It isn’t a big secret that online learning is a popular option for many professionals seeking to expand their knowledge and skills. In fact, online learning has been growing in popularity over the past 10 years and is forecasted to see another 15% growth each year over the next 2 years. So, you may be thinking “Is online learning right for me?” when considering expanding your skills in diagnostic and/or point-of-care ultrasound. You probably already know that ultrasound is a skill and, like any other skill, you will need sufficient practice before you feel competent and proficient in performing it. But that does not mean you have to do 100% of your training in-person. Let me introduce you to the Blended Education Format courses offered at Gulfcoast Ultrasound Institute and walk you through the pros (and cons) of this educational format.
The Blended Education format is the perfect solution to the demanding schedules of todays healthcare professionals. This popular learning model, also called the “flipped classroom”, allows you, the learner, to complete the didactic portion of the training online, at your own pace and on your own schedule and then attend a regularly scheduled Scan Workshop to hone your ultrasound skills.
No need to sit in a classroom listening to lectures. Those same live lectures have been recorded, professionally edited and put into a modular format online course. You have 15 months unlimited access to the content and can work through the modules as slow, or fast, as you are comfortable with.
Then you join us in sunny St. Petersburg, FL at our state-of-the-art training facility for the Scan Workshop. Based on the course chosen, you will participate in a one-day (6 hours) or two-day (12 hours) Scan Workshop focused on increasing your confidence and competence to integrate ultrasound into your clinical practice. During the Scan Workshop, you will work in small groups of 3 participants to 1 expert instructor, scanning standardized patient models (and inanimate phantoms for interventional skills as indicated). The expert instructor will provide you with verbal formative feedback on how to acquire diagnostic images, optimize your image, deal with difficult windows, recognize normal and pathological sonographic characteristics of various anatomy, and walk you through a typical scan protocol.
And the icing on the cake… with 15 months of unlimited access, you should have some time left to go back to the online course after the Scan Workshop and review the content again, applying the skills learned to the information being reviewed!
This learning format doesn’t overlook the benefits of in-person skills training; rather it incorporates digital learning to maximize flexibility and reduce travel needs and costs and allows for a deeper, more practical engagement during the Scan Workshop, allowing you to apply what you’ve learned in the online course under the guidance of the expert instructor.
I think we can all agree the Blended Education format offers many benefits; but there are some drawbacks to consider. You need to know how you learn best before deciding if this format will be a good fit. Some things to consider:
- Do you have personal time to dedicate to completing the online course materials before attending the Scan Workshop?
- Are you a self-motivated learner who will commit and follow through in completing the online course materials?
- Do you have experience with online learning? If so, how did it go for you?
I’ll close with this… a review of multiple studies on the effectiveness of online learning compared to face-to-face training for clinicians reveals that online learning is, at worst, equally effective to in-person learning. Of course, this applies to the didactic information, not the skills-based learning, which is why the Blended Education format is a superior choice to an online course alone for ultrasound skills training.
Interested in trying out a Blended Education format course to increase your ultrasound skills? Click below to view our course calendar to see upcoming Blended Course options. We have Blended Education ultrasound courses covering Musculoskeletal, Peripheral Nerve, Cardiac, Vascular, Transcranial Doppler, Emergency Medicine, Critical Care, Trauma, Pre-Hospital, EM Nerve Blocks, Vascular Access and Family Medicine - all happening over the next two months!
You can also visit us at www.gcus.com, chat with us on our website, or call us at 727-363-4500. We are here to answer your questions and help you choose the education format that best fits your needs! Why wait? Come train with the CME Experts since 1985 at Gulfcoast Ultrasound!
