Abstract:

Objective To investigate the current status of the application of critical care ultrasound in critical illnesses in tertiary hospitals of Sichuan Province, and to provide data reference for subsequent reasonable training, resource allocation, and avoiding incorrect application. Methods Information was collected through the network medium Sojump. Results A total of 166 tertiary hospitals were surveyed, with 22.29% lacking ultrasound instruments applied to critically ill patients. Among 935 medical staff providing healthcare to critically ill patients, 67.38% used ultrasound less frequently (less than 50 cases). In different clinical scenarios, the rate of use ultrasonography in assessing sepsis, shock, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), deep vein puncture and thoracoabdominal puncture was 63.72%, 56.86%, 54.20%, 57.96% and 73.45%, respectively, all exceeding 50%. More than 80%-90% of healthcare providers believed that the use of critical care ultrasound was able to improve the success rate of puncture in critically ill patients. Similarly, for the management of critical syndromes, the higher the application rate, the higher the rate of change in diagnosis and treatment decisions. Furthermore, the survey revealed that the main challenges currently faced included a shortage of qualified personnel, inadequate equipment availability, insufficient coverage of training courses, and difficulties in interpreting and analyzing critical ultrasound images. Conclusion Although there lacks manpower and resource allocation for ultrasound applications in critically ill patients in Sichuan Province, it is believed to benefit common invasive procedures and assessment of critical syndromes. By investigating the difficulties and needs of application, accurate data references are provided for subsequent reasonable training, resource allocation, thus avoiding erroneous applications.

Key words: critical care ultrasound, application survey, clinical scenario, training demands