Point-of-Care Ultrasound Rotation

We offer two Point-of-Care Ultrasound rotations for medical students.

This rotation is available for two weeks and four weeks designed to introduce to second-, third-, and fourth-year medical students, residents, and fellows for any medical specialty. It is a fundamental understanding of the goal-directed point of care ultrasound, a method of examination that answers specific and essential clinical questions.

Drawing upon the skills of basic anatomy knowledge, clinical physical exam, and the selection of the appropriate patient based on presenting complaints, high-quality ultrasound images will be obtained at the bedside. It is expected that the student learner will be able to integrate point of care ultrasound knowledge along with other investigations into the clinical picture for a given patient scenario. The skills acquired in bedside ultrasonography will apply to emergency medicine and other specialties, including internal and family medicine, OB/GYN, critical care, surgery, anesthesiology, radiology, orthopedics, and pediatrics.

Who Can Apply?

Our rotation provides Point of Care Ultrasound training to a wide variety of health care providers, including but not limited to Emergency Medicine residents, Pediatric residents, Pulmonary residents, Advanced Practice Provider fellows, Pediatric Emergency Medicine fellows, and medical students. Rotators must be credentialed within the Parkland Health & Hospital System or UT Southwestern Medical Center.

We participate in the Visiting Student Learning Opportunities (VSLO) program. Our courses are available for application when the UT Southwestern catalog opens April 1. In addition to the materials requested on the UT Southwestern Visiting Student page, please upload the following with your VSLO documents to consider your application completed for review:

Step 1 scores (COMLEX scores are not accepted for visiting students)
Letter from your Emergency Medicine (EM) clerkship director confirming career intent in EM and successful completion of a four-week MSIII or MSIV Emergency Medicine course.

Interested Medical Students

Medical and pharmacy students interested in a Point of Care Ultrasound rotation must apply through Visiting Students Application Services.

Documentation needed:

Submitted application
A letter from your advisor adviser or dean approving your off-campus elective
An original medical school transcript including an explanation of the grading system
A photograph of you (approximately 2x3 inches)
Copy of your driver’s license for your security badge
A letter from your home campus verifying malpractice insurance coverage

If you do not have malpractice insurance coverage, call 214-648-2168

Documentation of your immunizations
Documentation of your performance of the Essential Functions

Interested Residents

A one-month rotation in Point of Care Ultrasound is available for residents. Rotators participate in weekday, daytime activities of the Point of Care Ultrasound service. There is no overnight or weekend call for rotators.

If you are a resident and wish to do a rotation in Point of Care Ultrasound, see contact information below.

Four Week Elective

EMED 1901 Selective – Emergency Medicine
Mary McHugh, M.D., Director, Undergraduate Medical Education
Connie Chow, Education Coordinator

Students will be an integral member of the team, providing emergency care for acutely injured or ill patients in the emergency departments (EDs) of Parkland Memorial Hospital, Presbyterian Dallas, the Dallas VA, and our rural site at Presbyterian/THR Kaufman, Texas. Under the direct supervision of residents and faculty members, students will assess patients, formulate patient care plans, and implement patient care plans. In addition, they will observe, assist, and/or perform procedures as needed to care for their patients. This clerkship will include a mix of county-based ED shifts along with community and rural hospital population shifts to gain a more complete picture of emergency medicine as a specialty and the variety of delivery systems that exist.

Diversity, inclusion, and equity are core goals in UT Southwestern’s Department of Emergency Medicine. Thus, we developed the Emergency Medicine Visiting Elective Program (VEP). The program provides aid for fourth-year medical students who are interested in serving an underserved patient population and completing their graduate medical education in emergency medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center. The VEP reflects our commitment to creating a workforce that will work to alleviate health disparities and ensure exceptional health care to an ever-evolving patient population. See more information here.

