Ultrasound Course 2026

Learning has always been at the heart of Vet Solutions (formerly IMV imaging). For three decades we have been running practical ‘hands-on’ ultrasound training courses and we are now delighted to also able to offer courses for vet nurses. We are committed to ensuring you can make the most of your equipment. 

Course Overview: Ultrasound! – Can Veterinary Nurses Scan? Yes they Can!

This combined theory and practical course is aimed at both absolute beginners and those with ultrasound skills already in development, we will guide you through everything you need to know to get to grips with abdominal ultrasonography. From patient preparation, machine controls and how ultrasound is applied, we will build your skills and get you confidently performing both point of care ultrasound examinations and identifying all abdominal organs.

Theory will also include case discussion and it will be a very interactive session, including assessing images and videos, watching a full demonstration of an abdominal scan and then taking part in practical sessions in a relaxed, friendly and informal environment.

Topics Covered:

• Machine setup and patient preparation
• How ultrasound artefacts appear when scanning, how they can be useful to you or how to avoid them!
• Machine controls, what they mean and how to optimise the image
• How to identify all the major abdominal organs – Liver, Gall bladder, GIT, kidneys, spleen, major vessels and lymph nodes
• What significant pathology looks like and when to be concerned
• How nurses can apply ultrasound techniques to case management
• What to look out for in an emergency case presentation including APOCUS techniques
• Guidance and in-practice experiences from our in house vet Fiona

Equipment and Facilities:

We ask that the majority of delegates bring a dog to scan to allow enough hands on practice, so please let us know if you cannot bring a patient before booking. It is important that the dogs can be clipped as required for an abdominal examination.

Kennelling accommodation for the dogs will be available to use if required. Various ultrasound machines will be available to use on the day, however, if you want to bring your own for practice you are welcome to do so, just let us know.

The day will be informal and relaxed with maximum time for hands-on learning. Arrive for tea and coffee from 9am, ready to begin the lectures at 9.30am. We will aim to finish by 5.30pm.

Places are limited to a maximum of 12 delegates so book your place early to avoid disappointment. It includes a full 2 course lunch and course notes will be provided.

Location:

• Fri 4^th September – Vet Solutions (formerly IMV imaging), Unit 2, Block 3, City North Business Campus, Gormanston, Co.Meath K32 ER81
• November – Date & venueTBC (Cork area)

Speaker: Fiona McFarland BVSc MRCVS – Small Animal Veterinary Surgeon and Clinical Sales Manager Vet Solutions (formerly IMV imaging)

CPD – 6 hours CPD

Cost – £250 + VAT / €300 + VAT – Includes 2 course lunch and course notes

If you have any further questions, please contact fiona.mcfarland@vet.solutions / 0044 7760 908463

Small Animal Endoscopy Course 2026

Learning has always been at the heart of Vet Solutions (formerly IMV imaging). For three decades we have been running practical ‘hands-on’ ultrasound training courses and we are now delighted to also able to offer endoscopy courses. We are committed to ensuring you can make the most of your endoscopy equipment. 

Course Overview:

This one-day course will be delivered as a mixture of theory and practical learning focussing on the use of flexible endoscopy within the gastrointestinal tract of dogs and cats. We will get you set to tackle all sorts of GIT endoscopy, and not only ensure you know how to drive an endoscope but get you ready for retrieving foreign bodies (including all the tips and tricks to this), but also leave you feeling confident taking biopsies with advice on when and how to do it. Practical techniques will be demonstrated by Mark and practiced by delegates using a number of models including our canine mannequins. It’s like real life endoscopy!

Topics Covered:

• Understanding the basic principles of endoscopy
• Understanding the strengths and limitations of the technique as an aid to diagnosis, when is endoscopy a good next step?
• How to use the equipment, how to manipulate and direct flexible endoscopes – get ready to learn how to drive this machine!
• How to navigate the gastrointestinal tract, including the dreaded pylorus, Mark will give you all the tips you need to get through the tricky places
• Recognising pathology and then when and how to take good biopsies throughout the GIT
• Techniques and equipment required to remove gastric foreign bodies – get those tricky bits out safely
• Placement of PEG tubes (why, when and how to do it)

Equipment, Facilities and Agenda:

There is no requirement to bring any equipment or patients to this course, we will provide everything.

