|||
|||||
Postdoctoral Residency in Laboratory Animal Medicine
Overview
 Post-doctoral fellows attending weekly pathology rounds |
The University of Washington Laboratory Animal Medicine Training Program is designed for graduate veterinarians and consists of three years of instruction and training. The program is designed to prepare Doctors of Veterinary Medicine for careers in laboratory animal medicine, and is a combination of clinical training and research. Trainees may complete advanced degrees, either Master of Science in Comparative Medicine and/or a Ph.D. (the lattter usually taking greater than three years to complete) in a variety of basic sciences. Additionally, resources are available to aid trainees in their pursuit of certification by the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine and/or American College of Veterinary Pathologists.
The primary goals of the program are to teach the knowledge, methodological skills, and scholarly work habits that will enable trainees to conduct research; confidently and competently work clinically with laboratory animals; and to advance knowledge in biology and medicine.
Clinical duties, pathology responsibilites and research completion are intermingled throughout the duration of the three year program. Rotations include the clinical medicine, pathology and IACUC units. The postdoctoral students also attend two weekly one-hour seminars that cover a variety of laboratory animal medicine, pathology and experimental research topics. During this initial year, the trainee will have many interactions with UW investigators, offering an opportunity to locate a research mentor in their area of interest for the second phase of their training.
The overall goal of remaining three years (Phase II) of the training program is to complete a biomedical research project. The trainee will learn methodological skills and scholarly work habits that will lead to a successful career in biomedical research. This is accomplished through the mentor relationship with an established scientist and full participation in a research project. Specific objectives include the instruction of trainees in the principles of experimental design, statistics, data collection, grant writing, the preparation of manuscripts, and the ethical principles of research, including animal experimentation and the humane care and use of laboratory animals. Opportunities for advanced degrees are available.
Courses cover laboratory animal biology, techniques and methods for use of animals, current uses of induced and naturally-occurring animal models, diseases and care of laboratory animals, and discussions of the ethical questions surrounding animal use.
