SACS Clerkships in the Professional Curriculum

  • VEM 5741 Core Small Animal Medicine Clerkship – 4 credits. Clinical experience in medicine of canine and feline species. History taking, physical examination and management of hospital patients and out patients. Course Coordinator – Dr. A. Specht
  • VEM 5743 Core Outpatient Medicine and Dentistry Clerkship – 2 credits. Clinical skills, basic knowledge and client communication skills are designed to teach students while providing routine veterinary care to clientele. Encompassing not only preventive medicine wellness but also comprehensive care for minor illness and injuries. Course Coordinator – Dr. F. Griffin
  • VEM 5745 Core Small Animal Surgery Clerkship – 4 credits. Clinical experience in surgery of canine and feline species. History taking, physical examination and pre- and post-operative management of hospital patients and out patients. Course Coordinator – Dr. M. Johnson
  • VEM 5783 Core Radiology Clerkship – 2 credits. Clinical experience in exposure, development and reading of x-ray films. Clinical material, hospital patients and out patients are utilized for teaching the fundamentals of radiographic diagnosis. Course Coordinator – Dr. A. Gallastegui
  • VEM 5841 Advanced Small Animal Medicine Clerkship – 2 credits. Clinical experience in medicine of canine and feline species. History taking, physical examination and management of hospital patients and out patients. Course Coordinator – Dr. A. Specht
  • VEM 5843 Advanced Outpatient Medicine and Dentistry Clerkship – 2 credits. Clinical skills, basic knowledge and client communication skills are designed to teach students while providing routine veterinary care to clientele. Encompassing not only preventive medicine wellness but also comprehensive care for minor illness and injuries. Course Coordinator – Dr. F. Griffin
  • VEM 5845 Advanced Small Animal Surgery Clerkship – 2 credits. Clinical experience in surgery of canine and feline species. History taking, physical examination and pre- and post-operative management of hospital patients and out patients. Course Coordinator – Dr. M. Johnson
  • VEM 5846 Small Animal Practice Based Clerkship – 2 credits. The purpose of this course is to provide students with in-clinic primary care experience treating small animals (dogs, cats, and small exotics if treated by the practice), emphasizing physical examination, diagnosis, treatment, routine surgery and practice management. Course Coordinator – Dr. W. Mandese
  • VEM 5847 Veterinary Emergency Critical Care Clinical Clerkship – 2 credits. The purpose of this course is to introduce the students to the emergency cases received on the triage service and to the critical care cases in our small animal ICU. The caseload will dictate the actual diseases that are seen clinically and therefore case based teaching will focus on emergency procedures, emergency treatment of the triage cases and also on the ICU case load. Each student will get critical ICU cases assigned and is expected to follow these cases through their rotation. Course Coordinator – Dr. A. Odunayo
  • VEM 5848 Veterinary Emergency Critical Care Clinical Clerkship, Ocala, FL – 2 credits. The purpose of this course is to introduce the students to the emergency cases received on the triage service and to the critical care cases. The caseload will dictate the actual diseases that are seen clinically and therefore case based teaching will focus on emergency procedures, emergency treatment of the triage cases and also on the ICU case load. Course Coordinator – Dr. A. Inman
  • VEM 5862 Veterinary Cardiology Clerkship – 2 credits. Students will focus on history taking, physical examination, differential diagnosis, clinical diagnosis and treatment of cardiac diseases of dogs, cats and occasionally large animals and exotic species. Course Coordinator – Dr.  Michael Aherne
  • VEM 5863 Shelter Practice Clerkship – 2 credits. Students in this clerkship will play a direct role in the life-saving care of shelter animals. At the same time, they will learn to balance the needs of individual animals with the overall health of the population. They will participate in all aspects of shelter medicine, using their skills in preventive medicine, diagnostic procedures, behavior modification, medical treatment, dentistry, and surgery to prevent disease in healthy pets and to rehabilitate animals with compromised health and behavior. Students will also contribute to cruelty case examinations, recordkeeping, nutrition, housing, and biosecurity as opportunities arise. On a population level, they will participate in rounds, shelter data analysis, zoonotic and species-specific infectious disease control, animal welfare assessment, facilities management, and public health and safety. Students will practice their communication skills with culturally diverse colleagues, shelter staff, volunteers, animal rescue agencies, and the public through face-to-face interactions, accurate use of shelter software, and preparation of written shelter protocols. Course Coordinator – Dr. S. Guerios
