FOCUS on POCUS™

About Our Guest Fouad Al Noor is the Co-Founder and CEO of ThinkSono, an ultrasound AI company. Fouad has a Master of Engineering in Electronic Engineering with Nanotechnology from the University of Southampton, where he wrote his thesis on paper-based medical diagnostics using image processing. Prior to ThinkSono, Fouad worked as a medical Software Engineer at SAP in California, and as a Research Assistant at Imperial College London.

About Our Guest Dr. Pei-Chun McGregor, MD, FACC (she/her) is currently the Director of Ambulatory Cardiology and Stress Laboratory at the Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, an instructor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, and a Lieutenant Colonel in the US Air Force Reserves. She is a board-certified general cardiologist with a focus on adult echocardiography, nuclear cardiology, and vascular imaging. Dr. McGregor is a graduate of New York University School of Medicine. As a recipient of the Health Professions Scholarship, she went on to complete her internal medicine residency and cardiovascular fellowship at San Antonio Uniformed Services Health Consortium. She served in the United States Air Force for over 11 years and continues her service as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force Reserves to date. Throughout her academic career, Dr. McGregor has demonstrated dedication to medical education as a regular lecturer to trainees and has had a significant contribution to the literature on topics in echocardiography. She has also been featured online by both OncLive and PracticeUpdate. She is an active member of the American College of Cardiology, American Society of Echocardiography, American Registry of Diagnostic Medical Sonography and Society of Vascular Ultrasound. Recently, she was chosen to be part of the first ever I.D.E.A. Group at Inteleos.

About Our Guest Dr. James Wilcox is originally from Indiana. He earned his MD from Indiana University in 2014, and completed his Family Medicine Residency at IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital in 2017. He then completed his Sports Medicine Fellowship at Western Michigan University in 2018. He first served in the rural community of Austin, Indiana, practicing the breadth of family medicine: inpatient, outpatient primary care, emergency medicine, sports medicine, and substance use treatment. He recently relocated to Indianapolis in 2020, and he is now working at Eskenazi Health in outpatient primary care. In 2021, he accepted a grant-funded position at Indiana University School of Medicine teaching Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS) and coordinating POCUS integration into the 4-year curriculum as the HRSA PRIME POCUS Thread Director, and Indiana University School of Medicine Assistant POCUS Director. His clinical interests include sports medicine, point-of-care ultrasound, hepatitis treatment, and substance use disorder management.

About Our Guest William Cherniak, MD, is an Emergency physician with training in family medicine and global public health. He is a cofounder and board chair of Bridge to Health Medical and Dental Canada & USA and the founder and CEO of Rocket Doctor Inc. Bill has had research published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the Lancet, Academic Medicine, PLOS ONE and given numerous speeches in Europe and North America on global health and development. Bill completed his medical school at the University of Calgary and residency at the University of Toronto. He completed a cancer fellowship at the U.S. Federal Government's Center for Global Health in the National Cancer Institute/National Institutes of Health as well as a Master in Public Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, with a concentration in health in crisis and humanitarian assistance, while a Sommer Scholar with a full-scholarship. He is an Adjunct Professor with Northwestern University, Associate Faculty at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto’s Department of Family and Community Medicine, Division of Emergency Medicine.

About Our Guest Dr. Alan Tai received his PhD in physics, specializing in quantum well research, from Boston College. Alan has worked at various medical ultrasound technology companies, including Philips as an engineer and GE Healthcare as a scientist. He has managed new medical ultrasound transducer products from development conception to successful commercial release. During his career in the engineering field, Alan has twelve issued patents. Alan is currently a Scientist and author at scienceandlife.org with research in DNA, Ultrasound and Quantum well structure of nanoelectronics.

About Our Guest David Zajc, RDMS, RVT, MBA, is the Senior Clinical Specialist at Longeviti Neuro Solutions with responsibilities in business development and Transcranioplasty ultrasound imaging. Prior to this, he worked in point of care ultrasound at GE, also in process improvement and as a quality consultant in hospitals. He also has a long tenure with various roles in a hospital ultrasound department.

