Crystal Atwood, MD, and Carol Faulk, MD, Obtain Impressive POCUS Certifications

As the Division of Hospital Medicine continues to expand, Division Chief Mark Williams, MD, has placed emphasis on the importance of continued education and training for its physicians to increase overall impact and effectiveness. Since Dr. Williams started with the division in October 2021, he has helped transform the division into one of the premier academic hospitalist programs in the nation. Part of this transformation has been his continuous support in providing educational opportunities for the hospitalists and encouraging them to dive deeper into subjects that interest them.

Several of the division’s hospitalists have taken a special interest in Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS), which is an integral part of patient care. In 2022, the BJH Foundation Grant helped fund a POCUS training program for the division with the assistance of former Assistant Professor of Medicine and Director of POCUS, Stephanie Conner, MD. The program was implemented over two years, with an emphasis on investing in the scholarly activities of the hospitalists to provide quality improvement and the development of a credentialing pathway for POCUS within hospital medicine at BJH. With the funds provided by the grant, Dr. Conner was able to purchase new ultrasound equipment to assist with acquiring and interpreting ultrasound images.

I have been using POCUS for procedural site marking since I was an intern… I then attended my first POCUS conference and was hooked. It really adds to your physical exam, and it keeps physicians at the bedside with their patients. Patients feel like they are gaining something from the experience.

Dr. Crystal Atwood

Crystal Atwood, MD, took over the role of Director of POCUS in late 2024, continuing the program’s goals within the division. In January 2025, Dr. Atwood completed her Society of Hospital Medicine POCUS Certification after three years of hard work. Dr. Atwood said, “The certification for SHM is considered fairly rigorous. You must attend two multi-day conferences, watch several online modules, and submit a portfolio of images. The portfolio consists of a total of 121 images and must be completed in one year. After completing your portfolio, you can take the written exam and OSCE exam.” Crystal has been aiming for this certification since her internship, saying, “I have been using POCUS for procedural site marking since I was an intern… I then attended my first POCUS conference and was hooked. It really adds to your physical exam, and it keeps physicians at the bedside with their patients. Patients feel like they are gaining something from the experience.”

Carol Faulk, MD, completed her CHEST POCUS certification in January 2025. Dr. Faulk said, “I first became interested in learning more about POCUS when I served as a standardized patient for (Dr.) Rachel Bardowell and (Dr.) Matt Freer to scan. I subsequently attended an ultrasound course in Chicago and really saw the potential ultrasound had to transform my physical exam.” Carol’s certification process was just as rigorous, with requirements to attend two ultrasound conferences, complete a portfolio of over 100 video clips, 40 hours of online modules, an in-person assessment, and an online knowledge test.

I hope to continue to integrate ultrasound into my practice to improve patient care, teach residents and students POCUS techniques when I am on service, and mentor other hospitalists through our Wash U certification pathway.

Dr. Carol Faulk

Dr. Atwood and Dr. Faulk were incredibly grateful for the support of both their colleagues and the division in pursuing these certifications. Dr. Faulk said, “Thankfully the division was incredibly supportive with much encouragement from my colleagues as well as amazing ultrasound machines to practice with, and funds and time off to go to conferences.” Both doctors have plans to use their certifications to continue to improve patient care and teach others in the division and beyond.

Dr. Atwood stated, “I want to provide education to others on how to use this skill and am going to keep using it myself for patient care. I have requested to join the SHM POCUS special interest group and was invited to consider being a POCUS instructor for SHM as well.” Crystal already has her sights on her next goal of completing the advanced echocardiogram certificate.

Carol shared, “I hope to continue to integrate ultrasound into my practice to improve patient care, teach residents and students POCUS techniques when I am on service, and mentor other hospitalists through our Wash U certification pathway.”

The division has also integrated POCUS into monthly Grand Rounds lectures for the hospitalists, where members of the POCUS subcommittee present on different ultrasound-related topics.