Wet lab Travel Grant
How to Respond to Long Answer Questions
Q 3. Please provide the title of the workshop or wet lab. Provide any other information regarding your meeting that you would like to be considered.
While participating in the ‘X’ Externship Program, a 4-week hands-on rotation with veterinarians at the Washington Department of ‘Y’, Idaho Fish and Game, Douglas County PUD, and the ‘Z’ Fisheries Commission, I also attended the ‘A’ conference and a workshop on Proliferative Kidney Disease.
Q 4. Briefly describe the purpose of this wet lab, workshop, or hands-on experience. If it was not a wet lab, workshop, or other hands-on experience, please type N/A.
Proliferative Kidney Disease (PKD) is a disease of salmonids caused by the myxozoan parasite Tetracapsuloides bryosalmonae. Outbreaks of PKD can be devastating to fish populations, and much is still unknown about dynamics of this disease in natural systems. This workshop brought together several state and national fisheries management agency workers from the northwest region to share their knowledge and experience with PKD. In addition to attending this conference, participating in the X Externship Program provided me with valuable hands-on experience diagnosing and treating salmonid diseases.
Q 5. Please describe the objectives and the means of accomplishments for your research, scholar activity, or training. Summarize the research you presented/conducted, scholarly activity, or training in terms that can be understood by a non-specialist. In your statement, inform the reader of the significance of your research, scholarly activity, or training. If you traveled for other purposes explain why your travel was necessary and what was accomplished.
The purpose of my travel was to gain novel experiences in veterinary medicine by participating in a 4-week veterinary clinical rotation at the X College in Chennai, India, as well as attend and give a presentation on a small animal medicine case at the TANUVAS Clinical Case Conference. My objectives of traveling to India were to gain hands-on experience in international veterinary medicine, to be exposed to medical cases not commonly seen in the U.S., and to continue building my medical competence by practicing my communication skills with clients and honing my medical diagnostic and treatment skills. For example, I was able to experience first-hand how diseases I commonly have seen in the U.S. manifest into advanced stages if not managed and treated earlier in the disease process. I was also exposed to a number of tick-borne illnesses that I have not been able to experience so far in my veterinary medicine career.
The TANUVAS Clinical Case Conference was a 2-day event that required participants to write an abstract of a medical case and prepare a presentation. My case presentation examined Precursor-targeted Immune-Mediated Anemia (PIMA) in an Alaskan Malamute and dealt with a case I had seen in the WSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital earlier this year. PIMA is a disease of red blood cell maturation and occurs when the body's own antibodies become inappropriately directed against maturing red blood cells in the bone marrow. It is a rare and deadly disease that is under-reported in the literature, and further research is needed to describe optimal treatment protocols and prognostic indicators for dogs with PIMA.
Q 6. Please explain how this experience facilitated your professional development.
As a veterinary student hoping to work internationally, being able to practice veterinary medicine in India was extremely valuable. I was exposed to different medical methodologies, treatment plans, and client communications that were unlike anything I have seen working in veterinary medicine in the U.S. I gained experience with symptomatic-based treatment plans (or treating disease without a definitive diagnosis), how religious ideologies can play a significant role in how veterinarians practice medicine, and how zoonotic diseases (diseases that spread from animals to people and back) impact societies. Practicing veterinary medicine in India facilitated my professional development most by giving me exposure to international veterinary medicine in a country that is culturally and environmentally unique from the U.S.
Moreover, at the TANUVAS Clinical Case Conference, I grew professionally by presenting to a diverse audience on a case that I had been closely involved with on a previous clinical rotation. Precursor-targeted Immune-Mediated Anemia (PIMA) is an important disease in dogs because it can be fatal if not treated. I had never heard of the disease while taking classes, so I had to learn about PIMA with independent research. Presenting my case on PIMA solidified my knowledge about this disease and allowed me to educate others while helping me develop my communication skills as I presented to non-native English speakers who were often even less aware of PIMA than I. In addition to presenting my clinical case, participating in the TANUVAS Conference allowed me to network with other veterinary professionals from across India. I was able to discuss my case and have discussions about the similarities and differences between how veterinary medicine is practiced in India and the U.S.
Q 7. Please explain how this experience facilitated your personal development.
The X Externship Program provided me with valuable hands on experience diagnosing and treating salmonid diseases as well as the opportunity to work closely with several salmonid veterinarians in the northwest. These relationships are key to my future success as a fish veterinarian, and I hope to obtain a job working with salmon in the northwest region. Attending the Y conference and a workshop on Proliferative Kidney Disease helped me to connect with other fish veterinarians and fisheries managers in the northwest, while increasing my knowledge base about PKD.
Aquaculture medicine remains an underserved and largely unknown specialty within the scope of veterinary practice. Only a small number of veterinary schools incorporate fish health classes into their core curricula and fewer still offer insight into herd health management of aquatic species for production (human consumption) and/or mitigation (wildlife supplementation) purposes. This program was created to help expose veterinary students, those who have a proven and focused interest in the field, to a variety of salmon and trout hatcheries, natural resource agencies, and aquatic health professionals within the Pacific Northwest.
Q 8. Please explain how your participation in this activity positively reflected upon WSU.
While presenting my poster I had multiple alumni from WSU stop by to see my research and talk to me about the various facets of training at WSU. They were excited to hear about the veterinary curriculum and learn of WSUs ability to prepare veterinary students for careers outside of general practice based on our student attendance at conferences and our interests in specialty disciplines/research. I was also able to talk to many professionals who are unfamiliar with our program about our college and the resources WSU has to offer.