Thursday, 6 March 2025
ASA Clinical Audit Grant | Interview with Dr. Kate Russo
The ASA Clinical Audit Grant supports sonographers in undertaking projects that improve clinical practice and patient care. Each year, recipients conduct clinical audits that assess and enhance sonographic techniques and processes.
In 2023, Dr Kate Russo was one of the successful recipients of the ASA Clinical Audit Grant. As a senior lecturer in the master's ultrasound program at Central Queensland University and a specialist sonographer in obstetrics and gynaecology at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Adelaide, Dr Russo has a strong passion for research, fetal medicine, and advancing sonographer practice.
We caught up with Dr Russo to learn more about her project, its progress, and her experience with the ASA Clinical Audit Grant.
Your project was awarded an ASA Clinical Audit Grant in 2023. Can you give an overview of your project and its goals?
The clinical audit project the ASA grant kindly supported had two parts:
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Intra- and inter-observer reliability study of the abdominal circumference (AC) in the third trimester: This involved two sonographers measuring the AC on ninety patients in their third trimester. Each AC was measured using one of four different techniques: ellipse, trace, dot point, and two-dimensional orthogonal dimensions (2DOD). The study aimed to determine the reliability of the different measurement techniques by each sonographer and between sonographers and to determine if these measurement techniques were interchangeable.
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Image Quality Audit: A departmental image quality audit of AC measures in the third trimester was established. A new audit tool was developed based on existing tools in the literature. This tool was also used in part 1 of the project. By auditing just one key aspect of the third trimester scan, this enabled our sonographers to adjust to the audit process.
You are presenting your key findings at ASA2025MEL this year, what can you share about the progress and results of your project? What stage is your project in currently?
Both parts of the project have been completed. At ASA2025MEL, we will be sharing our key findings of the reliability study. Preliminary results indicate excellent intra- and inter-observer reliability across all measurement techniques. The measurement techniques were significantly different indicating that the ellipse, trace, dot point and 2DOD methods are not interchangeable. The new AC audit tool will be used for ongoing departmental audit cycles.
In what ways did the ASA Clinical Audit Grant support your work?
The ASA Clinical Audit Grant has been instrumental in supporting our work. The funding allowed us to access statistical expertise and have non-clinical work time to perform the data collection without impacting service delivery or patient care. The grant also highlighted to leadership within our organisation the importance of quality assurance which requires ongoing support.
What are the next steps for your project?
The next step is finalising our results and preparing our reliability study for publication. The image quality AC audit has been expanded to include all aspects of the third trimester ultrasound scan.
It is anticipated that the third trimester audit tool will be implemented across SA Medical imaging departments to ensure standardisation and high-quality care. We are also eager to share our AC audit tool with the wider obstetric ultrasound community.
How did you find the process of applying for an ASA grant?
Applying for the ASA grant was a straightforward and well-structured process. It can be considered a lot of paperwork; however, the process assists your project team develop and refine what you want to achieve and make sure it is a feasible project. The work that is put in the planning and development at the start will serve you well throughout the project. The guidelines were clear, and members from the ASA team were accessible and helpful in answering questions.
What advice would you give to future applicants?
For future applicants, I would recommend the following:
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Discuss your idea with colleagues and mentors. A team approach will definitely enhance the project. Take as much help as you can get! Make sure one of your key people has some statistical knowledge to ensure your study design and methodology are sound. This links to ensuring the research is feasible and that the aim is achievable.
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The timeline is so important. Don’t make up ad hoc, ambitious deadlines. Add 3 months to every aspect of the project- recruitment, data analysis, write up. Things go wrong and take much longer than you anticipate. Be prepared for this by setting reasonable time points for goal completion.
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Make sure you have the support of leadership in your department. This is a professional development opportunity which can potentially benefit the department, so get your organisation on board. Arrange a meeting and put forth your reasons why your project is important, which ties into the justification you need in your application. Consider the benefits of the project, this primarily should include our patients but can also bring benefits to sonographers locally and nationally, as well as your workplace.
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Organisation and computer skills! Learn how to use Teams, Excel, PowerPoint and any other software platforms that will help with project planning, organisation, entering and collecting data and the sharing of information to appropriate people in the right format.
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Get acquainted with your local ethics committee by finding the names and contact details of key people and look out for submission dates. Contact the ethics department and seek clarification on their requirements.
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Seek advice and clarification from the esteemed ASA staff.
Are you interested in undertaking a clinical audit project?
The ASA is currently accepting applications for the brand-new Special Clinical Audit Grant. This initiative provides A$5,000 in funding to help sonographers assess current clinical processes, identify areas for improvement, and implement changes that enhance patient outcomes, service efficiency, and diagnostic accuracy
There are three audit focus areas to choose from, and now is the perfect time to apply! Visit the ASA Grants page for more information or click below to submit your application.