**Focused Topics**

[66] Haas JE, Kates RW, Bowden MJ. Reconstruction Following Disaster. Cambridge, MA:

[67] Rachel LF. In: Robert AP, Lawrence P, David M, editors. Oxford American Handbook of

[68] National Disaster Recovery Framework. https://www.fema.gov/pdf/recoveryframework/

[70] Humanitarian response. https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/en/about-clusters/what-

[69] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphere\_Project. Accessed November 19, 2017

MIT Press; 1977

118 Essentials of Accident and Emergency Medicine

Disaster Medicine. Chap 7

ndrf.pdf. Accessed November 15, 2017

is-the-cluster-approach. Accessed November 19, 2017

**Chapter 6**

**Provisional chapter**

**Point-of-Care Ultrasound in the Emergency**

**Point-of-Care Ultrasound in the Emergency** 

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.74123

Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is a useful diagnostic tool and has become an integral part of the care provided in the Emergency Department. It has evolved over the past two decades to include diagnostic and therapeutic skills. POCUS helps emergency physicians improve their diagnostic accuracy and provide better overall patient care. This chapter will summarize 13 core POCUS applications that are considered within the diagnostic

The use of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) in the Emergency Department (ED) has come a long way, from 1994 when the first Emergency Medicine (EM) Ultrasound Curriculum was published by Mateer et al. to current times, when it has become a core competency in EM training [1]. In a specialty, that is synonymous with quick decision-making in the presence of limited resources, ultrasound is, arguably, the most powerful and often underutilized tool [2]. POCUS is a quick, focused, bedside ultrasound examination performed by one of the primary caregivers, and aimed at guiding the evaluation and management of the patient. As such, it works hand-in-hand with the history and physical examination of a patient in order to identify the presence or absence of certain pathology and evaluates the change in patient's condition in real time. At times, it assists in the treatment by guiding certain procedures that may

**Keywords:** ultrasound, bedside ultrasound, point-of-care ultrasound, POCUS,

© 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution,

© 2018 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use,

distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Irma Faruqi, Maryam Siddiqi and Rasha Buhumaid

Irma Faruqi, Maryam Siddiqi and Rasha Buhumaid

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

armamentarium of all emergency physicians.

be performed as part of the patient's management [3].

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.74123

**Department**

**Abstract**

emergency medicine

**1. Introduction**

**Department**

#### **Point-of-Care Ultrasound in the Emergency Department Point-of-Care Ultrasound in the Emergency Department**

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.74123

Irma Faruqi, Maryam Siddiqi and Rasha Buhumaid Irma Faruqi, Maryam Siddiqi and Rasha BuhumaidAdditional information is available at the end of the chapter

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.74123

#### **Abstract**

Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is a useful diagnostic tool and has become an integral part of the care provided in the Emergency Department. It has evolved over the past two decades to include diagnostic and therapeutic skills. POCUS helps emergency physicians improve their diagnostic accuracy and provide better overall patient care. This chapter will summarize 13 core POCUS applications that are considered within the diagnostic armamentarium of all emergency physicians.

**Keywords:** ultrasound, bedside ultrasound, point-of-care ultrasound, POCUS, emergency medicine

#### **1. Introduction**

The use of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) in the Emergency Department (ED) has come a long way, from 1994 when the first Emergency Medicine (EM) Ultrasound Curriculum was published by Mateer et al. to current times, when it has become a core competency in EM training [1]. In a specialty, that is synonymous with quick decision-making in the presence of limited resources, ultrasound is, arguably, the most powerful and often underutilized tool [2].

POCUS is a quick, focused, bedside ultrasound examination performed by one of the primary caregivers, and aimed at guiding the evaluation and management of the patient. As such, it works hand-in-hand with the history and physical examination of a patient in order to identify the presence or absence of certain pathology and evaluates the change in patient's condition in real time. At times, it assists in the treatment by guiding certain procedures that may be performed as part of the patient's management [3].

© 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2018 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

An emergency physician (EP) skilled in the use of this technology can optimize patient management by providing timely care, improving diagnostic accuracy, and increasing procedural safety. Moreover, in this day and age, when the cost of healthcare is under critique, ultrasound is also an effective means of cost reduction [4].
