A small team of pediatric emergency medicine physicians and trainees will travel to Hospital Infantil Dr. Robert Reid Cabral in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, from September 13–16 to provide pediatric point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) education. Building on an established partnership with physicians at the hospital, we will deliver hands-on training, bedside teaching, and educational workshops while developing a sustainable "teach-the-teacher" curriculum that local faculty can continue using after our visit. The primary on-site collaborator is Dr. César Mota. As a bilingual Pediatric Emergency Medicine fellow at Yale originally from Puerto Rico, I will provide instruction in Spanish, helping bridge language barriers and facilitate effective knowledge transfer. Our goal is not only to teach ultrasound techniques but also to build long-term local capacity that improves the care of pediatric patients throughout the Dominican Republic.
The primary beneficiaries of this project are children receiving emergency care at Hospital Infantil Dr. Robert Reid Cabral, the largest pediatric referral hospital in the Dominican Republic. By training pediatric emergency physicians and pediatricians in point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS), we aim to improve the evaluation and management of acutely ill and injured children in a resource-limited setting. Rather than focusing solely on direct patient care during our visit, our goal is to strengthen local capacity by equipping clinicians with practical ultrasound skills that can be incorporated into their daily practice. Through a sustainable "teach-the-teacher" model, the knowledge gained will continue to benefit future patients long after our team returns.
This project will strengthen an existing collaboration between Yale Pediatric Emergency Medicine and Hospital Infantil Dr. Robert Reid Cabral while expanding local expertise in pediatric POCUS. We will provide hands-on education, develop teaching materials and curricula, and work alongside local physician champions to create sustainable training modules that can be used to educate future clinicians. As a bilingual physician from Puerto Rico currently training as a Pediatric Emergency Medicine fellow at Yale, I am uniquely positioned to teach in Spanish while sharing expertise in pediatric POCUS, helping overcome language barriers that often limit educational opportunities. We anticipate that this collaboration will improve confidence in bedside ultrasound, support faster and more accurate clinical decision-making, and ultimately enhance the care of sick and injured children. The relationships and educational resources developed during this trip will serve as the foundation for continued collaboration, future training visits, and ongoing mentorship.
This trip impacted pediatric emergency medicine physicians and trainees at Hospital Infantil Dr. Robert Reid Cabral through hands-on POCUS education, including cardiac ultrasound and vascular access. Using a “teach-the-teacher” approach, the goal was for these skills to continue spreading locally and ultimately improve care for children and families in the emergency department. Teaching and collaborating directly in Spanish made the experience especially meaningful.
