Educational Experiences
Throughout my studies in veterinary school as well as continuing education courses, I have taken every opportunity to grow more in my profession, knowledge, and skills. Below, I have listed many of the wetlabs, conferences, and voluntary courses that I have attended.
- Attend monthly meetings to review radiographs of small animals with a board certified radiologist. - Earn about 12 hours of continuing education per year.
- Attended lectures by internists and criticalists about cutting edge discoveries in small animal medicine. - Participated in interactive presentations to discuss diagnosis and treatment of complicated diseases. - Earned 30 hours of continuing education.
- Developed an SOP for the city of Sugar Land, Texas to set up a temporary shelter for companion animals in the incident of a natural disaster. - Worked on team and used critical thinking to troubleshoot potential problems that arise during a disaster.
- Monitored first-time heifers for evidence of labor and dystocia. - Performed C-section as lead surgeon. - Provided perioperative care including sedation, surgical prep, and cared for newborn calves.
- Attended a 2 day seminar focusing on practice management and ownership. - Learned strategies for increasing revenue and managing staff effectively. - Discussed contract law, practice lawsuits and liability, and insurance policies.
- Practiced using laparoscope while performing rectal palpation in a mare. - Practiced performing common techniques used in ECC including: placing an SPL, abdominocentesis, inserting temporary tracheotomy tubes, and placing a chest tube. - Learned about alternative medicine indications and techniques such as acupuncture and chiropractic methods. - Used ultrasound to identify various anatomic structures in the abdomen, thorac, and distal limb.
ZEW = Zoo Exotics and Wildlife Club - Performed a hysterectomy on a cadaver chicken - Discussed surgical treatments of ferret diseases such as insulinomas and adrenal disease. - Performed common surgeries on cadaver ferrets.
VILP = Veterinary International Leadership Program - Completed a public health and food safety course at Padua University in northern Italy. - Visited various food institutions and farms to observe their sanitation and HACCP procedures. - Experienced living and attending classes in a foreign country and embracing the Italian culture.
- Attended lectures about small mammal dental health and spay/neutering techniques. - Practiced using all the dental tools used to treat small mammal dental disease. - Performed a spay and neuter and practiced suture patterns on rabbit and rat cadavers.
- Made blood smear slides and learned proper technique for reading blood smears effectively. - Discussed the differential diagnoses for various blood cells seen on blood smears and practiced identifying them.
- Participated in various wetlabs including: dystocia, artificial insemination in ewes, and claw amputation in cattle.
- Practiced reading urinary sediments and wet mounts. - Learned to identify various crystals, bacteria, and casts from artifact. - Reviewed proper preparation and collection techniques. - Discussed differential diagnoses based on U/A findings.
- Attended various wetlabs to practice techniques such as proper bandaging, floating teeth, and emergency response.
- Performed PCR and assisted in surgery, hepatocyte isolation, and confocal. - Learned mouse handling, husbandry, colony maintenance, breeding techniques and management.
- Taught by boarded exotic veterinarian at Gulf Coast Veterinary Specialist. - Learned how to properly restrain and handle ferrets, rabbits, hedgehogs, hamsters, and other pocket pets. - Performed physical exams and practiced palpating various organs in small mammals. - Administered vaccines and dewormer to ferrets, as well as did trim nails and cleaned ears.
- Earned a scholarship for the cost of registration by Jackson Laboratory - Attended many lectures and demonstrations on topics pertaining to laboratory animal medicine and research. - Participated in “Mouse School”; mouse handling, injection and blood collection techniques, and anesthesia methods. - Attended a suturing lab where I practiced various patterns and learned a new 2-handed technique.
- Participated in a course focusing on documentation and records, personnel responsibilities, and employee training. - Reviewed the Code of Federal Regulations by FDA on GLP for nonclinical laboratory studies.
- Attended a seminar on GLP compliance and proper documentation criteria.
- Attended 2017 EVECCS conference in Dublin, Ireland. - Participated in an ultrasound wetlab, focusing on FAST ultrasound and evaluating the heart in an emergency situation. - Earned 31 hours of CE.
- Attended webinars for voluntary CE. Topics included: Parvovirus Antimicrobial Use Pancreatitis Performing sacrococcygeal blocks
- Attended 2018 EVECCS conference in Venice, Italy. - Attended lectures about cardiac and pulmonary diseases in companion animals. - Earned 31 hours of CE.
Traveled to Tallinn, Estonia to attend European Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care conference. The lectures focused on the diagnosis and treatment of critical illness.
Attended Western Veterinary Conference in Las Vegas, NM in 2019. Attended many lectures about practice management, new practice building, and pain management.
Volunteered to spay and neuter dogs and cats in the Houston area. Spayed over 20 dogs and cats in a single day.
Attended a 3 day workshop about "Guiding Practice Success".
Attended SWVS Conference to learn about the most up-to-date products and equipment for veterinary practices.
Participated in online courses as well as attended 3 weeks of in-person training in the practice of canine acupuncture. The course is a mix of classroom lectures along with hands-on training.