The day will start at 9am for Tea/coffee. Lectures to start at 9.30am with a mixture of lectures and practical scanning sessions in both the morning and afternoon sessions. The day will finish around 5.30pm, It includes a full 2 course lunch and course notes will be provided.

Location:
Vet Solutions (formerly IMV imaging) Ireland Office
Unit 2, Block 3,
City North Business Campus,
Gormanston, Co. Meath,
K32 ER81

Speaker: Professor Mark Dunning MA VetMB PhD CertSAM DipECVIM-SA FRCVS

CPD: 7 hours CPD , VCI credits pending approval

Cost – £440 + VAT / €520 + VAT – includes lunch and course notes.

If you have any further questions, please contact fionamcfarland@vet.solutions / 0044 7760 908463

Vet Solutions (formerly IMV imaging) Courses 2026

‘Logic will get you from Adrenals to Bladder and the whole way through the Abdomen’

Course Overview:

This full day course is aimed at veterinary surgeons comfortable with basic abdominal ultrasonography and who want to take their skills a step further, tackling trickier things. With a mixture of lectures, demonstrations and practical hands-on sessions, you will soon get to grips with the entire tour of the abdomen.

Throughout the course you will learn the normal and pathological appearance of all major organs along with adrenal glands, pancreas, major vessels and abdominal lymph nodes. You will learn the landmarks to guide you to the subtler structures and you will examine the anatomy of the abdominal vasculature with the use of doppler ultrasonography.

Topics Covered:

• Get comfortable with the GI tract – learn to find your way around the stomach, small intestine, including duodenum, ileum, ICCJ and colon
• Look further at kidneys, the urinary and reproductive tracts and then where to find the adrenal glands and what to look out for
• Learn the landmarks that help us to locate the pancreas and what to expect
• Find and examine the major blood vessels and abdominal lymph nodes
• Understanding the use of doppler ultrasonography within the abdomen
• Put it into practice – get hands-on!

Equipment and Facilities:

We ask that the majority of delegates bring a dog to scan on the day, please let us know if you cannot bring a patient before booking. It is important that the dogs can be clipped as required for a full abdominal scan.

Kennelling accommodation for the dogs will be available to use if required. Various ultrasound machines will be available to use on the day, however, if you want to bring your own for practice you are welcome to do so, just let us know.

The day will be informal and relaxed with maximum time for hands-on learning. Arrive for tea and coffee from 8.30am, ready to begin the lectures at 9am. We will aim to finish by 5.30pm. Places are limited to a maximum of 10 delegates so book your place early to avoid disappointment. Course notes will be provided.

Location:
Vet Solutions (formerly IMV Imaging) Unit 2, Block 3
City North Business Campus
Gormanston, Co. Meath
K32 ER81

CPD: 7.5 hours CPD. VCI CVE credits pending approval

Cost: £540 + VAT / €640 + VAT – Includes 2 course lunch and course notes

If you have any further questions, please contact fiona.mcfarland@vet.solutions / 0044 7760 908463

Vet Solutions (formerly iMV imaging) Courses 2026

Finding your way around ‘The Thorax and the Abdomen’

Course Overview:

This full day course is aimed at vets with minimal experience of diagnostic ultrasound and those who feel that they could get much more from their ultrasound machine for both basic abdominal ultrasonography and basic echocardiography.

Via a blend of lectures, demonstrations, and practical hands-on sessions you will gain the fundamental knowledge to improve your skills or get started if you don’t know where to begin. 

