Enhancing respiratory physiology instruction with point-of-care ultrasound: A brief educational intervention

Abstract

Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is increasingly recognized as a valuable educational adjunct in medical school curricula, particularly for reinforcing physiology through dynamic, real-time visualization. Despite its growing relevance, integration of POCUS into preclinical instruction, especially in the context of pulmonary physiology, remains limited. This illumination paper describes the development, implementation, and initial outcomes of a 30-minute lung physiology ultrasound workshop designed to supplement the respiratory block lectures in a first-year medical physiology course. NEW & NOTEWORTHY This paper presents a novel, replicable model for integrating ultrasound education into preclinical medical training through a time-efficient, physiology-aligned workshop. Unlike most existing ultrasound initiatives that focus on anatomy or are embedded within clinical clerkships, this workshop targets the underexplored area of functional pulmonary physiology within the basic science curriculum using live models and workshop goals directly tied to course learning objectives.