NPAM's Director of Continuing Education (Summer) is excited and proud to present exclusively to members, the offering of a focused Point-of-Care Ultrasound half-day course through the collaboration with the amazing Dr. Tomislav Jelic and the Department of Emergency Medicine's Continuing Professional Development program at the University of Manitoba!!

CHOOSE A DATE: October 27 or 28, 2026

TIME: 12:30PM - 4:00PM

FORMAT: Two Repeat Offerings (Identical educational content on both days) - Choose the date that works for you

REGISTRATION FEE: $250

LOCATION: Clinical Learning & Simulation Centre, Brodie, University of Manitoba

CASE-BASED TEACHING | LIVE DEMONSTRATION | SMALL-GROUP SCANNING

DEADLINE TO REGISTER: October 20, 2026 End of Day (unless otherwise directed)

PLEASE NOTE, THERE IS A LIMITED AMOUNT OF SPOTS AVAILABLE. REGISTER EARLY TO AVOID DISAPPOINTMENT.

Important: 

**THIS FORM IS A PRE-REGISTRATION**

Pre-registration reserves a spot only after membership verification. After you complete this form and receive the confidential link and password to register through the University of Manitoba portal, you must complete full registration and payment in order to secure your spot for this workshop.

After you complete the payment, you must email education@nursepractitioner.ca and npam@nursepractitioner.ca with receipt to allow us to secure your spot on our end. This must be done within 48 hours of pre-registration.

Failure to do so will result in your reservation being released from the pre-registration list to allow other members to sign up.

For privacy reasons, we do not share our members list with third parties and University of Manitoba is handling payment so we do not have access to their list. 

Course purpose

To give nurse practitioners a practical, safety-focused approach to answering common bedside questions using focused soft-tissue, MSK and proximal lower-extremity venous POCUS.

Course-level learning objectives

By the end of the session, participants will be able to:

·      Operate the system: select an appropriate high-frequency linear transducer and preset, then optimize orientation, depth, gain, focus and Doppler settings for superficial and vascular imaging.

·      Acquire interpretable images: perform a systematic scan in two orthogonal planes, use dynamic maneuvers when appropriate, and save representative still images or clips.

·      Answer a focused clinical question: classify each examination as positive, negative or indeterminate and integrate the result with the history, physical examination and pretest probability.

·      Recognize limitations: identify nondiagnostic examinations, common mimics and findings outside the scope of focused POCUS that require comprehensive imaging, consultation or reassessment.

·      Communicate the examination: document the indication, technique, key findings, interpretation, limitations and follow-up plan using clear POCUS terminology.

·      Scan safely: apply patient-centred consent, infection-prevention, probe-cleaning and ergonomic practices during hands-on scanning.

 

APPLICATION-SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES

Soft-tissue and MSK POCUS

Focused acquisition, interpretation and clinical integration

Soft-tissue POCUS objectives

By the end of the session, participants will be able to:

·      Identify normal anatomy: recognize the skin, subcutaneous tissue, fascia and underlying muscle in transverse and longitudinal planes.

·      Differentiate common infections: distinguish cellulitis from a drainable fluid collection and describe an abscess by location, size, depth, extent and relationship to adjacent structures.

·      Avoid common pitfalls: use compression, orthogonal views and Doppler to distinguish abscess from vessels, lymph nodes, cysts, hematoma and other soft-tissue mimics.

·      Extend the focused assessment: recognize sonographic features suggestive of a soft-tissue foreign body and associated inflammatory change when clinically relevant.

·      Guide next steps: use the POCUS findings to support procedure planning or escalation, including high-risk locations, deep extension, possible necrotizing infection or uncertain anatomy.

 

Musculoskeletal POCUS objectives

·      Recognize normal MSK anatomy: identify tendon, muscle, bone cortex, joint capsule and simple joint fluid using characteristic echotexture and anisotropy.

·      Use a reproducible technique: scan a symptomatic structure in long and short axis and incorporate contralateral comparison and dynamic assessment when appropriate.

·      Recognize focused abnormalities: identify sonographic patterns suspicious for joint effusion, tendon or muscle disruption, hematoma and cortical discontinuity within the limits of a focused examination.

·      Localize pathology: differentiate superficial, peri-tendinous, intra-articular and bony abnormalities to refine the differential diagnosis and guide further assessment.

·      Manage anisotropy and other artifacts: adjust probe angle and imaging planes to avoid mistaking artifact for pathology.

·      Escalate appropriately: recognize when mechanism, examination findings or a limited/nondiagnostic scan warrants radiography, comprehensive ultrasound, MRI or specialist consultation.

 

APPLICATION-SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES

Lower-extremity DVT POCUS

Focused proximal compression ultrasonography

Lower-extremity DVT POCUS objectives

By the end of the session, participants will be able to:

·      Select appropriate patients: combine validated pretest probability assessment and D-dimer, when applicable, with POCUS rather than interpreting the scan in isolation.

·      Identify key anatomy: differentiate artery from vein and identify the common femoral, saphenofemoral, femoral/deep femoral and popliteal venous segments and junctions.

·      Perform compression ultrasonography: apply graded compression systematically through the proximal lower-extremity deep venous system and obtain representative images at required landmarks.

·      Interpret the examination: use venous noncompressibility as the primary sign of DVT and use colour or spectral Doppler selectively as an adjunct rather than a substitute for adequate compression.

·      Troubleshoot difficult scans: adapt positioning and probe pressure for pain, edema, body habitus, limited mobility and challenging popliteal anatomy.

·      Recognize limits and mimics: identify superficial thrombophlebitis, lymph nodes, Baker cyst and post-thrombotic change, and state the limitations of a focused proximal examination for calf, iliac/pelvic and recurrent DVT.

·      Act on the result: place positive, negative and indeterminate findings into a clinical pathway that includes formal imaging, serial assessment or urgent management as indicated by local policy.