(784) Sonographer Workload Benchmarks Across Maternal Fetal Medicine Practice Settings in the United States

Objective:
To establish national benchmarks for sonographer workload by quantifying the average number of ultrasound examinations performed per sonographer during an 8-hour workday across various Maternal Fetal Medicine (MFM) practice settings in the United States.

Study Design:
A cross-sectional, web-based benchmarking survey was emailed to all 2,096 regular U.S.-based members of the Society for Maternal Fetal Medicine (SMFM). Of these, 232 unique responses were included in the final analysis. Respondents were categorized by practice ownership—university/medical school, health system, hospital with academic affiliation, community hospital, and private practice—and by practice size, defined by the number of clinical full-time equivalent (cFTE) MFM physicians (large: ≥ 5 cFTE; small: < 5 cFTE). Pearson's Chi-squared test with simulated p-value was used for statistical analysis.

Results:
The median number of ultrasound examinations performed per sonographer during an 8-hour workday was consistent across most practice settings, with a median of 8-9 scans per day. Community hospitals (n=14) demonstrated a higher median daily volume of 10-11 scans, though this trend did not reach statistical significance (p=0.053). When stratified by practice size, no significant difference was observed in sonographer workload between large and small practices, with both groups reporting a median of 10-11 scans per day (p=0.379).

Conclusion:
Sonographer workload in MFM practices demonstrates overall consistency across diverse practice types and sizes, with a typical volume of 8-9 ultrasound examinations per 8-hour shift. The number of MFM physicians in a given practice did not significantly impact sonographer workload.