AVMA Headquarters Externship

Get a new perspective on veterinary medicine with an AVMA student externship opportunity. The deadline is quickly approaching on January 18th for the AVMA Headquarters Externship, so apply soon here.

Thailand Inspiration

Jessica Schuster - Ohio State

V:50 I:4 Experiences

      Five years ago I went through an unexpected and life-changing event that nearly cost me my life, and since that day I have achieved goals beyond which I ever thought I could. I went to college to become a veterinary technician and follow my dream to one day become a veterinarian, I traveled with every chance I had to places all around the world, and took hold of all the opportunities I could. I’ve been snorkeling in the Caribbean, horseback riding through the jungle, and swam with dolphins. I’ve scaled the Mayan Ruins, gone cave tubing, and witnessed rare and exotic creatures. I’ve had more amazing experiences than I could ever tell you in one paper, all because I made one simple promise to myself when this all began five years ago - to never let any opportunity slip through my fingers that I would later regret, because I see everyday as a chance to become more than I was yesterday. And everyday to me, especially after nearly losing all of my chances, is another possibility to live life to its fullest.

            Little did I know, that dream I had since I could remember – the dream to one day become a veterinarian – would indeed one day become more of a prospect than a figment of my imagination. Almost exactly two years ago today, I walked through the doors of The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine, the most nervous I’d ever been in all my life, to present myself as a potential future colleague. Also little did I know that one of my first professors at this college would later become more of a friend and a mentor, who I would travel with all the way on the other side of the world, to offer me more once-in-a-lifetime experiences. So now this brings me to my most recent journey, one of many more I hope, that has offered me so much more than I ever imagined possible – my trip to Thailand.

            It’s not easy to limit a voyage such as this one to a single paper, as I’m sure I could write a whole novel on the experience, but as I ponder this I realize that our journey together could simply be described by three words: Acceptance, Compassion, Inspiration.

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Animal Medical Center

Katheryn Johnson - Ross

Experiences

Honk…Sirens…Cold dry air. My surroundings over whelm my senses as I find myself in the “Big Apple”, New York City. I walk to the Animal Medical Center (AMC) for my first day of a two week externship…

            What started out as a work horse parade event in 1907, to promote prevention of animal cruelty to animals by the Women’s Auxiliary, has evolved into the Animal Medical Center. They treat more than 30,000 animal cases a year. The hospital is equipped with specialty departments, a full staff of 70 Veterinarians, and treats small animals from dogs and cats to exotics like reptiles. I will share with you what AMC has to offer, what I learned there, and amazing people and opportunities it provides. Let’s first take a look at why the AMC has a diverse and numerous case load.

            The Animal Medical Center has specialty department and services to fit the needs of each patient and client that comes. There are numerous specialties offered, some of which include: avian and exotics, cardiology, dentistry, dermatology, oncology, radiology, internal medicine, neurology, ophthalmology, surgery, and rehabilitation and fitness, and more. All of these departments see a vast diversity of animal cases and provide the best treatment possible. AMC has state of the art equipment to provide proper diagnostics and testing. They have two digital radiology suites, ultra sound machines, five operating rooms with several top anesthesia machines, endoscopy suit, and more. The hospital provides emergency and critical care that is open 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. The hospital not only provides amazing veterinary care to its patients, but provides vet students with a great opportunity for learning. Here is what I took away from my time there.

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An exciting externship in NYC

Lucy Chou, Ross University

Experiences, Winner

Over my winter break in December 2013, I was accepted for a 2 week externship at Veterinary Emergency Referral Group (VERG) in New York.  VERG is a large referral practice with 2 locations in Brooklyn that offers specialty services as well as emergency 24 hour care.  I spent my time in their larger North VERG hospital with the Emergency, Ophthalmology and Surgery Services. 

