Veterinary students perform surgeries, medical exams for shelter

COLUMBUS – When Larry Hill graduated from the College of Veterinary Medicine in 1994, he had performed only one or two spay surgeries. Since then, Hill has helped create a program as part of the college’s curriculum that gives fourth-year veterinary students extensive hands-on experience at Franklin County Dog Shelter, where they spay and neuter dogs as well as perform other types of surgeries.

Hill, who directs the surgical part of the program, said it is helping prepare the students for their futures as veterinarians. “Most of the students’ surgical experience is the spay and neuter, which covers the basic principles required in most surgeries,” he said. However, the students also help perform other procedures, including hip and knee surgeries, eye surgeries, mass removals and dental procedures.

“The first few months after I graduated were quite overwhelming as I tried to provide the kind of clinical care that I wanted to provide in my practice,” Hill said. “By performing these elective surgical procedures at the shelter, our students have the confidence that they can do these procedures safely and efficiently when they start practice.”

During the surgical portion of the program, each student averages 12-15 procedures a week at the Franklin County Dog Shelter and an additional two to three feline surgeries at the Capital Area Humane Society. There are plans to add another surgery station at the dog shelter, Hill said.

This year, the College of Veterinary Medicine expanded the program – now called the Ohio State University Shelter Medicine and Surgery Rotation – to allow the students to spend an additional week providing medical care to the dogs. They evaluate each dog’s physical and behavioral health and provide medical treatment and routine preventative care, making the dogs more adoptable.

The director of the medical portion of the program, Jeanette O’Quin, says the program was expanded to give students hands-on experience handling day-to-day veterinary responsibilities. “The students are getting a lot of experience that they will need in an average veterinary practice,” said O’Quin. “They get to see high-end technology at the university, where most of the cases are more specialized. This program exposes them to many of the more common health problems seen in private practice.

“We are the first university in the nation to have a program this extensive,” she said. Each student evaluates from 40-60 health and sick or injured dogs per week at the shelter.

Daniel Smeak, professor of veterinary clinical sciences who oversees the program, developed it approximately seven years ago. He said the students really hone their skills during the week rotation.

“In most practices, spay and neuter surgeries are the most common procedure performed. After the week is over, the students really gain confidence in their skills and improve them,” he said. “The program is more about improving the students’ skills than simply about learning. The more you do something, the better you get.”

He also said it is essential for veterinary students to learn about animal welfare issues and to understand how shelters work.

“While they are gaining surgical experience, they are also getting exposed to shelter life,” Smeak said. “I think the students now have a better understanding of what shelters do and how they can help. Since the shelter program was developed, more students have chosen working in a shelter as their career. It also shows them the value of serving the community.”

According to Lisa Wahoff, director of the Franklin County Dog Shelter, veterinary students perform approximately 48 percent of the shelter’s 2,800 spay or neuter surgeries a year. The shelter began spaying and neutering all dogs approximately three years ago.

Wahoff said the collaboration with Ohio State is mutually beneficial.

“I think that the students really pay attention to the dogs in terms of assessing them and getting a good feel for their temperament,” she said. “I also think it is really important for students to understand the types of dogs at the shelter and why they are there. Hopefully, they will be able to promote the benefits of shelters to the community.”