  • VEM 5864 Shelter Animal Sterilization and Population Management Clerkship – 2 credits. Students will have hands-on training in the population and individual animal health and welfare practices within a large-sized municipal animal shelter in South Florida. Students will learn about protecting the health and welfare of dogs and cats and be able to recognize and respond to compromised physical and behavioral welfare conditions; understand animal shelter operations and flow through; and develop proficiency in basic diagnostic evaluation procedures and creating shelter appropriate treatment plans. Course Coordinator – Dr. J. Sosnicki 
  • VEM 5869 Dermatology Clerkship – 2 credits. Recognize, define and treat common skin diseases. Course Coordinator – Dr. D. Santoro
  • VEM 5872C Medical & Radiation Oncology Clerkship – 2 credits, 2-week rotation. This rotation is designed to introduce junior and senior students to clinical oncology. Students will focus on obtaining a relevant history, performing detailed physical examinations, discussing differential diagnoses and developing diagnostic and therapeutic plans for their patients. Course Coordinator – Dr. P. Vilar Saavedra
  • VEM 5874C Veterinary Surgical Oncology Clerkship – 2credits, 2-week rotation. This rotation is designed to introduce junior and senior students to surgical oncology. Students will focus on taking a relevant history, performing detailed physical examination, discussing differential diagnoses and workup for their patients as well as treatment of cancer in dogs and cats (occasionally large animals and exotic species). The understanding of surgical anatomy and post-operative patient care is very important in this rotation.  Course Coordinator – Dr. J. Bertran
  • VEM 5875 Advanced Neurology Clerkship – 2 credits. An extension of the core clerkship in neurology. Course Coordinator – Dr. G. Garcia
  • VEM 5877 Ophthalmology Clerkship – 2 credits. Clerkship in small and large animal clinical ophthalmology. Students participate in the diagnosis and treatment of patients presented to the ophthalmology service. Course Coordinator – Dr. C. Plummer
  • VEM 5880 ICU Critical Care Clerkship – 2 credits. The ICU Focused Critical Care Clerkship Rotation is a 2-week special elective clinical rotation aimed at reinforcing the concepts learned in the 2nd year ECC didactic course (VEM 5251) as well as introducing techniques and procedures needed to manage critical care inpatients. Course Coordinator – Dr. J. Wolf
  • VEM 5884 Elective Ultrasound Clerkship – 2 credits. An advanced clerkship in radiology focusing on abdominal ultrasounds of small animals. Course Coordinator – Dr. F. Vilaplana Grosso
  • VEM 5890 Consultations in Shelter Animal Medicine – 2 credits. During this 2-week elective clinical clerkship, students will participate side-by-side with shelter medicine faculty and expert consultants in a professional assessment visit to an animal shelter. Students will develop an understanding and appreciation for the challenges shelter leaders face while working to achieve lifesaving and welfare goals for shelter animals. Prior to visiting the shelter, students will compile and analyze information about the client shelter’s animal intake, care, facilities, and outcomes. Students will then participate in an on-site assessment of shelter operations, devising solutions for identified health and welfare concerns, and developing recommendations that improve the life-saving capacity of the shelter by encouraging best practices for animal physical and behavioral health and welfare. Students will practice communication and leadership skills by leading discussions with the consultation team on assigned assessment topics and by preparing written and in person recommendations for shelter staff. Course Coordinator – Dr. J. Levy
  • VEM 5891 Veterinary Community Outreach Clerkship – 2 credits. The main purpose of the elective externship is to give veterinary students the opportunity to work in an animal shelter environment and experience the problem of pet overpopulation first hand. Course Coordinator – Dr. L. Garcia

You can read more information about any of the courses in the Student Handbook.