The day would start with morning hospital wide rounds where the staff veterinarians, interns and externs would gather to discuss the cases and treatment plans for the hospitalized animals.  Since VERG also has a large internship program there would occasionally be morning lectures given by one of the senior staff doctors prior to rounds.  During my visit, I attended a lecture given by their neurologist Dr. Kara Sessums.  She ran though clinical cases to discuss diagnostic tests, lesion localization, and treatment options.  The part of the lecture that stood out in my mind was the discussion of treatment options because even though we all learn about it school, I find it to be one of the most challenging aspects of veterinary medicine to get a handle on.  Throughout the discussion I could tell that Dr. Sessums was a seasoned clinician with years of experience in the way she discussed her preferred treatment protocols for various neurological cases.

The rest of the day would continue with client appointments or emergency triages depending on the service I was shadowing.  In both cases, I had the opportunity to see the structure of the internship program.  The senior clinicians were great mentors to the interns and pushed them to think critically about the cases to come up with differential diagnosis and propose a plan of action.  I saw how this could be especially challenging in emergency cases where its high stress, fast paced and interns are really pushed to develop their skills to become an experienced clinician.             

This externship was a perfect opportunity to see interesting cases that often get referred to specialty practices.  I remember an amazing surgery I witnessed where a 1 year old male Labradoodle named Fritz came in on emergency recumbent and catatonic.  Following a CT scan, a diagnosis of severe hydrocephalus was made.  The clinical signs matched the dramatic CT scan that showed only a thin layer of brain material left due to the severe brain compression.  Even with a poor prognosis, the owners elected to move forward to put in a ventriculoperitoneal shunt which is basically a piece of plastic tubing imbedded in the brain and tunneled to the abdominal cavity to drain the buildup of CSF fluid in the cranium.  It was amazing to see the neurologist, Dr. Sessums, and the surgeon, Dr. Karen Cherrone, work together to drill into the skull, place the shunt and then tunnel it through the subcutaneous layer.  They showed me how it would operate with a little pump that was also tunneled through the subcutaneous tissue.  The owners would be responsible for pushing on the pump to drain the fluid as needed to prevent the massive CSF build-up.  I remember this case being at the being of my visit so I got to watch the daily progression of recovery.  The very next day, Fritz was already sitting sternal and able to ambulate somewhat with a special body harness.  Each day, his head bobbed less and he was able to support himself more and more.  By the time he left the hospital he was a completely new dog that had come out of his catatonic state and now responsive to stimulus and aware of his surroundings. 

Another interesting case was a 6 month old kitten named Lucky that came in non-ambulatory in all 4 limbs.  After radiographs were taken, it was obvious that all 4 legs had suffered serious fractures that would need surgical intervention for any possibility at future ambulation and use of the appendages.  After further physical exam and history gathering, a working diagnosis of brittle bone disease or osteogenesis imperfecta was made by a joint consult between the Surgery and Internal Medicine Services.  The owners elected to proceed with surgery to repair all four limbs knowing that there would be a long road of recovery and supportive care.

These were just a couple of the cases that I was exposed to.  After my externship, I walked away with some great experiences shadowing the veterinarians at VERG.  I would recommend this externship experience for anyone looking for a fast paced environment with a constant flow of interesting medical cases and the opportunity to see advanced treatment procedures. 

Externship with the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission (ALPC)

Entry, Experiences
Justin Padgett, Auburn

There is little doubt after completing a Veterinary Pathology course that the field lies at the heart of all things veterinary medicine. Whether the specific discipline be public health or internal medicine, the skills learned and required  in anatomic and microscopic pathology act as “iron sharpening iron” to enhance any DVM’s skills in a chosen trade. Pathology requires a keen knowledge of gross and microscopic anatomy, a meticulous understanding of diseases and their routes of infection, and a detailed knowledge of the body’s responses to pathogenic stimuli.  It is for these reasons that I seek out any opportunity to spend extra time in the pathology laboratory and witness disease processes firsthand. I had a chance to pursue this goal this past winter break when I participated in an externship with the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission (ALPC).

I was made aware of the opportunity to spend time with the ALPC through the American College of Veterinary Pathologists (ACVP) website.  The ACVP site is a great resource for any student looking to match with hosting pathology institutions that range in orientation from government to industry and research to zoo animal.

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