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  • demonstration of ultrasound guided cannulation

    Ultrasound to guided cannulation of the difficult venous access

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Using ultrasound to guide cannulation of the difficult venous access

This course teaches healthcare professionals practical skills in using point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) in a non-invasive process prior to venous access cannulations. The hands-on half-day workshop is facilitated by Dr. Ulrich Steinwandel who has worked in haemodialysis units in Europe and Australia for over twenty years and has broad experience using this technique successfully when cannulating patients who are attending haemodialysis to establish a vascular access in arteriovenous fistulas (AVFs).

Why is this course for you

During this course you will learn how to practically use a portable point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) device to assess the vascular access prior and during the process of a cannulation. You will learn, how to interpret observations made by POCUS, how to perform a cannulation during the use of the ultrasound on artificially created phantom models successfully, which will appear visually in a very similar way as a patient's tissue.  You will learn, how to identify a suitable cannulation location, how to interpret your observations correctly and also how to successfully place a cannula into this artificial phantom model. You will be able to see and identify the needle tip in the vessel when you advance the needle during the process of cannulation and when this process is complete. This course will enable you to use this technique successfully in your own work environment when you have ultrasound available, which will support you when you attempt to cannulate complex vascular access conditions.

Course Overview

Theoretical basics of ultrasound:

  • how to prepare for a good examination environment
  • a practical demonstration of an ultrasound guided cannulation on a phantom model provided by the facilitator
  • participants receive and perform practical hands-on training on phantom models using POCUS for a successful cannulation
  • potential pearls and pitfalls in clinical practice using ultrasound

Further information

For course-related information about Nursing and Midwifery short courses email: snmshortcourses@ecu.edu.au

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