Experiences

Submitted by Retrospective Conference Travel Grant Receipient, Helena Trevor, Virginia Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine

I attended the USAHA & AAVLD annual meeting in October 2024. This conference serves as an interface for veterinary researchers, academics, and government employees to join and share innovations and ideas pertaining to veterinary medicine. As a Saul T. Wilson scholar with the USDA-APHIS-Veterinary Services with an interest in pursuing a career in corporate veterinary medicine, I attended this conference with the goals of gaining knowledge of other careers and entities in public practice and making relevant connections. At this conference, I met and connect with several students who were also STW scholars and those who were interested in research. I attended talks on new research being done in many different facets of veterinary medicine, the most popular topic being Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza. I was able to sit in on meetings between the USDA and CDC and listen to conversations about topics such as deployment of government resources to help with HPAI and the potential of a vaccine – all topics relevant to me as I have traveled to help with HPAI before when working for the government. As a result of this meeting, I was able to set up my MPH Practicum Experience which allowed me to travel to central California and facilitate the emergency response for HPAI in poultry and dairy cattle. As a result of this conference, therefore, I was able to get firsthand experience on the frontline of a disease outbreak and also to put into perspective the role of Field Veterinary Medical Officers and see how their contributions (surveillance, testing, etc) impact population health and decision making on a larger scale. I’m very grateful to SAVMA for providing me a grant to help fund my travel to this conference.