The Mid-Atlantic Equine Medical Center provides exceptional equine healthcare, and remains at the forefront of equine veterinary medicine with state-of-the-art equipment and specialists in the fields of sports medicine, surgery, internal medicine, neonatal intensive care, cardiology, ophthalmology, reproduction and ambulatory medicine.
We strive to give externs the opportunity to observe and assist with all facets of our hospital and make every effort to include you in the care of our patients. Externs will be asked to assist in numerous procedures (e.g. placing catheters, giving medications, observe outpatient appointments, scrub into elective and emergency surgeries, etc). If there are several vet students here, you are encouraged to rotate through services (surgery, medicine, emergency/overnight, and farm calls) to limit the number of people in any one area, and to allow externs equal opportunity to see the areas they are most interested in.
The typical day for an extern starts around 6:30am. During the day, you will be asked to help perform daily exams (including TPRs) and administering medications. Also, externs are asked to help assist the overnight intern and technicians (including midnight treatments).
Due to the varying degrees of experience of our externs, shadowing of the interns and/or technicians during treatments is required before undertaking any treatment responsibilities unsupervised. Your clinical experience will dictate the level of responsibility assigned. If you are unfamiliar or uncomfortable with performing certain treatments or handling horses, please let us know immediately.
Associate Veterinarians and special expertise available
- Rodney L. Belgrave D.V.M., M.S., Diplomate ACVIM (Internal Medicine)
- Patricia S. Doyle D.V.M., M.S., Diplomate ACVS (Surgery)
- Janik Gasiorowski V.M.D., Diplomate ACVS (Surgery)
- Mary Durando D.V.M., Ph.D., Diplomate ACVIM (Cardiology & Internal Medicine)
- Jesse Tyma D.V.M., Diplomate ACVS-LA (Surgery)
- Mary Lassaline D.V.M., PhD, Diplomate ACVO (Ophthalmology)
- Katy Sullivan D.V.M. (Ambulatory)
- Kyle Clark V.M.D. (Ambulatory)
Educational Resources
- Informal rounds are held Monday through Friday between 8 and 9:30 AM.
- Department rounds are held at changes of shifts each day.
- "Journal Club" held twice a month.
Students are expected to assist all doctors and technicians with the daily operations of our hospital. Externs are to make themselves available at all hours of the day or night as appointments and emergencies come into the facility and assistance is needed. More detailed description of responsibilities is listed above.
Housing
Yes, externs (4 max at a time) who wish to stay on-site can share a loft apartment. It has beds, linens provided, and a small kitchen area with microwave, fridge, tv and a phone. If you choose to stay in the on-site housing, you will be on-call to help with emergencies 24/7. This is especially important for externs seeking university credit or wanting to apply for an internship with us.
Please take note that because of limited availability, housing will not be available until your start date unless previously arranged with the externship coordinator. If you need to arrive before your start date, there are hotels in the area that will accommodate you at your own expense.
Dress Code
We ask that you wear professional, work appropriate attire during the week, especially when you will be interacting with clients. For example, khakis with a polo or nice shirt are professional and appropriate. Please be sure to wear shoes appropriate for working around horses! You may wear more casual (yet appropriate) clothing and footwear if you are helping with evening or weekend treatments.