WesternU Alumni Connection - Veterinary Medicine News - April 2012

Disaster Preparedness

The California Veterinary Medical Reserve Corps (CAVMRC) and WesternU's College of Veterinary Medicine hosted animal in disaster experts Dick Green and Dr. Rhonda Windham from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals during a sold-out CAVMRC Disaster Response & Preparedness Training 2012 on the Pomona campus, March 11. Both speakers are seasoned professionals in the area of disaster preparedness and response and they travel the country teaching veterinary professionals about various subjects pertaining to their role in a deployment. Training covered topics such as: disaster response infrastructure and the role of the CAVMRC in it; personal preparedness - what a veterinarian professional should bring to a deployment; shelter management and triage for patients in the emergency shelter setting.

Banfield Gift

Banfield, the Pet Hospital recently donated $215,000 to support the College of Veterinary Medicine. This annual support provides much needed funds to help support operation of the Banfield clinic on campus along with general support to the College. The College and University are grateful for the continued friendship and support of Banfield, the Pet Hospital.

Open House

The College of Veterinary Medicine will host their annual open house on Saturday, April 21, 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. This year's theme is "The Animal Kingdom," and features presentations by Aquarium of the Pacific, Pomona K-9 Unit, and Zoom Room Dog Agility Training. There will also be a food court set up; and Boy and Girl Scouts can attend to earn badges.

Research and Honors Day

The College of Veterinary Medicine celebrated student research and academic achievement at its Phi Zeta Student Research and Honors Day March 26. Nine students gave oral presentations and three students gave poster presentations on their research. Annie Oh, DVM '14, received an award for her poster. The winners for presentations were: Bridget Morton, DVM '13 (first place); Zachary Course, DVM '13 (second place); Stanley Sowy, DVM '14 (third place). The research presentations were followed by the College's Honors Day Ceremony.

Tegzes Named IPE Director

Professor John Tegzes has been named as the Director of Interprofessional Education (IPE) at WesternU, effective July 1. Dr. Tegzes has contributed to the IPE program since its inception in both the planning and implementation phases. He has served as the College's faculty liaison for Phase I IPE and also as the course director of Phase II during its inaugural year. He provides all of the IPE facilitator training. Dr. Tegzes is a founding faculty member in the College of Veterinary Medicine and has been with WesternU since 2003. In the CVM he has been instrumental in the planning and delivery of the Problem-Based Learning curriculum. John will maintain a faculty presence in CVM. Dr. Tegzes is very passionate about healthcare education and currently serves as the president of Veterinary Education Worldwide (ViEW). In particular his educational interests focus on small group teaching and learning, student-centered learning, and faculty development. His clinical background has spanned two health professions (Nursing and Veterinary Medicine) and he brings his unique One Medicine – One Health perspective to the IPE program. John is passionate about the interactions between humans and animals, and how these interactions and interdependencies impact health for both.

Alumni News

Venaya Jones, DVM '11, is currently practicing at West Geauga Veterinary Hospital in Chesterland, OH. Her special interests include internal medicine and soft tissue surgery.

Veronica Bingamon, DVM '11, is an intern at Pet Emergency & Specialty Hospital in Thousand Oaks, CA, which recently received two puppies that were in a house fire in Northern California. The puppies were transferred to the hospital for medical therapy and hyperbaric oxygen therapy where the world renowned founder of Grossman Burn Centers, Dr. Richard Grossman, and his Physician Assistant Kurt Richards, PA '98, provided extensive care for the puppies.

More than 50 CVM alumni, along with current students, faculty, friends and guests, enjoyed the hospitality of the Dean and each other's company high above the Las Vegas strip in The Hotel at Mandalay Bay during the Western Veterinary Convention in February. Each year our alumni receptions continue to grow, and we truly enjoy hearing of the success of our alumni as veterinary professionals.

Faculty News

The Toledo (Ohio) Blade recently included a story about problems associated with state laws come down hard on some dog breeds, particularly pit bulls. The story focuses on the problems with visual breed identification and the arbitrary use of the description "pit bull" to describe dogs that are not pit bulls. Groundbreaking work in this area was done by Professor Victoria Voith, and her work is cited in the article.