For more information on this course, Connie.Chow@UTSouthwestern.edu Connie Chow.
- Course Number - Course Name: EMED 1901 - Emergency Medicine
- Periods Offered: 1-12; instructor consent required for periods 1 and 2
- Length: Four weeks
- Maximum Number of Students: 15 UT Southwestern medical students per month; 5 visiting students per month in blocks one through four
- Prerequisites: Completion of four core required clerkships, which must include IM, Surgery, Pediatrics, and one additional
- Class Attributes: Fourth-year medical course
EMED 2102 Clinical Toxicology
George Warpinski, M.D., Faculty Coordinator
Connie Chow, Education Coordinator

This is a four-week course designed for students wanting to explore the specialty of Medical Toxicology. The student will learn to use principles of biochemistry, physiology, and pharmacology in the management of poisoned patients. Daily rounds will focus on the discussion of Poison Control Center consults supplemented by pertinent lectures and presentation. The purpose of the course is to allow the student the opportunity to explore a career in Medical Toxicology, and to provide clinical correlation for the preclinical courses of pathophysiology and pharmacology.

For more information on this course, Connie.Chow@UTSouthwestern.edu Connie Chow.
- Course Number - Course Name: EMED 2102 - Clinical Toxicology
- Periods Offered: 1-12 until December 18, 2020
- Length: Four weeks
- Maximum Number of Students: Four per month, including UT Southwestern medical students and visiting students
- Prerequisites: None
- Class Attributes: Fourth-year medical course
EMED 2104 Observation and Clinical Decision Unit Medicine
Mani Alavi, M.D., Faculty Coordinator
Connie Chow, Education Coordinator

This rotation is designed to introduce a fundamental understanding of observation and clinical decision units in evolving health care environments. Utilizing skills and knowledge learned in core clerkships, the MSIV student will be exposed to incompletely differentiated patients being managed by evidence-based, protocol-driven care plans. A distinct appreciation of the bridge between acute outpatient presentations and inpatient care can be accomplished through a multidisciplinary team-based approach.

For more information on this course, Connie.Chow@UTSouthwestern.edu Connie Chow.
- Course Number - Course Name: EMED 2104 - Observation and Clinical Decision Unit Medicine
- Periods Offered: 1-12
- Length: Four weeks
- Maximum Number of Students: Two UT Southwestern medical students per month
- Prerequisites: Must have successfully completed all core clerkship courses
- Class Attributes: Fourth-year medical course
EMED 2105 Point of Care Ultrasound
Jodi Jones, M.D., Faculty Coordinator
Mandy Pascual, M.D., Assistant Faculty Coordinator
Steven Field, D.O., Assistant Faculty Coordinator
Connie Chow, Education Coordinator

This four-week course is both a practical and didactic experience that will enable the medical student to become proficient with routine clinical ultrasound applications. The student will gain an understanding of both the indications and limitations of clinical ultrasound so they will be able to incorporate clinical ultrasound in their future practice. At the completion of the rotation, students will be expected to demonstrate competency in ultrasound physics, image acquisition, and interpretation.

The student will review assigned learning material before the first day of the rotation. Students will attend weekly ultrasound Quality Assurance (QA) conference. Each conference will include an interactive discussion in the morning and hands-on practice on real patients at Parkland Hospital based on this learning material. The remainder of the rotation includes several scanning shifts to reinforce and master these ultrasound skills. The ultrasound faculty will guide them through each of the various ultrasound applications and offer their technical skills in obtaining ultrasound images and interpreting the results. Letters of recommendation are available upon request.

For more information on this course, Connie.Chow@UTSouthwestern.edu Connie Chow.
- Course Number - Course Name: EMED 2105 - Point-of-Care Ultrasound
- Periods Offered: 1-12
- Length: Four weeks
- Maximum Number of Students: Two per month, including UT Southwestern medical students and visiting students
- Prerequisites: Must have successfully completed all core clerkship courses except for Psych and Pediatrics
- Class Attributes: Fourth-year medical course

Two Week Elective

EMED 2001 Intro to Emergency Medicine
Mary McHugh, M.D., Director, Undergraduate Medical Education
Connie Chow, Education Coordinator

The focus of this clerkship will be an introduction to the care of the undifferentiated patient, as the broad differential and pace of evaluation are unique in medical education. Students will be an integral member of the EM team, learning emergency care for acutely injured or ill patients in the emergency department of Parkland Memorial Hospital. Under the direct supervision of residents and faculty members, students will assess patients, formulate patient care plans, and implement such plans. In addition, they will observe, assist, and/or perform procedures as needed to care for their patients. This clerkship will include a mix of county-based ED shifts along with a university tertiary population to gain a more complete picture of emergency medicine as a specialty and the variety of delivery systems that exist.

