Total hours overall: 5 hrs

Description:

• learnt how to clean rooms

• learnt to ask patients for consent to watch their scans

• watched a couple of ultrasounds and learnt their protocol

• watched the sonographers write their worksheets which have presets that save them time

• learnt about the ultrasound machine's functions

Total hours overall: 10 hrs

Description:

Days from now on will typically go like:

• prepare rooms in the morning

• follow one or two sonographers and watch scans with patient consent

• clean room in between patients

• call patient in myself, confirming their details and set preparations (e.g. patient gowns, seating positions)

• do laundry (gowns, bedsheets and pillowsheets)

• sometimes will help write the worksheets.

• prepare the rooms for the next day!

Total hours overall: 15 hrs

Description:

Best scan of the day:

• Renal Ultrasound - patient had hydronephrosis which is excess fluid in kidneys, learnt that we do this scan pre and post micturation to measure the bladder volume.

Total hours overall: 20 hrs

Description:

Best scan of the day:

• Nuchal Ultrasound - this is the 12-14 week pregnancy down syndrome screening scan! I got to see the baby's whole anatomy and learnt how they look for down syndrome through the measurements of the nuchal translucency (NT in above image) and nasal bone. You also get to hear the baby's heartbeat which is always heartwarming for the parents.

Total hours overall: 25 hrs

Description:

Best scan of the day:

• Abdominal Ultrasound - patient had galbladder polyps. Any time we need clearer images of the galbladder, we get patients to stand up (erect) instead of laying down (supine) on the bed. We also get patients to breathe in and hold or push their belly out so it's easier to see.

Total hours overall: 30 hrs

Description:

Best scan of the day:

• Left Lower Leg Ultrasound - this patient had been bitten by an unknown creature while swimming at the beach. We got their consent to take a photo of the region of interest (ROI) where the ultrasound machine gave us a QR code to scan on a phone to be able to take the image. This is then uploaded straight towards the radiologist's software which is super cool!!! I've never even knew about this feature. The sonographer had to take a lot of sterile precaution since the ROI previously had excretion - the probe had the ultrasound gel, then a probe condom was put on, then we used a lot of sterile lube while scanning.

Total hours overall: 38 hrs

Description:

Best scan of the day:

• Right Shoulder CSI Ultrasound - this patient had shoulder bursitis that they are getting treated with a cortisone steroid injection. The sonographer scans and locates the bursa first and then calls the radiologist in to do the injection. While they do the injection, the sonographer will image the bursa again and you can actually see the needle on the ultrasound machine moving towards the bursa!

Total hours overall: 46 hrs

Description:

Best scan of the day:

• Nuchal Ultrasound - the baby wasn’t in a good scanning position, facing sideways, which made imaging difficult. The patient’s stomach was firm, requiring extra probe pressure. Various techniques were tried, including belly shaking and coughing, but they didn’t work. After the patient emptied her full bladder and tried again, there was still no improvement, so she was asked to walk around and drink two cups of water. The plan was to recheck every 15–20 minutes. The cervix contracts hourly and is not controllable, and it's easier to scan when it’s expanded. This level of difficulty is uncommon. On a positive note, I got to call the patient in!

Total hours overall: 54 hrs

Description:

Best scan of the day:

• Left Hip Ultrasound - I got to call the patient in and help her prepare, which was exciting! I confirmed it was the left hip, helped her into a gown, and instructed her to pull her pants down to the knees. She lay on her side with the left hip facing up and her face toward the opposite wall. I learned we assess the gluteus maximus, medius and minimus muscles, and during the scan, you can see the bursa gliding as the patient moves her leg up and down.

Total hours overall: 62 hrs

Description:

Best scan of the day:

• Bilateral Foot Ultrasound - I called in the patient for this scan. I instructed him to take off his shoes and lay on his stomach. I’ll remind patients to place their belongings and shoes on the patient chairs on the non-scanning side to avoid clutter. The scan was awkward due to positioning challenges and the patient’s height, which gave me more insight into the ergonomic and OH&S difficulties that sonographers face. The heel was very dry and rough, so the sonographer had to tap the gel in carefully to penetrate the large pores.

Total hours overall: 70 hrs

Description:

Best scan of the day:

• Renal Artery Ultrasound - The sonographer used the sound wave (spectral Doppler) feature extensively. I learned that you can identify laminar flow in the vessels, seen as a smooth pattern within the black "window" or triangle under the peak of the renal artery waveform. This indicates normal, undisturbed blood flow.

Total hours overall: 78 hrs

Description:

Best scan of the day:

• Left Thumb Ultrasound - The doctor was querying De Quervain’s tenosynovitis for this patient, but we coincidentally discovered a blood clot in a small wrist vein which is a very uncommon finding! We also used the spectral Doppler feature here, so I learnt that we commonly use it to hear the blood flow in vessels around the body. The colour Doppler (blood flow feature) is often used alongside spectral Doppler to visualise and assess flow patterns in more detail.

Total hours overall: 86 hrs

Description:

Best scan of the day:

• Baby Hip Ultrasound - Assisted with a baby hip ultrasound today. I learned we assess the angle of the acetabulum by checking how steep the hip socket is, which helps evaluate for developmental dysplasia. However, this is difficult if baby moves around a lot which they often do! We always take extra steps to minimise this like having the baby eat and drink 30 minutes before the appointment, as well as turning on a cute starry projector. We also get the parent to hold the baby down.

Total hours overall: 94 hrs

Description:

Best scan of the day:

• Abdominal Ultrasound - I learned how important patient fasting is, as it reduces bowel gas and gives a clearer view of the liver, gallbladder, and pancreas. We adjusted the patient’s breathing to better visualise the liver dome beneath the ribs, and I learnt the different liver segments and how they are split by the veins!

Total hours overall: 100 hrs

Description:

Best scan of the day:

• Right Leg DVT Ultrasound - The doctor was querying deep vein thrombosis, which is a possible clot in the right calf. It was highly likely due to the patient's age and recent travels and long flights to China. I learnt that we don't only scan the calf, but we scan from the groin down to the calf! You can even see the vein and it's valve at the groin area, so I got the patient to take shoes, socks and pants off to reach those areas. Patient did not have a blood clot, but had a deep muscle tear most likely due to the patient going to the gym.