About Our Guest Larry Istrail, MD, is a hospitalist physician, entrepreneur, and author of The POCUS Manifesto. He has been covered by NPR and the Washington Post for various medical startups he has founded. He is the creator of the online POCUS educational site POCUSMedEd.com, and is certified in point-of-care ultrasound by the Society of Hospital Medicine and the American College of CHEST Physicians.

About Our Guest Kate Deiling has been the Ultrasound Instructor at Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine in Stratford, NJ, since the inception of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) in the pre-clerkship medical curriculum in 2019. As part of the school’s simulation center, she teaches first and second-year medical students all modules of POCUS that include online education, a manikin-based high-fidelity simulator, and live hands-on training sessions utilizing 10 ultrasound machines. Together, these sessions help to facilitate the learning and development of essential psychomotor and cognitive skills for ultrasound probe handling, image interpretation, diagnoses, and clinical decision-making. In addition, a 2-week comprehensive POCUS elective is offered to fourth-year students with POCUS sessions for residents and faculty being developed. Kate graduated from Thomas Jefferson University and has been practicing ultrasound for over 30 years in various capacities. Most recently, she worked extensively as a staff sonographer and was designated as the ultrasound education coordinator for a large multi-office radiology center. Early in her career, Kate worked exclusively in pediatrics at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and then moved on to a position as a clinical consultant for a major manufacturer. Following her work as an applications specialist, she went to work in perinatology at several antenatal testing units in both academic institutions and private settings. Her husband is also a graduate ultrasonographer from Thomas Jefferson University. For many years, Kate and her husband operated as independent contractors providing ultrasound services to radiology centers and several private offices. They have 3 adult children, including their oldest, who is a physician specializing in regional anesthesia at the University of Virginia and uses POCUS daily. Kate very much enjoys outdoor activities and traveling with family and friends, especially to US National Parks.

About Our Guest As a Family Nurse Practitioner and the President and CEO of St. Mary’s Health Wagon, Dr. Teresa Tyson leads a medical nonprofit in Central Appalachia. St. Mary’s Health Wagon exists as the region’s only safety net health care clinic for far southwest Virginia. Tyson leads her clinic in promoting the mission of providing quality, affordable, accessible care to all with an emphasis on serving the medically underserved. St. Mary’s Health Wagon is a free nurse managed health clinic consisting of three stationary and two mobile clinics, serving Lee, Scott, Wise, Dickenson, Buchanan and Russell Counties. St. Mary’s Health Wagon is one of the oldest, if not the oldest, mobile clinic in the United States, serving patients since 1980. In an effort to expand access to primary and specialty health care services, Tyson is currently overseeing the construction of a stationary dental clinic in Wise County. Tyson’s leadership in the healthcare sector has garnered notable recognition including interviews from media that include: 60 Minutes, Nightline, CBS Nightly News, Inside Edition, Washington Post, New York Times along with other extensive media attention, including international press, regarding her efforts to provide access to health care to the poor and marginalized in the Appalachian region. Tyson has presented at the United Nations and the World Health Organization numerous times. Tyson is at the forefront of healthcare innovation. Tyson introduced the first monoclonal antibody infusions and post-COVID clinics to Central Appalachia. This past year, Dr. Tyson initiated a medication-assisted treatment program, addressing the opioid epidemic with an evidence-based integrated treatment model using injectable diversion free medications. Tyson is most proud of the Health Wagon’s renamed annual health outreach, Move Mountains Medical Mission (M7). Following nineteen years of collaboration, Tyson continues to host this event, which she co-founded with Stan Brock of Remote Area Medical (RAM) and Sr. Bernadette Kenny in 1999. Dr. Tyson is a preceptor to medical, nursing and business students from forty-three colleges and universities. In 2015, Tyson was an instrumental partner in the first ever FAA approved drone delivery of medications in the United States, in partnership with Flirtey, NASA Langley and others. The historic drone has been inducted into the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum. Tyson is a strong business development professional and is skilled in nonprofit organization management, budgeting, fiscal management, fundraising, capital projects management, communications strategy, strategic planning, project management, grants management, event planning, social media, public speaking, marketing, and healthcare policy. Tyson serves on many healthcare boards, advisory councils, and coalitions. Tyson also serves as a guest speaker on topics such as healthcare access, healthcare disparities, vulnerable populations, mobile health, Department of Defense’s Innovative Readiness Training health expeditions, nurse managed clinics and a variety of other issues. Tyson is the co-founder of Forever Young Aesthetics and Weight Loss Management in Norton, Virginia. Tyson’s medical clinic brought platelet rich plasma therapy – a natural treatment for injured joints – to the area. Tyson is also co-founder of Hettie’s Haven – a specialized residential home designed to assist individuals with intellectual disabilities in Coeburn, Virginia. Tyson is married to Tim Tyson. They are blessed with a family of five wonderful children: two boys and three girls.

