Interactive AI-mentored training system to deliver quality-assured echocardiographers (Ms Catherine Stowell)

This fellowship tackles two key issues facing the provision of echocardiography.

First, how can we overcome the shortage of skilled operators by providing efficient training so echocardiography can be promptly delivered at point of care? Second, how can AI be used to improve training and be integrated into the practice of new sonographers?

After developing and refining our online training course and collaborating with our AI group, I will test if: (1) interactive training with immediate feedback improves quantitative skills, (2) if this training enables non-specialists to recognise and quantify pathology as accurately as experts, (3) if AI-assisted interpretation is superior to without AI, and (4) if short, ongoing, monthly training sessions raise standards and operator confidence.

With the British Society of Echocardiography, I will use my results to bring many more potential echocardiographers through basic training, scalably at zero marginal cost.

The output will be a stream of individuals who have (a) demonstrated willingness to invest in the core skills of echo understanding, and (b) already achieved a useful level of basic competence.

These course ‘graduates’ will be ideal trainees to take into the UK’s scarce slots for expert tutelage in image acquisition and higher aspects of image interpretation.