This position is posted on the Veterinary Internship & Residency Matching Program at: http://www.virmp.org.  Position is not posted every year.

The Residency in Cardiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia provides the individual with a broad-based education and clinical training in the specialty of veterinary cardiology. General training is in internal medicine, with the major training emphasis in cardiovascular diseases of small and large animals. Important programmatic outcomes include: 1) clinical expertise in the diagnosis and management of spontaneous cardiovascular diseases of animals; 2) an ability to perform and interpret both noninvasive and invasive diagnostic studies; 3) an understanding of the pathophysiologic and pharmacologic basis of cardiovascular disease and treatment; 4) better understanding of clinical and laboratory investigation of cardiovascular disease; 5) contributions to the literature through co-authorship of one or more scientific papers; 6) ACVIM certification in Cardiology; 7) Master of Science degree. These goals are met by combining an outstanding clinical trainee with a carefully structured three-year clinical program and graduate studies. Clinical training in cardiology is supervised by a board-certified cardiologist. The resident spends approximately 75% of their time participating in the clinical programs of the VHC. This experience includes cardiology primary care and consultation, clinical teaching of senior veterinary students, sharing after-hours on-call with other cardiology residents, and limited urgent care responsibilities for backup of interns on emergency duty. There is also an opportunity to rotate in the section of small animal internal medicine. The resident will participate in departmental seminars, giving a total of 3 seminars over the course of the residency. Sufficient time is permitted to plan and complete a research project. Successful completion of the Master’s program and publication of a research project are required for completion of the residency.

General education in cardiovascular physiology, pharmacology, and clinical science are attained through self-study, review of relevant literature, use of the Veterinary and Medical School libraries, and participation in regularly-scheduled classes, seminars, and journal clubs (scheduled in the A.M., prior to clinical duties). These courses and seminars are clinically-relevant activities (including courses in cardiovascular medicine, respiratory pathophysiology, clinical oncology, clinical endocrinology, clinical neurology, clinical pharmacology, data analyses, and various journal clubs and clinicopathologic conference). Structured resident classes and seminars are designed to prepare the resident for high-level practice and board certification examinations, but are also listed as graduate courses, making it feasible for the resident to enroll for academic credit as a part of the Master of Science degree. At the onset of the program, the resident and advisor prepare a long-term plan of study. Experiences are planned to provide the resident for competency in clinical medicine, physical diagnosis, echocardiography, electrodiagnostics, cardiac catheterization, angiocardiography, cardiac pacing, and interventional procedures. There are extensive materials available for study of cardiovascular pathology. Faculty directly involved in support of the program include a board-certified cardiologist as well as faculty members with specialties in internal medicine, neurology, oncology, ophthalmology, radiology and diagnostic imaging, nuclear medicine, surgery, anesthesiology, emergency and critical care medicine, community practice, and theriogenology. The overall campus environment of collaboration in the general area of cardiovascular sciences is very strong, and the support for cardiovascular research is excellent. The trainee should have ample opportunity and support to participate in one or more supervised clinically-relevant, research projects during the program.

Hospital laboratory facilities and equipment are excellent, with a full service hospital, clinical laboratory, radiology, surgical suites, endoscopy suite, and intensive care unit. The current VHC opened in 1993. Facilities especially relevant to the cardiology program include examination rooms, cardiac examination room, automated electrocardiography, digital heart sound recorder/simulator, telemetry ECG for exercise studies, Holter monitoring systems, event monitor, clinical echocardiography laboratory with two dedicated echocardiographic machines (GE and Toshiba) with transesophageal, tissue Doppler, speckle tracking, and 3D capabilities, digital fluoroscopy, full cardiac catheterization/angiocardiography suite with physiologic recording equipment, 64 slice CT, and 3.0 Tesla cardiac gated MRI on-site.  A full-time clinical cardiology technician, a cardiology assistant, and veterinary referral coordinator are in place to support our clinical and research missions.

The resident and faculty advisors meet regularly for informal discussion and feedback, and once each year for a structured performance evaluation and resident feedback. Frequent dialogue is critical to ensure the success of the resident and the cardiology program. While not a specific part of the residency, upon completion of the program, further study in the form of a doctoral program or research fellowship may be made available within the CVM and Graduate School. There are excellent facilities and well-funded faculty to support such studies.

Candidate requirements: Applicants must be graduates of an approved College or School of veterinary medicine (with academic standing in the top 25% of the class), have completed a one-year rotating internship or equivalent, and be eligible to obtain a standard veterinary license in the State of Missouri within 6 months of arrival. Interest in patient care and teaching veterinary students is an important requirement for the position. The candidate should have good interpersonal skills and be capable of working cooperatively with faculty, students, house officers, and hospital/departmental staff. Professional comportment and appearance are expected. References are required and a personal interview and tour of the facilities is strongly recommended prior to application.

Further information can be obtained by contacting:

Veterinary Medicine and Surgery 
Department Chairman’s Office
E-mail: mucvmvmsadmin@missouri.edu