Troels Mengel-Jørgensen, GP, is a General Practitioner in Vodskov, Denmark. Presently, he serves as the Chairman of the Danish Society for Ultrasound in General Practice (DAUS), a board member of the Danish College of General Practice (DSAM). Troels is also associated with the Center for General Practice at Aalborg University (CAMAAU) in Aalborg, Denmark.

About Our Guest Brandon Greer, NP, has been a Nurse Practitioner for 1.5 years, and an Emergency Nurse for about 10 years. He has worked in a number of facilities, ranging from outpatient clinics to level 1 trauma centers. Brandon also teaches as an adjunct nursing professor, as well as an instructor of ACLS, BLS, PALS, and POCUS. He has worked to augment the role of POCUS in his community, using it at Urgent Care, the Emergency Department, and in outpatient services. His is also helping to establish and augment a POCUS education program out of Orlando, and has taught POCUS for populations such as nurses, advanced practice providers, EMTs, and residents. Brandon visits Peru annually to work in community clinics around Trujillo and Ollantaytambo. In this role, he began introducing the concept of POCUS in the hopes of bringing greater services and access to populations with greater health disparities. Brandon is a current Doctoral student as well, with the intention of building a more formalized and intensive POCUS program as part of his Doctoral project. As part of this, he recently published an article that speaks to the utility of POCUS, and how more disciplines should consider adopting it as part of their practice. Brandon's wife is also currently in school to be a nurse practitioner, and has been dabbling with the use of ultrasound herself. Outside of Brandon's medical roles, he and his wife spend a large amount of time traveling. They live in a rural area with a menagerie of dogs, cats, and chickens. Brandon is also a triathlete, currently training for an Ironman, and a snowboarder and snowmobiler in the winter.

About Our Guests Amy Roberts, PhD, MS, PA-C, graduated from Hofstra University with a Bachelor of Science and earned her Physician Assistant certificate in 2010. She then went on to earn a Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies in December 2014 from Pace University and a PhD in Leadership from University of the Cumberlands in 2021. Amy has been working with the Hofstra Physician Assistant Program since 2012 and has been working in primary care since she graduated. Prior to becoming a PA Amy worked in radiology for more than 10 years. She continues to work in primary care with the goal of making a positive impact on the healthcare field. Christine Zammit, MS, PA-C, has been a practicing PA for 20 years. For the past 8 years, she has held a full-time faculty appointment at the Hofstra University PA Program. In addition to her role in academia, she maintains an active clinical practice in the pediatric intensive care unit at an inner-city hospital.

Alexa Chandler, M.S., CSCS,*D, is a doctoral student studying Exercise Science at the University of South Carolina. She earned her bachelor’s degree with honors in Exercise Science from Ithaca College in 2016 and her master’s degree in Kinesiology and Applied Physiology from Rutgers University in 2019. While at Rutgers, her research focused on the use of ultrasound to assess body composition in elite ballet dancers. She is currently using ultrasound to assess changes in muscle and tendon thickness following a resistance-training program with and without blood flow restriction. Her interests include exercise physiology, sports nutrition, and sports science.

