Listen up! Student Externship Locator Available from AVMA

Externships are an important part of the veterinary curriculum as they expose students to vet med with a practical application method. Since I know the terminology can be confusing, I thought I would remind you that an externship is an opportunity for students to learn more about a specific area or get more hands-on time while they are still in school, generally without pay. An internship, on the other hand, is something you do after graduation to gain more experience, generally with pay. I was always a bit confused about this difference until it came time to set one up for myself.

Thanks to the AVMA, now there is an easy way for you to get more information about externship opportunities with the Student Externship Locator. It can be accessed directly at http://www.avma.org/vcc/student_externships/

This resource was developed in response to many requests for a way to make it easier to search for an externship position. Whether fulfilling a school requirement or looking to expand experience in a special interest area, the Student Externship Locator can help make that search easier. Employer posted externships may also be found on the AVMA's online job board, the Veterinary Career Center (http://www.avma.org/vcc/) Take a look at both resources to start your search. Good luck!

Emerging Issues Committee April Newsletter

Here are some interesting links complied by the members of your Emerging Issues Committee. They work hard to find relevant topics that may not be included in your standard curriculum, so check it out! Some topics this time include bedbugs (ick!), colorectal cancer (even more ick!) and Salmonella contamination. Ok, I'm thoroughly grossed out! Time to get informed:

 

1. A New Breed of Guard Dog Attacks Bedbugs New York Times

2. Meat And Colorectal Cancer Risk: Scientists Suggest Potential Mechanisms Medical News Today

3. Salmonella In HVP Additive Prompts Potentially Massive Processed Food Recall Medical News Today

4. Researchers Report Progress on E. coli Test New York Times

5. Wildlife Serves As Indicator Of Potential Health Threats Medical News Today

6. Article misses an important pollutant from chicken farms. Environmental Health News

7. Equine dentistry bill gains Oklahoma House approval NewsOK

8. Folk Medicine Poses Global Health Threat to Primate Species BBC

9. AVMA Briefs Congress on Importance of Antibiotics Medical News Today

10. Don’t Buy Live Easter Season Animals, Health Official Says Los Angeles Daily News

Update from the Education and Licensure Committee

Within the Student AVMA House of Delegates there are many committees made up of your student delegates. These committees work hard to create scholarships, grants and other contests that are available to you as a SAVMA member or a club or group at your school. This is free money that they want to give away! To check out the opportunities available to you through these committees, head over to:http://www.avma.org/savma/committee.asp#license

Back in the fall the Education and Licensure Committee picked two recipients for their Extracurricular Funding Grant. The purpose of this grant is to provide veterinary student organizations funding for wet labs or lectures supplementing their college's curriculum. These grants typically are awarded to help fund programs that veterinary students would not normally be exposed to in their traditional courses. The winners for the 2009-2010 school year were an equine acupuncture wet lab held at University of Pennsylvania and the Marine Mammal Conference at University of Wisconsin. You can read more about the Marine Mammal Conference below.

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Where are you headed this summer?

Why not Denmark? Join veterinary students from around the world at the 59th Annual International Veterinary Student Association's Summer Congress in Copenhagen. BUT--Registration closes at the end of this month! So, get your application in by March 30th if you want to get in on this wonderful opportunity. More information and the application can be found at: http://www.ivsadenmark.dk/

Contact SAVMA's International Exchange Officer, Deirdre Murdy for more info at SAVMAIEO@gmail.com

A Cat with More Than 9 Lives

By: Christopher Fulkerson

Class of 2010, Purdue University

I met Barnum during my first small animal medicine rotation.  A scrawny cat at best, Barnum had survived more than most cats would have been capable of and his owners had supported him through more than most would have been willing.  Before I had ever met him, he’d survived hyperthyroidism treated with I¹³¹, septic peritonitis after a gastrostomy tube leaked, inflammatory bowel disease, heart disease, chronic pancreatitis, chronic kidney disease and persistent anorexia.  He was nothing much to look at – nearly toothless, he was more skin and bones than cat and spent much of his time lounging lazily in lateral recumbency.  He sported a bright blue vet-wrap neck bandage that made his head look several sizes too large for his impossibly thin frame.  The bandage covered his bright orange esophagostomy tube, a permanent fixture since his failed gastrostomy tube.  This visit was more bad news for Barnum and his owners – a diagnosis of gastrointestinal lymphoma had been made by endoscopic biopsy.  Where some owners would be disheartened to learn that their beloved pet had cancer, Barnum’s simply took it in stride.  Her only response was, “What do we do now?”

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