For more information on this course, Connie.Chow@UTSouthwestern.edu Connie Chow.
- Course Number - Course Name: EMED 2001 - Intro to Emergency Medicine
- Periods Offered: 1-12
- Length: Two weeks
- Maximum Number of Students: Four UT Southwestern medical students per month
- Prerequisites: Open to MS2 and MS3 clerkship students. Other students by permission only.
- Class Attributes: Second or third-year medical course
EMED 2002 Exploration of Clinical Toxicology
George Warpinski, M.D., Faculty Coordinator
Connie Chow, Education Coordinator

This is a shortened two-week course designed for students wanting to explore the specialty of Medical Toxicology. The student will learn to use principles of biochemistry, physiology, and pharmacology in the management of poisoned patients. Daily rounds will focus on the discussion of Poison Control Center consults supplemented by pertinent lectures and presentation. The purpose of the course is to allow the student the opportunity to explore a career in Medical Toxicology, and to provide clinical correlation for the preclinical courses of pathophysiology and pharmacology.

For more information on this course, Connie.Chow@UTSouthwestern.edu Connie Chow.
- Course Number - Course Name: EMED 2002 - Exploration of Clinical Toxicology
- Periods Offered: 1-12 until Dec. 18
- Length: Two weeks
- Maximum Number of Students: Two UT Southwestern medical students per month
- Prerequisites: Open to MS2 and MS3 clerkship students; other students by permission only.
- Class Attributes: Second-year medical course
EMED 2003 Exploration of Point of Care Ultrasound
Jodi Jones, M.D., Faculty Coordinator
Mandy Pascual, M.D., Assistant Faculty Coordinator
Steven Field, D.O., Assistant Faculty Coordinator
Connie Chow, Education Coordinator

This is a two-week course in clinical ultrasound designed for the third-year student as an introduction to clinical ultrasound. The student will have a combination of didactic experience and clinical observation to discover basic ultrasound knowledge. This course will introduce ultrasound in to the student’s academic knowledge base, providing the necessary tools and building blocks for enhanced academic and clinical growth.

For more information on this course, Connie.Chow@UTSouthwestern.edu Connie Chow.
- Course Number - Course Name: EMED 2003 - Exploration of Point-of-Care Ultrasound
  - Application - VSLO
- Periods Offered: 1-12
- Length: Two weeks
- Maximum Number of Students: Two UT Southwestern medical students per month
- Prerequisites: Open to MS2 and MS3 clerkship students; other students by permission only.
- Class Attributes: Second-year medical course
EMED 2006 Exploration of Forensic Toxicology and Medicine
Stacey Hail, M.D., Faculty Coordinator
Connie Chow, Education Coordinator

This is an introduction to how medical deductive reasoning and the art of differential diagnosis are utilized in medico-legal cases. The fourth-year student will be exposed to how medicine and toxicology assist in solving murder mysteries, the prosecution of drug dealers and “pill mill” doctors, and in the review of medical malpractice and other civil matters. The student will be exposed to physicians who interact closely with the legal system in supporting and investigating these civil and criminal cases as well as attorneys who also deal with civil and criminal matters. Schedule permitting, there may be opportunities to attend a deposition, trial or other court-related proceeding. The fourth-year student may also have the opportunity to assist on active legal cases.

For more information on this course, Connie.Chow@UTSouthwestern.edu Connie Chow.
- Course Number - Course Name: EMED 2006 - Exploration of Forensic Toxicology and Medicine
- Periods Offered: Seven
- Length: Two weeks
- Maximum Number of Students: Two UT Southwestern medical students per month
- Prerequisites: Must have successfully completed all core clerkships courses
- Class Attributes: Third or fourth-year medical course