US is the first and foremost an operator-dependant examination. Thus, experience plays an important role, and sensitivity drops with little experience. A standardized training with both theoretical and hands-on modules is mandatory to gain the required skills to conduct FAST or p-FAST sufficiently. This training should include subjects with positive findings.

Emergency physicians/paramedics treating patients at the scene of an accident face several challenges such as time pressure. This has important implications for the training program. Thus, the training program should include real-time simulation training and different patient positions (e.g., ventral position), where the learner has to find the appropriate time frame to integrate p-FAST into the prehospital trauma care algorithm, adopt the transducers’ position, and furthermore face the time pressure. After a 1-day course with hands-on training as described above, p-FAST can be performed by both paramedics and physicians who were not familiar with the technique before attending the course with a high sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy [13]. However, to maintain this skill at the required competence level, regular practice is necessary.