinical POCUSs performed

  1-2 years for each study site

• Aim 2: Clinical impact of the training model on point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) use and diagnostic performance - image quality

  1-2 years for each study site

• Aim 2: Clinical impact of the training model on point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) use and diagnostic performance - diagnostic accuracy

  1-2 years for each study site

Study Arms (1)

Advanced Practice Provider (APP) Cohort

EXPERIMENTAL

Advanced Practice Providers (APPs) are nonphysicians essential to the emergency department workforce, especially in rural and community hospitals.

Behavioral: Cardiac point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) training and clinical pathway

Interventions

Cardiac point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) training and clinical pathway BEHAVIORAL

Participants will complete a cardiac POCUS simulation session and a hands-on observed structured clinical skill exam (OSCE) post-training led by ultrasound-trained faculty. Then as part of standard clinical care, advanced practice providers (APPs) will perform POCUS while supervised by emergency medicine (EM) attending physicians. To assess program feasibility and acceptability, participants will complete a pre/post and 6-month post-survey and semi-structured interview, as well as a knowledge and technical skills assessment.

Advanced Practice Provider (APP) Cohort

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• advanced practice providers (APPs) currently working in our ED, with additional APPs as they are hired (expected to be about 75 APPs total within the next 3 years due to expanding staffing needs and coverage models).

You may not qualify if:

• non-APPs such as physicians, nurses, or other clinical staff

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Duke University: lead

Study Sites (1)

Duke University Health System

Durham, North Carolina, 27705, United States

RECRUITING

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Pulmonary Embolism; Disease; Cardiac Tamponade; Pericardial Effusion

Interventions

Critical Pathways

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Lung Diseases; Respiratory Tract Diseases; Embolism; Embolism and Thrombosis; Vascular Diseases; Cardiovascular Diseases; Pathologic Processes; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Heart Diseases

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Patient Care Planning; Comprehensive Health Care; Patient Care Management; Health Services Administration

Study Officials

• Rebecca G Theophanous, MD, MHSc

  Duke University

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Rebecca G Theophanous, MD, MHSc

CONTACT

919-681-0196; rebecca.theophanous@duke.edu

Abha Singh

CONTACT

919-668-8700; abha.singh@duke.edu

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: DIAGNOSTIC
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: prospective cohort study

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: August 20, 2025
• First Posted: September 8, 2025
• Study Start: November 13, 2025
• Primary Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2029
• Study Completion (Estimated): June 30, 2030
• Last Updated: December 9, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-11

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)