Program Goals, Outcomes, and Technical Standards
Program Goals, Outcomes, and Technical Standards in Sonography
Kettering College Bachelor of Science Degree in Diagnostic Medical Sonography Program Goals:
To prepare competent entry-level sonographers in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains for the following concentration(s) it offers Abdominal-Extended, Adult cardiac, Obstetrics and gynecology, and Vascular sonography.
Cognitive Domain:
Students will:
• Maintain adherence to the Code of Ethics and Scope of Practice ascribed to by the Society of Diagnostic Medical Sonography.
• Demonstrate an understanding of human anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiology as it applies to patient care in diagnostic medical sonography.
• Utilize sonographic physics and instrumentation knowledge and skills to optimize diagnostic images.
• Correlate verbal and written patient clinical history, lab values, and other diagnostic imaging results to the sonographic exam.
• Develop reasoning, ability, and critical thinking skills.
• Demonstrate technical competence as sonographers.
• Demonstrate written and verbal communication skills including using medical and sonographic terminology to complete sonographic diagnostic reports and interact with interpreting physicians.
• Prioritize patient care and reporting of critical findings while adhering to departmental protocols.
Psychomotor Domain:
Students will:
• Demonstrate knowledge transference from the classroom to the clinical and scan lab settings.
• Utilize technical skills and understanding of instrumentation to produce quality, diagnostic sonographic images.
• Complete the required number of clinical competencies by demonstrating an understanding of the sonographic protocols, patient care standards, and image optimization.
• Maintain the sonographic equipment in a safe and sanitary manner.
Affective Domain:
Students will:
• Provide professional, compassionate care for patients and others.
• Demonstrate respect for cultural, ethnic, and individual diversity.
• Demonstrate characteristics of lifelong learners.
• Conduct themselves in a professional manner in the classroom, scan lab, and clinical settings.
• Work well with all healthcare team members to provide quality patient care.
Completion of the degree at Kettering College signifies the graduate is prepared for practice in his or her prospective field by meeting the technical standard requirements. Technical standards, as distinguished from academic standards, refer to the physical, cognitive, and behavioral abilities required for satisfactory completion of the curriculum. The essential required abilities include motor, sensory, communicative, intellectual, behavioral, and social aspects.
Several standards are common to all programs. These are listed below, followed by specific requirements of each program. The student must have the ability to:
- Think critically, with sound judgment, emotional stability, maturity, empathy, and physical and mental stamina.
- Learn and function in a wide variety of didactic and clinical settings.
- Communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing, using appropriate grammar, spelling, and vocabulary.
- Immediately comprehend and respond to auditory instructions or requests.
- Think clearly and act calmly in stressful situations.
- Perform up to a 12-hour clinical experience in a single 24-hour period.
- Work cooperatively, preserving relationships with other members of the health care team.
- Perform fine and gross motor skills with both hands.
- Apply adequate pressure to stop bleeding.
- Perform CPR.
Sonography student must have the ability to:
- Distinguish audible Doppler signals.
- Fully use arms, hands, and wrists to simultaneously hold a transducer and input data on a sonographic control panel.
- Adequately view sonograms, including identifying 16 shades of gray and color distinctions.
- Organize and accurately perform the individual steps in a sonographic examination in the proper sequence.
- See and function in semi-dark settings.
- Sit and stand for long periods of time.
- Push/pull equipment and lift-transfer patients.