"It's so user dependent." It is the objection Ryan Martin and Colin Rigney hear more than any other about bringing MSK ultrasound into practice. In this episode they take it head on. X-rays are position dependent, MRI is reader dependent, surgery has its errors too, and every one of them is learned as a system. Ultrasound is no different: a systematic scan, enough reps with feedback, and a mentor beside you. They share how an ER physician got comfortable with a technical procedure in about 50 reps, how a resident went from no ultrasound at all in February to ultrasound guided PRP and bone marrow procedures a few months later, and why you cannot learn a hands-on skill from YouTube alone.
What this episode covers:
- Why user dependence is the objection that comes up most about MSK ultrasound
- Operator dependence in every modality: x-ray positioning, MRI reading, surgery
- Ultrasound as a system: shining a flashlight under the skin and working your checkpoints
- Plays are made to be broken, once you know the playbook
- Not operator dependent, system dependent
- How many reps it really takes: 50 and a backboard to learn from
- The road to mastery goes through incompetency
- From no ultrasound in February to ultrasound guided PRP and bone marrow procedures months later
- Why you can't learn a hands-on skill from YouTube, and why accountability matters
- The "I don't want to go back to school" mountain
- Voices from the 2025 AMSKU Annual Global Summit
Links mentioned in this episode:
- MSK Ultrasound Residency, 12 months of hands-on training with expert mentors. Book a free discovery call
- All-inclusive MSK ultrasound course memberships, with step by step video tutorials
- MSK ultrasound scanning guides and eBooks by anatomical region
- Every AMSKU course
- Tell us the objection you hear most
- AMSKU Annual Global Summit, Saturday 5 December 2026, live and online. Register, or watch the playback from last year's summit
New episodes every Tuesday. Watch on YouTube, or listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Chapters:
0:00 This week on From Probe to Practice
0:25 From Probe to Practice
0:38 The objection: MSK ultrasound is too user dependent
1:45 MRI is the gold standard, and still reader dependent
2:41 A flashlight under the skin: ultrasound as a system
3:24 A handheld skill still has a system
4:08 "It's so user dependent." There's training for that
5:15 Errors in MRI, CT scans and surgery too
6:38 Plays are made to be broken
7:18 Not operator dependent, system dependent
7:38 Talking a clinician through the objection
8:04 50 reps: how an ER physician learned a technical procedure
9:02 15 orthopedic surgeons in one week
9:56 The road to mastery goes through incompetency
10:07 February to June: a resident's first guided procedures
11:25 Learning MSK ultrasound without a fellowship
12:29 A hundred books on riding a bicycle
13:14 Accountability and a residency style program
14:55 Why we welcome the objections
16:00 The mountain: "I don't want to go back to school"
16:39 Raising the standard at the point of care
17:34 Coming up: more objections, and a live Q&A
18:23 Voices from the 2025 AMSKU Annual Global Summit
0:00 This week on From Probe to Practice
0:25 From Probe to Practice
0:38 The objection: MSK ultrasound is too user dependent
1:45 MRI is the gold standard, and still reader dependent
2:41 A flashlight under the skin: ultrasound as a system
3:24 A handheld skill still has a system
4:08 "It's so user dependent." There's training for that
5:15 Errors in MRI, CT scans and surgery too
6:38 Plays are made to be broken
7:18 Not operator dependent, system dependent
7:38 Talking a clinician through the objection
8:04 50 reps: how an ER physician learned a technical procedure
9:02 15 orthopedic surgeons in one week
9:56 The road to mastery goes through incompetency
10:07 February to June: a resident's first guided procedures
11:25 Learning MSK ultrasound without a fellowship
12:29 A hundred books on riding a bicycle
13:14 Accountability and a residency style program
14:55 Why we welcome the objections
16:00 The mountain: "I don't want to go back to school"
16:39 Raising the standard at the point of care
17:34 Coming up: more objections, and a live Q&A
18:23 Voices from the 2025 AMSKU Annual Global Summit
