Participants with the faciliators and FNU officials at the workshop.

The Fiji National University’s (FNU), College of Medicine, Nursing, and Health Sciences (CMNHS) recently organised a Point of Care Ultrasound (PoCUS) workshop to upskill the ultrasound skills of medical professionals for providing real-time point-of-care imaging for patient diagnosis and treatment.

The workshop was attended by medical professionals from Fiji and the region and was facilitated by Jo McCann, from the University of Otago. McCann trained the practitioners in her capacity as a member of the World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (WFUMB).

“It is a great opportunity to train medical practitioners from Fiji and the Pacific region. This training will provide them with point-of-care ultrasound skills for assessment of their patients, ” she said.

“The participants will have some basic ultrasound skills to help them triage and treat their patients on the spot.”

Head of School of Health Sciences and the Director of WFUMB Fiji Center of Education (COE), Assistant Professor Raymond Keshwan, said that this workshop was a sign of his and his medical imaging team’s commitment to improving the practice of ultrasound imaging in the Pacific region.

He said that without a formal programme, such training is vital in increasing patient safety, as ultrasound is a very operator-dependent modality.

“Ultrasound uses sound waves rather than ionising radiation, providing a safer, cheaper, and faster diagnosis of certain types of traumas and pathology. This modality does not replace other imaging modalities but is a handy tool for a skilful user that can save lives,” he said.

“At FNU’s CMNHS, we believe that it is our professional and social responsibility to provide need-based training to health professionals for the benefit of our patients.”

Head of School of Medical Science, Dr Mai Ling Perman, who participated in this workshop, said the workshop was relevant to their practice as it would assist participants in their duty of service.

“The workshop has added value to our work, and I would encourage all doctors to undergo extra training in ultrasound scanning.”

The Department of Medical Imaging and Anatomy of the CMNHS was declared a World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (WFUMB), Centre of Education (COE) for Fiji and the region in September 2019. The creator and the Director of the WFUMB COE is Assistant Professor, Raymond Keshwan.