{"id":2815,"date":"2019-05-13T10:36:53","date_gmt":"2019-05-13T17:36:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/?p=2815"},"modified":"2025-01-23T08:36:09","modified_gmt":"2025-01-23T16:36:09","slug":"volunteers-matter-using-innovative-education-to-train-tomorrows-veterinary-students","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/2019\/05\/13\/volunteers-matter-using-innovative-education-to-train-tomorrows-veterinary-students\/","title":{"rendered":"Volunteers Matter: Using innovative education to train tomorrow\u2019s veterinary students"},"content":{"rendered":"

Spring\/Summer 2019 Issue<\/a><\/p>\n

by Marcia Hill Gossard \u201999, \u201904 Ph.D.
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

On a crisp fall morning, volunteers from 10 states came to WSU to participate in something unique to the College of Veterinary Medicine: The Diagnostic Challenges<\/a>.<\/p>\n

During one week in October and a second week in November, 60 volunteers helped 130 second-year veterinary students hone their diagnostic and communications skills.<\/p>\n

Mike Burdette (\u201973 DVM) began volunteering eight years ago after reading about the program in the college\u2019s Advance newsletter and from recent graduates who shared how much they learned during their own Diagnostic Challenges. Recently retired from his mixed animal veterinary practice, Burdette wanted to continue working with other veterinarians and give back to his alma mater. \u201cI found I missed helping my clients and their animals,\u201d says Burdette. \u201cNow I can help students get started and maybe give them an additional viewpoint.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI immediately returned to start volunteering in my first year following graduation,\u201d says Sami Thomas (\u201915 DVM), who has been volunteering for the past three years. \u201cI wanted to maintain a relationship with the college and veterinary education.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Suzy Pence (\u201906 DVM), her call to volunteer came in 2012 after a fellow classmate, Maryam Salt, telephoned and presented her with an opportunity she couldn\u2019t refuse. \u201cThey were in need of new facilitators, and Maryam thought I would enjoy the experience,\u201d says Pence. \u201cIt just felt too important not to participate. And I could not think of a better way to show my appreciation to the college, and to Dr. Steve Hines, for my education.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nearly a dozen years ago, Linda Fineman (\u201992 DVM) was also encouraged by a fellow WSU graduate. She volunteered the first time with her friend and alumnus, Kyle Frandle (\u201980 DVM). \u201cHe talked about how rewarding his experience as a coach had been and encouraged me to come along,\u201d says Fineman. \u201cOnce I had the experience of seeing the students\u2019 faces light up after they had an \u2018aha moment,\u2019 I was completely hooked.\u201d<\/p>\n

Innovative Student Education<\/strong><\/p>\n

Veterinary professors Steve Hines and Guy Palmer created the Diagnostic Challenges<\/a> program in 1991 to provide students with practical clinical experience early in their education. \u201cStudents diagnose and work with clients in a setting similar to what they will experience once they are out of school,\u201d says Hines.<\/p>\n

The challenges are based on actual medical cases. A volunteer client visits a simulated exam room with a stuffed animal patient. The students listen to clients describe the animal patient\u2019s symptoms to determine the correct diagnosis and treatment. Volunteer veterinarian facilitators help guide the students through the diagnostic process. But even more importantly, students learn how to listen to clients, answer their questions, explain complex medical issues in a ways will make sense to the client, and practice their problem-solving skills.<\/p>\n

\u201cStudents get experience in the unexpected,\u201d says Burdette. \u201cA couple, for instance, may disagree on what medical tests will be done or how much they are willing to spend. Students learn how to navigate these new issues that come up while treating animals. It is a great way for the students to practice listening to the client and then explain to the client all their reasoning.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCommunication is a paramount skill in our profession,\u201d says Pence. \u201cAs the exercise progresses, it is wonderful to see them recognize the importance of client communication and watch as their interactions with the clients evolve.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is nothing more rewarding than seeing the students experience a true learning moment,\u201d says Fineman. \u201cYou can see that those lessons are going to stick with them for their whole career, unlike the facts that they memorize to get through their didactic training.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTeaching veterinary students, and all medical students for that matter, presents a unique challenge,\u201d says Thomas. \u201cNot only must we teach them the facts and science of medicine, but we must also teach them how to think like a doctor.\u201d<\/p>\n

Volunteers Make the Difference<\/strong><\/p>\n

One of the most unique aspects of the program, explains Steve Hines, is that it is a true collaboration between academic veterinary medicine and practitioners. \u201cOur volunteer veterinary facilitators bring invaluable experience, real world perspectives, unmatched passion, and ideas we\u2019d never otherwise have considered,\u201d says Hines.<\/p>\n

And so many of the volunteers come back year after year because they find it gratifying.<\/p>\n

\u201cI gain so much personally from my participation,\u201d says Pence. \u201cEvery year I get immersed in a different case where I feel I learn almost as much as the students do. And it feels good to give back. I am so thankful that I have this experience in my life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI cannot recommend volunteering highly enough,\u201d says Fineman. \u201cIt\u2019s rewarding, fulfilling, and invigorating!\u201d<\/p>\n

Whether a client volunteer, who is often an alumnus or a student\u2019s family member, or an alumnus veterinarian facilitator volunteer, Steve Hines says the Diagnostic Challenges<\/a> would be impossible without their time and effort.<\/p>\n

\u201cVolunteers have become the heart and soul of the program,\u201d says Hines. \u201cThe care and determination with which they approach their roles and provide students with feedback is absolutely priceless. Their contributions over the past 20 years have made the Diagnostic Challenges what they are today.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On a crisp fall morning, volunteers from 10 states came to WSU to participate in something unique to the College of Veterinary Medicine: The Diagnostic Challenges. During one week in October and a second week in November, 60 volunteers helped 130 second-year veterinary students hone their diagnostic and communications skills. Mike Burdette (\u201973 DVM) began volunteering eight years ago after reading about the program in the college\u2019s Advance newsletter and from recent graduates who shared how much they learned during their own Diagnostic Challenges. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1015,"featured_media":2798,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_wsuwp_accessibility_report":null},"categories":[511],"tags":[619,553,614],"wsuwp_university_location":[332],"wsuwp_university_org":[425],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2815"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1015"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2815"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2815\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4009,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2815\/revisions\/4009"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2798"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2815"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2815"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2815"},{"taxonomy":"wsuwp_university_location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wsuwp_university_location?post=2815"},{"taxonomy":"wsuwp_university_org","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wsuwp_university_org?post=2815"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}