{"id":75178,"date":"2023-10-02T23:37:32","date_gmt":"2023-10-02T23:37:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/todaysveterinarybusiness.com\/?p=75178"},"modified":"2024-08-19T16:41:22","modified_gmt":"2024-08-19T20:41:22","slug":"brooke-weinstein-australia-1023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/navc.sitepreview.app\/todaysveterinarybusiness.com\/brooke-weinstein-australia-1023\/","title":{"rendered":"First Stop: Australia"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dr. Brooke Weinstein. Those three words echoed in the Oregon State University auditorium on June 18, 2023. After four long years, my daughter, Brooke, had attained her dream and, in full graduation regalia, marched across the stage in celebration. Her dad shed a tear or two. Our family now had two Dr. Weinsteins \u2014 one on the way up, the other lingering and influential in his own way.<\/p>\n

Brooke\u2019s future is bright. This fall, she started as a small animal associate veterinarian in Cairns, Queensland, Australia. Her four years of veterinary school went by in the blink of an eye, or at least it felt that way to me, the one who didn\u2019t go through the process.<\/p>\n

Approaching Graduation<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The final year at Oregon State is composed of clinical experiences, many of them chosen by the school and presented on campus using the teaching faculty, residents and interns. However, students can customize a portion of the year with electives to bolster their resumes and get hands-on familiarity with the work they hope to do after graduation.<\/p>\n

Somewhat uncertain about her future, Brooke wanted to learn more about different facets of veterinary medicine. She recognized that surgery at the school and practice levels aren\u2019t the same. For example, tertiary care at an academic clinical institution is an excellent way to learn what\u2019s available at the highest level. On the other hand, learning about dog and cat ovariohysterectomies and neuters off campus can be much more practical.<\/p>\n

To that end, Brooke spent two weeks with Portland Humane, where she performed around 50 basic hands-on procedures. That was about 49 more than I remember doing decades earlier. Soft tissue surgery is a daily aspect of veterinary life, so getting the experience is foundational to success.<\/p>\n

Externships and Testing<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Shelter and wildlife medicine were on Brooke\u2019s radar as she entered her final year in Corvallis, Oregon. She applied for a four-week externship with the San Diego Humane Society and accepted an offer to work with the organization\u2019s Project Wildlife, which cares for injured, orphaned and sick wild animals, many of whom are rehabilitated and released.<\/p>\n

Assisting with physical exams, wound care, anesthesia and treatment plans, Brooke was exposed to and cared for raptors, songbirds, corvids and owls. She also helped rehabilitate coyotes, skunks, bats and raccoons.<\/p>\n

At the end of the San Diego job came one of the scariest days for veterinary students worldwide: the North American Veterinary Licensing Examination. For weeks and months before the grueling seven-hour assessment, students review notes, take practice exams and work themselves to fevered anxiety.<\/p>\n

The NAVLE<\/a> consists of 360 clinically relevant multiple-choice questions. Brooke took the test the Monday after Thanksgiving and then encountered the really hard part. As Tom Petty sang famously, the waiting is the hardest part. However, on Jan. 18, 2023, Brooke learned that she had passed.<\/p>\n

The NAVLE celebration was short-lived because only a week later, Brooke flew from Los Angeles to Australia for six weeks of externships and investigating. First stop: Brisbane and the city\u2019s Animal Emergency Service, a fast-paced hospital staffed by emergency and critical care specialists.<\/p>\n

Working in the center of ER and ICU medicine, Brooke triaged patients and assisted in everything from shock and a suspected brain abscess to gastric dilatation-volvulus, heatstroke and cane toad toxicity.<\/p>\n

Between work, hikes and the farmers market, Brooke took full opportunity to sightsee. Among her stops were:<\/p>\n