Professor Beth Boynton presented "Preventive Pet Healthcare at WU-College of Veterinary Medicine" on March 11 in Alexandria, VA, to the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges at their annual meeting. She highlighted the College's innovative programs in teaching veterinary students about wellness care for pet animals, a two-year course sequence that begins in the first week of Year 1 in our curriculum. The program was initiated by the Partnership for Preventive Pet Healthcare, a team of veterinary professionals, academia, and industry leaders focused on a singular mission: to ensure that pets receive the preventive healthcare they deserve through regular visits to a veterinarian, with the vision of improving overall health of our pets.

Assistant Professor Elizabeth Schilling and veterinary faculty colleagues Dr. Paul N. Gordon-Ross, Dr. Linda Kidd, and Dr. Peggy Schmidt presented a poster March 11 to the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges at their annual meeting. The presentation title was "Distributive Veterinary Clinical Education: Clinical Educational Facility Selection." Academic leaders in veterinary medicine express significant interest in the "distributive clinical education" model pioneered at Western University of Health Sciences because of the success achieved here. This approach had not been extensively used in veterinary medicine until our curriculum demonstrated its advantages. The poster provided veterinary educators with practical information and access to key WesternU faculty members whose experience and leadership represents the leading edge of this education strategy. Dr. Gordon-Ross was also one of the organizers of a session at the meeting: "Beyond the White Walls" was intended to address the emerging issue in veterinary education of extensive off-campus clinical education. Dr. Gordon-Ross's presentation was titled: "External Clinical Education Settings Student Leaning and Assessment."

Professor Joseph Bertone has been nominated "Equine Continuing Educator of the Year" for 2012 by the Western Veterinary Conference (WVC). The WVC boasts one of the largest single assemblies of veterinary practitioners and related groups in the world by offering "Practical, Progressive, Educational" sessions to 14,874 attendees this year. Founded in 1928, WVC has grown in size and expanded in scope and impact on the veterinary profession for more than 80 years. Dr. Bertone has been a consistently invited speaker at WVC since 2001. This year his four presentations included equine neurology and pharmacology topics. Dr. Bertone was also an invited speaker at the recent "Equine Affaire" in Columbus, OH. The "Equine Affaire" events are billed as North America's Premiere Equine Expositions & Equestrian Gatherings. A similar event has been held at the Fairplex in Pomona for the past 11 years. These national equestrian expositions provide owners, trainers and enthusiasts with training, demonstrations and continuing education in the care and management of horses. Dr. Bertone presented two sessions titled: "Understanding EHV1 Separating rumor from Reality" and "Latest insights into managing laminitis." Finally, Dr. Bertone is quoted in an article on TheHorse.com about equine sleep deprivation.

Assistant Professor Miguel Saggese was invited to Madrid, Spain, in February to give a full day series of lectures on avian and reptile anesthesia and surgery. These lectures were part of a year-long course on exotic animal medicine. After successful completion of a final exam at the European School of Veterinary Postgraduate Studies, veterinarians receive a General Practitioner Certificate in Exotic Animal Practice. The event was organized by Improve Iberia, an affiliate of Improve International, a non-governmental organization with a goal to provide "Continuous Professional Development for Veterinarians in Europe."

Associate Professor Y. Lyon Lee was quoted in an article in Veterinary Practice News on giving anesthesia to horses in the field.

Professor Maria Fahie is the co-author of a new study showing that platelet therapy can provide relief for dogs with osteoarthritis. Dr. Fahie presented the study at the 39th Veterinary Orthopedic Society Meeting in Crested Butte, CO, on March 7.

Student News

Read the latest updates from the students themselves in the latest Student Government Association Newsletter.

Events & Conferences

June 28 - July 1: California Veterinary Medical Association's Pacific Veterinary Conference in San Francisco, CA. WesternU Reception on Saturday, June 30.

August 4-7: American Veterinary Medical Association's Annual Convention in San Diego, CA. WesternU Reception/Dinner on Monday, August 6.

SAVE THE DATE: The College of Veterinary Medicine's first Alumni/Reunion Weekend will take place on and around campus September 7-9, 2012.

For more information or to RSVP to any of these events, please contact the Alumni Office at (909) 469-5274 or alumni@westernu.edu.

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