Students with be paired with a clinician on various specialty services based on their interests, and have the opportunity to observe the daily operations of a busy referral hospital including doctor rounds, appointments, advanced imaging and other diagnostics, management of complicated cases, and a variety of procedures and surgeries.
VRC is a comprehensive, specialty veterinary healthcare center located in Malvern, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia. We provide a wide range of speciality services as well as 24/7 emergency and critical care services to the greater Mid-Atlantic region, serving families and referring veterinarians across Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland.
We are committed to teaching and currently offer a surgical internship and residency, a well-established ER mentorship program, as well as hosting student externs throughout our specialty services.
We have 13 ER doctors that staff our 24/7 emergency service, as well as 2 critical care specialists. We have board certified and residency-trained specialists in anesthesia (1), cardiology (1), diagnostic imaging (1), dentistry and oral surgery (1), internal medicine (2), oncology (1), radiation oncology (1), neurology (1), ophthalmology (1), physical rehabilitation (1), and surgery (5).
We have separate treatment areas, cat ward, and ICU staffed with experienced technicians (including VTS-ECC and VTS-anesthesia) and assistants, as well as experienced client service representatives. We have a 1.5 tesla MRI, 128 slice CT, two Aplio i700 ultrasound machines, Samsung point-of-care ultrasound, fluoroscopy, two endoscopy towers, full Idexx in house bloodwork and EPOC blood gas analysis, mechanical ventilation and high-flow oxygen capabilities, and an in house blood-donor program.
Students are expected to arrive at 7:50am in preparation for 8am hospital-wide rounds, and are expected to stay until 5pm (or whenever their specialty service finishes for the day). Students are permitted to shadow the clinicians on their respective service, including observing client communication and appointments, observing and performing physical exams, participate in diagnostic interpretation and case discussions, and observe and/or scrub into surgeries/procedures. Students will be paired with a clinician for 100% of their time with us. Students are NOT permitted to perform procedures. A typical schedule is Monday through Friday, ~8-10 hour days depending on the speciality service. We can generally accommodate rotations ranging from 1 to 4 weeks duration.
Housing may sometimes be available on a case-by-case basis based on availability, but is not guaranteed. There is no cost to the student. The apartment includes three bedrooms (students should bring their own sheets), two and a half baths, and fully equipped kitchen. The space may be shared with other rotating students, ER mentees, or residents. The apartment complex does not allow pets.