Alexander Talaska works as a radiologist in Vienna, focusing on musculoskeletal sonography in diagnostics and therapeutic interventions as well as emergency medicine. He loves the complexity of anatomical knowledge combined with dynamic scanning in MSK, solving a problem efficiently and integrating sonography in patients needs and best outcome in diagnostics. One of his favorites is peripheral nerve imaging. Already in the second year during his studies of medicine at the Medical University of Vienna (MUVI) he deeply got in touch with sonography. First teaching as a sono tutor from student to student, in between organizing the students initiative Sono4You on the same time while building up a team of enthusiastic students tutors in sonography besides his studies. In his radiology residency at the Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-Guided Therapy at the MUVI he combined his broadly trained sonoanatomy skills with a huge variety of pathologies and MRI skills, especially in musculoskeletal imaging. Since 2012, Alex has contributed regularly to several teaching and educational events to medical specialists, residents, sonographers and medical students. He also focuses on comparable documentation techniques and structured reporting in sonography, interdisciplinary discussions and usage of sonography with consequence. At the moment Alex works in one of the biggest trauma and rehabilitation centers in Vienna, accompanied by sports medicine. He still enjoys teaching and passes on knowledge whenever he can. Additional Resources Read this article to learn how emergency physicians can use POCUS to visualize the structures beneath the skin. Learn how musculoskeletal POCUS supplements the emergency physicians' process of identifying the extent of an injury and the correct course of action. The Point-of-care Ultrasound Diagnosis of Tennis Leg case study provides insights on why the portable, cost-effective nature of POCUS makes it an excellent modality for diagnosing a tear of the medial head of the gastrocnemius.

Mr. Suresh Sudula, MCSP Consultant Physiotherapist in MSK Ultrasound | MSK Medicine Medway Hospital NHS Foundation Trust | Kent Musculoskeletal Clinic | LifePlus Stem Cells | Harley Street Specialist Hospital Mr. Sudula has specialized in Musculoskeletal Medicine for the last 20 years. He has a Diploma in Orthopedic Medicine and Injection Therapy and a Postgraduate Certificate in Musculoskeletal Ultrasound from Canterbury Christ Church University. His specialist interest is advanced ultrasound guided musculoskeletal interventions, including Orthobiologics and ultrasound guided spinal injections. Mr. Sudula is the first physiotherapist from the UK to obtain a visiting fellowship at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital Radiology department. He is also an honorary lecturer at Canterbury Christ Church University, teaching a MS Ultrasound PG Cert program and teaches on national and international MSK US courses and musculoskeletal society conferences. Mr. Sudula worked in collaboration with SonoSkills, as a course director/developer for an online e-learning MSK ultrasound-guided injection masterclass and is Consultant Physiotherapist in Diagnostic and Interventional Musculoskeletal Ultrasound at the Medway Maritime Hospital. Mr. Sudula is a program director for MSK Ultrasound and MSK Medicine and the founder and director of Kent Musculoskeletal Clinic; a private clinic offering highly specialized ultrasound guided injection services. More recently Mr. Sudula has been appointed as a Head of Education at LifePlus Stem Cells, first Stem Cell service in the UK to provide clinicians with quantifiable, quality assured autologous and allogenic stem cells to be prescribed as a medicine for a wide range of medical conditions including orthopedic, manufactured under HTA and MHRA Licenses.

Heesun Choi, DO, is an emergency medicine physician at the Department of Emergency Medicine Kingman Regional Medical Center where she serves as the Director of Emergency Ultrasound and the Director of EM Ultrasound Clerkship. Dr Choi is also an adjunct clinical assistant professor in the emergency medicine department at Medicine Midwestern University's Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine (AZCOM), an adjunct faculty instructor of ultrasound education at Touro University Nevada College of Osteopathic Medicine, and an assistant clinical professor in the University of California Irvine (UCI) Medical Center's Department of Emergency Medicine.

