Emergency Ultrasound Clerkship

Arun Nagdev, MD
Director of Emergency Ultrasound

The Department of Emergency Medicine at AHS – Highland Hospital hosts a very popular and dynamic rotation for qualified fourth year medical students interested in learning point-of-care ultrasound. Students will perform bedside ultrasound examinations in the clinical department under the supervision of ultrasound fellows and ED faculty. There will be three scanning shifts per week, along with weekly ultrasound journal club and video review. Ultrasound lectures and textbooks will be given to each student to allow for non-synchronous education, while increasing the time spent with hands-on learning. The goal of the rotation is to integrate point-of-care ultrasound into the student thought process of clinical care and improve the understanding of physiologic principles. At the end of the rotation, the student will be able to perform and interpret echocardiography, abdominal examinations, pelvic examinations and procedural ultrasound.

The rotation is offered in four-week blocks that coincide with the UCSF academic calendar (http://meded.ucsf.edu/ume/electives-calendar). The rotation can accommodate two students per month. Positions are filled on a first-come first-served basis, and at the discretion of the Director of Emergency Ultrasound

As with everything in medicine, our clerkship response to COVID-19 is constantly evolving. We were thrilled to welcome our UCSF students back to the rotation this summer after an initial pause in all student presence in the department. Our ability to offer space to visiting students is dependent on current covid-19 conditions in the county as well as hospital operations. From a clinical standpoint, our policies regarding students interacting with covid-19 PUIs follow those of UCSF; at present, students do not evaluate PUIs. We appreciate your patience during this time. Specific questions can be directed to the clerkship coordinator and director via email.

Please contact Our medical student education coordinator Idella Watts at iwatts@alamedahealthsystem.org with questions.