Rising Stars Resources

Abstract

Listen

Translate article

The first few years of career development can be a challenging time; however, having the right resources can turn the early career challenges into triumphs. The field of healthcare requires continued commitment to learning and keeping up-to-date with the latest standards and technologies. Transitioning from student to staff (sonographer or physician) requires the learning experience to change. Despite the desire and the passion to serve our patients and our profession the way we have always imagined, the first years after graduation will introduce us to new challenges. Access to the proper resources is necessary to successfully meet these challenges and build a stronger foundation for career development. The Rising Stars Task Force was created to identify the resource needs of the early career ASE members and develop a hub that would provide ready access to these resources. Members of the Rising Stars Task Force included cardiologists and sonographers within their first five years of practice as well as cardiology fellows and sonography students (Figure 1). The efforts of this group has led to the creation of “The Rising Stars Hub” on the ASE website (https://www.asecho.org/rising-star-hub/). This hub is a source of educational content, networking and general information for early career physicians, scientists, veterinarians, diagnostic medical sonographers, medical technologists, nurses, and physician assistants. Using a survey sent to early career ASE members, as well as shared on social media to reach out to nonmembers, resources were identified, and developed, and are available on the Rising Stars Hub. These resources are available to all members and include:•Two Minute Tutorials - provides tutorials highlighting the important echocardiographic aspects of a specific topic such as Mitral Regurgitation or Aortic Stenosis. The tutorials are provided in PowerPoint and/or YouTube video format and are designed to be quick references. More comprehensive references can be found with each tutorial for a more in-depth review.•Career Services - offers helpful tips for creating curriculum vitae and resumes. Templates for physicians and sonographers are available. There is also a link to the ASE Career Center for easy access to job postings.•Star Echo Cases - highlights cases presented in CASE (https://www.cvcasejournal.com/) with a one-page editorial and educational comments from various Rising Star Task Force members.•Ask an Expert - provides an easy way to ask questions or request clarification on a topic. This section will connect you with an expert on the subject to guide you to the most accurate answers based on the latest guidelines.•Echo Images - provides a direct link to the ASE Image library. Here, members have access to a library of images, documents, and video loops which can be used for learning purposes. Rising Stars may utilize this library to see actual cases of the anomalies they have read about but may find hard to make a diagnosis when encountered.•Upcoming Events - offers ready access to events and opportunities the Rising Stars may benefit from such as conferences, seminars, live courses, scholarships, research funding, travel grants, and the TWITTER Journal Clubs.•Volunteer with the ASE Foundation – provides information on outreach events, grants, and donation opportunities for those wishing to expand their horizon.•Store Front – provides a link to ASE MarketPlace, with educational products including textbooks, DVDs, webinars, posters, flipcharts and more. In conclusion, the Rising Stars Hub began with the intention of providing the early career sonographer and physician with resources needed to turn early challenges into triumphs and to better establish and advance their careers. Resources will continue to be created and added as this new area grows and develops. For instance, the Rising Star Task Force has been tasked to help with the redesign of educational content on ASEUniversity, so that it is more accessible to junior echocardiographers and physicians. The Rising Stars Hub of the ASE website not only provides educational resources but also embraces all early career members and keeps them well connected with the bigger pool of experts within the ASE community.Marjan Miri, BS, RDCS, is an Adult Cardiac Sonographer at University of California, San Diego, where she performs echocardiograms and assists with research projects. After receiving the Katanick Student Scholarship Award as the highest-ranking sonography student by ASE, she served the Rising Stars Task Force and currently serves on the Education Committee. She would like to thank Elizabeth McIlwain for supporting and mentoring Sonography Rising Stars and guiding her through this article.