Development and implementation of competency-based assessment for urological ultrasound training using SonoSim: A preliminary evaluation

INTRODUCTION: Urology residents are encouraged to learn ultrasound (U/S) imaging, yet there are few tools available for teaching and assessing a resident`s competence. The aim of this study was to test the new SonoSim LiveScan(®) and to propose a competency-based assessment model for the urology graduate medical education. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Urology residents attended an interactive training session covering the urological U/S techniques guided by the assessment model developed by the authors. Faculty members evaluated the residents using defined objectives, and the residents were surveyed on their comfort level for performing each of the model tasks. A subset of the residents then underwent a structured testing using the SonoSim LiveScan device 6 months following the training. The model developed assessed: general U/S setup, structure identification, and pathologic clinical scenarios. RESULTS: The residents felt most comfortable in identifying the bladder (4.73/5) and the kidneys (4.53/5) during the training sessions. They felt least comfortable while testing for total ureteric obstruction (3.13/5). All the residents were confident that additional U/S training sessions would improve their comfort level in performing the assessed objectives. Resident`s assessment performed at 6 months had a median test score of 15.5/20 and the assessment scores increased with resident seniority. Self-reported comfort, however, did not seem to correlate with seniority. In general, the residents felt that the SonoSim device was highly functional (4.4/5) and the pathologic assessments in particular were very helpful (4.4/5). CONCLUSIONS: Through pilot testing, we propose that a competency-based assessment used with the SonoSim LiveScan could guide the resident`s education through the acquisition of U/S skills and warrants testing in a larger cohort.