What drove you to want to become a Founding Fellow of the ACVIM? Is there a story or experience that stands out in your mind that reaffirmed your decision to follow this path?
I began my career as a fledgling internist jumping into the deep end of infectious disease. After I completed my residency at Davis, I was hired into a staff vet position to backfill for the service while Dr. Jane Sykes was on sabbatical. This allowed me to develop a clinical and research interest in infectious disease. Following on from this I found a community of like-minded people in the International Society for Companion Animal Infectious Disease (ISCAID). I find infectious diseases fascinating because they are challenging, multisystemic and ever present. My focus in infectious disease also allows me to indulge in my other interests of respiratory and urinary disease where infectious diseases are common differential diagnoses.
What do you see as the advantage(s) of ACVIM-approved Fellowship Programs/fellowship-level training as a whole?
Approved fellowships allow motivated clinicians to achieve advanced training in subdisciplines of internal medicine. For people like me who want to contribute to clinical and academic veterinary medicine, but don't want to pursue a PhD, fellowships provide a pathway to advance the field and develop clinical and research skills.
Were there any specific challenges you faced along the way? How did you overcome them?
As a junior clinician it’s easy to fall into the trap of imposter syndrome. Residency training teaches us innumerous skills but it’s challenging to develop confidence and a depth of proficiency in its relatively short duration. After being hired onto the faculty at Davis I completed a master’s degree in clinical research at UC Davis School of Medicine Clinical and Translational Science Center. Though I didn’t get to complete our Infectious Disease fellowship as a faculty member, I gained confidence and valuable experience through my coursework in study design, epidemiology as well as enhanced interactions between faculty mentors and participants from the medical school.
What advice do you have for those aspiring to become ACVIM Fellows?
Be curious! I think that fellowships are an excellent alternative to advanced graduate work. They provide the experience, training and mentorship to springboard internists to becoming leading clinician-scientists!
