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The American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine and the European Society of Regional Anaesthesia and Pain Therapy Joint Committee Recommendations for Education and Training in Ultrasound-Guided Regional Anesthesia
  1. Brian D. Sites, MD*,
  2. Vincent W. Chan, MD,
  3. Joseph M. Neal, MD,
  4. Robert Weller, MD§,
  5. Thomas Grau, MD, PhD,
  6. Zbigniew J. Koscielniak-Nielsen, MD, PhD and
  7. Giorgio Ivani, MD#
  1. From the *Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, NH;
  2. Toronto Western Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada;
  3. Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, WA;
  4. §Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, Winston-Salem, NC;
  5. BG University Hospital Bergmannsheil, Bochum, Germany;
  6. Rigshospital, Blegdamsvej, Copenhagen, Denmark; and
  7. #Regina Margherita Children's Hospital, Turin, Italy.
  1. Address correspondence to: Brian Sites, MD, Department of Anesthesiology, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, One Medical Center Drive, Lebanon, NH 03756 (e-mail: brian.sites{at}hitchcock.org).

Abstract

Ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia (UGRA) is a growing area of both clinical and research interest. The following document contains the work produced by a joint committee from ASRA and the European Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Therapy. This joint committee was established to recommend to members and institutions the scope of practice, the teaching curriculum, and the options for implementing the medical practice of UGRA.

This document specifically defines the following:

1. 10 common tasks used when performing an ultrasound-guided nerve block,

2. The core competencies and skill sets associated with UGRA,

3. A training practice pathway for postgraduate anesthesiologists, and

4. A residency-based training pathway.

In both the residency and postgraduate pathways, training, competency, and proficiency requirements include both didactic and experiential components. The Joint Committee recommends that the decision to grant UGRA privileges be based at the individual institution level. Each institution that conducts UGRA is encouraged to support a productive quality improvement process.

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Footnotes

  • James P. Rathmell acted as editor-in-chief for this article.

  • Mission Statement: The American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (ASRA) and the European Society of Regional Anaesthesia and Pain Therapy (ESRA) Joint Committee was established to recommend to members and institutions the scope of practice, the teaching/learning curriculum, and the options for implementing the medical practice of ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia (UGRA) services.