Beshoy Ghaly, MD, is an ABPTS Board Certified Diplomate in Clinical Electrophysiology. He is also Registered in Musculoskeletal Sonography (RMSK) by the Alliance for Physician Certification and Advancement (APCA) and holds the Point-of-Care Ultrasound Musculoskeletal Certificate (POCUS). He has performed and interpreted thousands of diagnostic musculoskeletal ultrasound studies in both physical therapy and medicine practice settings, including the highly specialized orthopedic surgery field. He is an APTA-Credentialed Clinical Instructor, and has presented in professional conferences and published multiple journal articles related to the field. He serves the Academy of Clinical Electrophysiology and Wound Management as an elected Nominating Committee Member and an appointed Nominating Committee Chair of the Neuromusculoskeletal Ultrasonography Special Interest Group (NMSKUSSIG). He serves as an item writer for the Clinical Electrophysiology Board Exam through the ABPTS Specialization Academy of Content Experts. He is an active member of the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine & the American Physical Therapy Association. On a personal note, he is inspired by the incredible success & life stories of Elon Musk, Martin Luther King Jr, Helen Keller & Mahatma Gandhi. Josh Davis, MD, is an emergency medicine physician in Wichita, Kansas. Dr. Davis received his medical degree from Jefferson Medical College and completed residency at Penn State Hershey Medical Center. He is also a certified personal trainer through the National Association of Sports Medicine.

Arun Nagdev, M.D., is Exo’s Senior Director of Clinical Education. Separate from his capacity with Exo, he also serves as the Director of Emergency Ultrasound at Highland General Hospital as well as a Clinical Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). In his previous academic position, Dr. Nagdev started the point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) program and fellowship at Brown University. Dr. Nagdev is a highly respected international POCUS researcher and educator. He has been a thought leader throughout his career, publishing more than 90 peer-reviewed papers on various aspects of POCUS including pain management, cardiac arrest and volume resuscitation. His work led to recognition and national awards at both the American College of Emergency Medicine (ACEP) and Society for Academic Emergency Medicine (SAEM). His desire to increase clinical POCUS education for residents and medical students has garnered him numerous teaching awards at Brown University, Highland Hospital and UCSF. Over the course of his career, he has been an invited lecturer for POCUS education at numerous national emergency medicine conferences (ACEP, SAEM, AAEM, etc). He currently serves as president of the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine (AIUM) POCUS section and is the incoming president for ACEP Ultrasound section. Keep exploring point-of-care ultrasound at POCUS.org.

Nicole Reichhart, PA-C, is Assistant Professor and didactic faculty for the California State University, Monterey Bay Master of Science Physician Assistant program. She earned a Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies from Albany Medical College in 2012 and completed an Emergency Medicine fellowship at Eastern Virginia Medical School in 2013. She has piloted a point-of-care ultrasound curriculum throughout the didactic phase of the MSPA program, preparing the students to enter their clinical year with a vast POCUS skillset. Nicole embeds POCUS into both the anatomy and physiology and clinical skills courses. She is passionate about implementing point-of-care ultrasound in physician assistant school curriculum and providing her students with opportunities to collaborate in the shared mission of improving global health and setting standards for excellence in POCUS. She has nine years of clinical experience as a PA, much of which has been in caring for patients in underserved communities. Nicole is a military spouse, mother of three children under 5, and enjoys a good brunch.

Andre Kumar, MD, MEd, is a clinical assistant professor of internal medicine at Stanford University. He is the director for the Stanford Medicine Procedure Service, President of the Society of Hospital Medicine Bay Area, and an instructor for the Society of Hospital Medicine POCUS Certification Program. Dr. Kumar is passionate about researching POCUS for patient care and guiding future accreditation. He is currently the lead investigator for a multi-institutional study involving the use of POCUS for COVID-19, and he recently published two randomized trials investigating how to optimally train resident physicians with POCUS. Resources This study found that while a 2-day hands-on ultrasound course provides internal medicine physicians with an initial understanding of POCUS, there are barriers in transferring these abilities to clinical practice. Find out how an interprofessional, near-peer workshop can help internal medicine residents develop POCUS skills, especially in programs where faculty expertise is limited. Learn what will help residents overcome the barrier of unfamiliarity with documenting ultrasounds for diagnostic decision-making. Discover how a phased implementation of POCUS curriculums has proven successful and could inform future educational programs. Visit us at POCUS.org.