EP058 Sonoclub North West – Improving the provision of regional anaesthesia skills of trainee anaesthetists

Published Date: 24th September 2024

Publication Authors: Hanumanthu. G

Background and Aims
Regional anaesthesia is a core element of the Royal College of Anaesthetists curriculum and a key component as part of an independent anaesthetists practice (1,2). In our region, provision of regional anaesthesia training can be variable, therefore we created Sonoclub North West, targeting UK anaesthesia trainees aiming to improve their confidence, knowledge and skills. (3).

Methods
The course was divided into six monthly 3-hour sessions and focused on meeting the teaching standards for the RCOA curriculum for senior trainees. We divided 10-12 trainees into small groups. Each session started with theory-based teaching, including ergonomics, consent and risks, local anaesthesia (LA) choices for blocks, nerve stimulator use, LA adjuncts use and management of complications. The trainees then drew out the anatomy of nerve blocks, to reinforce their theoretical knowledge. The practical aspects focused on needling practice on phantoms and ultrasound scanning practice on models.

Results
Trainees received the course well and felt it exceeded their RCoA learning outcomes. Their confidence in performing regional anaesthesia was significantly improved and commented the frequent sessions reinforced this compared to a one-off course. Figure 1 shows the summary of the feedback received:

Conclusions
We present a small group regional anaesthesia course, which revisits the core elements of performing nerve blocks. The aims of this course to improve needling and LA injection techniques and ultrasound scanning for nerve blocks were met. The feedback demonstrated that trainees preferred the spiral learning format to other regional anaesthesia courses and were able to independently perform blocks following attending to our course.

 

Tennuci, Hanumanthu, G et al. (2024). EP058 Sonoclub North West – Improving the provision of regional anaesthesia skills of trainee anaesthetists. Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine. 49(Suppl 1), p.A104. [Online]. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1136/rapm-2024-ESRA.131 [Accessed 11 December 2024]

 

« Back