ASPCA, Humane Alliance, NC

Description of Elective Experience

Humane Alliance: A Program of the ASPCA offers a two-week Extern Training Program (40 hours/week) designed to deliver spay/neuter surgical instruction, and offer students a behind-the-scenes, hands-on look into the world of spay/neuter and shelter medicine. The program excels in its surgical instruction and practice, with seven out of the program’s ten days involving some amount of surgery. Because of the fluctuating nature of our business, the exact curriculum moves according to patient/case availability. However, depending on each student’s ability, most students have historically performed between 15 and 30 surgeries in the two-week period.

Our Extern Training Program experience includes (but is not limited to):

SURGERY - including:

  • Anatomy review
  • Introduction & usage of high-volume surgical techniques (ligatures, ovarian pedicle ties, incision placement theories)
  • Review of individual student techniques, including efficiency of motion & body mechanics
  • Instrument review
  • Surgical preparation procedures
  • Identification & management of complications

EXAMINATIONS, ANESTHESIA, & PHARMACEUTICALS

  • Pre-surgical physical examination
  • Patient selection, including discussion of expected outcomes & higher risks
  • Patient anesthetic monitoring & recovery
  • Recheck examinations
  • Drug records/logs
  • Discussion of in-house anesthetic protocols, including pain management
  • Anesthesia machine maintenance

CLASSROOM LECTURES

  • Community cats
  • Surgical anomalies
  • Surgical complications

THE LOCAL SHELTER EXPERIENCE

  • Working visits at one or two local area shelters
Institutional and Educational Resources - staffing, equipment, etc.

4:1 Student:DVM instructor ratio

Purpose-built training facility for veterinary students

Free online surgical videos to study at: http://humanealliance.org/e-learning

Student Responsibilities - what is expected of students in terms of hours, days of the week, shadowing or actual support?

Our memorandum of understanding can be found here: http://humanealliance.org/downloads/Extern_MOU.pdf

Supervisor
Melissa Saxton, DVM (+ 14 others)
Contact email
Address

25 Heritage Drive
Asheville, NC 28806
United States

Animal Type
Practice or Institution Type
Is student housing available?
Yes
Hours of supervision by a licensed veterinarian per week
40
Global engagement opportunity
No
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