Innovative 7th annual UltraFest hosts over 250 attendees

UC Irvine School of Medicine held its 7th annual UltraFest on February 3, 2018 — a free, hands-on and interdisciplinary ultrasound symposium.

Originally created by a Class of 2012 UC Irvine School of Medicine student, UltraFest was designed to make ultrasound education accessible for the medical students in the area.

This year, UC Irvine had the privilege of hosting moe than 250 attendees from a variety of interdisciplinary backgrounds including physicians, nurse practitioners, medical students, PA students and nursing students.

“We are very fortunate to have ultrasound education thoroughly incorporated into our preclinical years here at UC Irvine, and we wanted to continue to provide an opportunity for both future and current health professionals to learn practical ultrasound applications while also gaining hands on practical skills” said Savannah Gonzales, a second-year UC Irvine medical student who helped coordinate the event with fellow student Angela Allen. 

Students had the opportunity to learn both basic and advanced techniques in several specialties, as well as try their hand at a variety of ultrasound based procedures using high fidelity training tools. They also were able to practice their skills by taking part in a realistic simulation training session.

“Ultrasound and simulation really make our medical education here unique,” said Luke Walls-Smith, a second-year medical student who helped organize the simulation. “Simulation provides a hands on way for us to practice and solidify our skills in a safe and supportive environment.”

UltraFest was made possible through the efforts of medical students, ultrasound manufacturers, and more than 30 faculty members from a variety of specialties including emergency medicine, OBGYN, anesthesia, cardiology, pathology, and pediatrics.

In addition to our local physician instructors, many traveled from all corners of the country and the world to volunteer their time and expertise. Well-known instructors flew in from New York, Stanford and UC Davis. We were also honored to have instructors from the United Kingdom, Spain, Brazil and South Korea. 

"Ultrasound knows no languages or boundaries. Its amazing watching so many people from different fields, medical specialties and countries come together to teach and learn ultrasound. This is what ultrasound in medical education is all about” said Dr. Shadi Lahham, director of Emergency Ultrasound at the UC Irvine Department of Emergency Medicine.

The day concluded with a two-hour competition designed as a fun and interactive way for students to implement new skills acquired from the event. Adopted from a model often implemented at the resident level, Sonogames consisted of a variety of stations ranging from “Ultrasound Taboo” to “Scanning Under Fire.”

“The enthusiasm with which students and instructors participated in the games was a testament to the excitement that ultrasound brings to UC Irvine as we continue to embrace new technology to lead us into the future of medicine,” said Angela Allen.

It is our hope that in getting this final opportunity to practice point-of-care ultrasound, students are more confident to better utilize ultrasound in their future education and practice.

Cardiology: Students get the opportunity to practice basic cardiology ultrasound with cardiologist Dr. Byron Allen. 

Start of the day: Attendees listen to Dr. Robert Jarman give a keynote address about the role of POC ultrasound in clinical practice and medical education.