Topics Covered:

• Basic ultrasound physics – understand how an image is formed and what to do when things are not as they appear
• Get familiar with the machine – learn the core controls and how to get the best image, making your image better when you perform an ultrasound scan, depending on what you are looking at
• Indications – when to use ultrasound examinations – when is it a useful diagnostic tool?
• A logical approach to the main organs of the abdomen and a basic approach to the heart
• What normal looks like – Liver, gall bladder, spleen, GI Tract, kidneys, urogenital tracts and the general approach to assessing the abdomen
• Learn the normal appearance of the cardiac anatomy including normal right sided echocardiographic 2D views and their interpretation
• Put it into practice – get stuck in!

Equipment and Facilities:

We ask that most delegates bring a dog to scan, but it is not essential. Please let us know if you cannot bring a patient before booking. It is important that the dogs can be clipped for full abdominal and echocardiographic examinations.

Kennelling accommodation for the dogs will be available to use if required. Various ultrasound machines will be available to use on the day, however, if you want to bring your own for practice you are welcome to do so, just let us know. The day will be informal and relaxed with maximum time for hands-on learning.

Arrive for tea and coffee from 8.30am, ready to begin the lectures at 9am. We will aim to finish by 5.30pm. Places are limited to a maximum of 10 delegates so book your place early to avoid disappointment. Course notes will be provided

Location:
Vet Solutions (formerly IMV imaging) Unit 2, Block 3
City North Business Campus
Gormanston, Co. Meath
K32 ER81

Speaker: Mark Coia BVMS DipECVDI MRCVS RCVS and EBVS European Specialist in Diagnostic Imaging

CPD: 7.5 hours CPD. VCI CVE credits pending approval

Cost: £520 + VAT / €620 + VAT – Includes 2 course lunch and course notes

If you have any further questions, please contact fiona.mcfarland@vet.solutions / 0044 7760 908463

---

Looking for something more advanced?

Vet Solutions (formerly IMV imaging) Courses 2026

Course Overview:

This full day course is for veterinary surgeons comfortable with basic echocardiography and who want to refresh the basics and learn more. The day will be a mixture of interactive lectures, critical appraisal of echo images and hands-on scanning time. Delegates should be comfortable with very basic right sided views, however we will cover a brief refresher and spend some time perfecting these images, then learn to use colour and spectral doppler as well as working on left sided views.

Topics Covered:

• A refresher of basic 2D right-sided echo views and how to optimise them
• An introduction to Doppler ultrasonography – how, when and why it is used
• How to perform the left-sided echocardiographic views
• Get to grips with the measurements needed to make diagnoses and those we can use to assess cardiac function in more detail
• Spotting pathological changes
• Put it into practice – get stuck in!

Equipment and Facilities:

We ask that the majority of delegates bring a dog to scan to allow enough hands on practice, so please let us know if you cannot bring a patient before booking. It is important that the dogs can be clipped as required for an echocardiographic examination.

Kennelling accommodation for the dogs will be available to use if required. Various ultrasound machines will be available to use on the day, however, if you want to bring your own for practice you are welcome to do so, just let us know.

The day will be informal and relaxed with maximum time for hands-on learning. Arrive for tea and coffee from 8.30am, ready to begin the lectures at 9am. We will aim to finish by 5.30pm. Places are limited to a maximum of 8 delegates so book your place early to avoid disappointment. Course notes will be provided

Location:
Vet Solutions (formerly IMV imaging) Unit 2, Block 3
City North Business Campus
Gormanston, Co. Meath
K32 ER81

Speaker: Chris Linney BVSc GPCertSAP CertAVP(VC) DipECVIMCA (Cardiology) MRCVS
RCVS and EBVS Specialist in Small Animal Cardiology

CPD: 7.5 hours CPD. VCI CVE credits pending approval

Cost – Intermediate Courses: £540 + VAT / €640 + VAT – Includes 2 course lunch and course notes

If you have any further questions, please contact fionamcfarland@vet.solutions / 0044 7760 908463

Vet Solutions (formerly IMV imaging) Courses 2026

Course Overview: This course is aimed at those who are already comfortable with basic pregnancy diagnosis via ultrasound and want to start using ultrasound for more pre breeding fertility work and advancing their staging of pregnancy and sexing embryos.

