Evaluation of expertise acquisition in thoracic ultrasound after residential course.

Respiratory healthcare professionals are raising interest in gaining qualification in thoracic ultrasound (TUS). To guarantee a validated learning path, different societies, such as ERS and BTS, are putting effort in reach an agreement on evaluation. Multiple choice questionnaires (MCQ) represent a proven methodology and can be a reliable instrument for the purpose. Our study, through 10 items MCQs (5 questions with more than one correct answer) administered before and after a 4-day residential course, with different module structures, aims to evaluate the improvement of participants in TUS knowledge and practical reasoning. Our primary endpoint is the impact of a 4-day course on healthy subjects, through simulations in three different healthcare settings, in providing a level 2b in TUS. Correct answers provided before the course were 98.5 ± 49.2 (46%) of the total, raising to 166.9 ± 31.2 (77%) after with an overall improvement of 113%. Total answers provided raised from 210 ± 1 to 216 ± 2.7 in mean. Wilcoxon signed-rank p for correct answers before and after was 0.0020, while for total answers given, p was equal to 0.0039. Cronbach’s alpha test for internal consistency was 0.58 (CI -0.317 - 0.951) for answers before the course and 0.78 (CI 0.30 - 0.97) for answers post-course. Our analysis shows a significant improvement after the intervention in both entrustment and knowledge in thoracic ultrasound in different settings. <fig><object-id>erj;64/suppl_68/PA2579/F1</object-id><object-id>F1</object-id><object-id>F1</object-id><graphic></graphic></fig>