Are you currently using ultrasound for your bovine pregnancy checks? If so, can you advise the farmer to expect a bull or a heifer calf? Can you tell the difference between the ultrasound appearance of follicular and luteal cysts? Do you want to be able to estimate the stage of pregnancy more accurately?

This course is more focussed on theory and case discussion crush side. We assume that you have either already done the basic course or are happy with basic pregnancy diagnosis. The course will give you an opportunity to talk through cases as they come up the race on one of Ireland’s largest and most progressive dairy farms. There will be a huge selection of cows to work on, and we will talk through each case as a group.

Topics Covered:

• Accurate staging/ageing of the pregnancy – refresh your knowledge and get those days accurate
• The pre breeding non pregnant cow – Follicular wave assessment, identifying individual cow’s cycles and how to apply practical hormonal and therapeutic management to get her back in calf as quickly as possible
• Detection of twins – its importance and benefit to the farmer
• Foetal sexing – probe positioning, tips and tricks and making the right call on bull or heifer
• Cystic ovarian disease – follicular or luteal?
• Endometritis, pyometra and unusual ultrasound images – when does it look wrong?
• Case evaluation of ovarian and uterine problems including advice on treatment protocols

Agenda: 8.30 – Arrival, Tea/Coffee. The course will start at 9am with a mixture of lectures and practical scanning sessions in both the morning and afternoon sessions. The day will finish around 5.30pm.

Equipment and Facilities: Please bring full clean PPE and gloves/gel for the practical scanning portion of the day. All ultrasound equipment will be provided on the day

Location:

Bingham’s Farm
203 Sevenmile Straight
Antrim, Co. Antrim
BT29 4YR

Speaker: John Dawson, BVMS CERT. CHP MRCVS

CPD: 7.5 hours CPD. VCI CVE points pending approval

Cost: £500 + VAT / €600 + VAT – CPD course notes provided

If you have any further questions, please contact fiona.mcfarland@vet.solutions / 0044 7760 908463

Vet Solutions (formerly IMV imaging) Courses 2026

Course Overview:

This course is aimed at veterinary surgeons wanting to start using ultrasound in cattle fertility investigations and pregnancy diagnosis. This highly practical course aims to provide you with the knowledge and skills necessary to get the most out of using ultrasound in day to day farm visits. The course will be a combination of lectures and practical scanning time which is being held on one of Ireland’s largest and most progressive dairy farms. This provides a fabulous opportunity to get to grips with what you can apply to the herds you visit and what you can offer your clients.

Topics Covered:

• Benefits of using ultrasonography on farm and discussing the key stages of the oestrus cycle and pregnancy
• How to use the ultrasound equipment effectively and offering practical guidance and tips on how to find and identify the normal anatomical structures
• Introduction to the non-pregnant uterus, ovarian activity and fertility management
• How to identify the various stages of pregnancy, early, mid and late pregnancies, recognise the development of the bovine embryo
• How to take measurements and get tuned into assessing the age and staging of the growing bovine embryo

Equipment, facilities and agenda

Please bring full clean PPE, disinfectant and gloves/gel for the practical scanning part of the day. All ultrasound equipment will be provided.

Agenda 8.30am – Arrival, Tea/Coffee. The course will start at 9.00am with a mixture of lectures and practical scanning sessions in both the morning and afternoon sessions. The day will finish around 5.00pm.

Location:

Bingham’s Farm
203 Sevenmile Straight
Antrim, Co. Antrim
BT29 4YR

Speaker: John Dawson, BVMS CERT. CHP MRCVS

CPD: 7.5 hours CPD. VCI CVE points pending approval

Cost: £500 + VAT / €600 + VAT – CPD course notes provided

If you have any further questions, please contact fiona.mcfarland@vet.solutions / 0044 7760 908463

---

Looking for something more advanced?