Assessing Readiness for Clinical Practice: Students’ Perspectives of their Veterinary Curriculum

Authors

L. Chris Sanchez, University of Florida College of Veterinary MedicineFollow
Alison Kwiatkowski, Washington University Law SchoolFollow
Jeff Abbott, University of Florida College of Veterinary MedicineFollow
Dana N. Zimmel, University of Florida College of Veterinary MedicineFollow
Linda S. Behar-Horenstein, University of FloridaFollow

Abstract

Studies describing the effectiveness of a veterinary curriculum from the student perspective are currently sparse. The overall purpose of this investigation was to describe students’ perceived preparedness for clinical practice. Three focus group meetings with fourth year veterinary students were conducted. Data were open-coded and categorized to identify themes. Four main themes emerged: Challenging communications, Un/appreciating curricular experiences, Documenting demands impede case involvement, and Hungering for timely, effective feedback. Overall students felt comfortable talking to clients about medicine but less comfortable discussing euthanasia or money; they appreciated the split clinical curriculum but questioned the value of the 1st/2nd year courses; they felt that paperwork on clinical rotations negatively impacted patient involvement; expressed the need for well-defined expectations regarding grading/assessment and autonomy on clinical rotations. Despite the reported issues, students expressed satisfaction with the split curriculum and readiness to enter their chosen field of study.

Keywords

Clinical Education, Qualitative Research, Veterinary Medicine Students

Author Bio(s)

L. Chris Sanchez, DVM, PhD, DACVIM is Associate Professor, Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine, Box 100136, Gainesville, FL 32610. He may be contacted at sanchezl@ufl.edu.

Alison Kwiatkowski, MS, is Media Technology Coordinator, Jacob Burns Law Library George Washington University Law School, 716 20th Street NW, Washington, DC 20052. She may be contacted at akwiatkowski@law.gwu.edu.

Jeffrey R. Abbott, DVM, PhD, DACVP (Anatomic) is Associate Professor, Department of Infectious Disease and Pathology, University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine, Box 110880, Gainesville, FL 32610. He may be contacted at abbottj@ufl.edu.

Dana N. Zimmel, DVM, DACVIM, DABVP (Equine Practice) is Associate Dean for Clinical Services and Clinical Associate Professor Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine, Box 100136, Gainesville, FL 32610. She may be contacted at zimmeld@ufl.edu.

Linda S. Behar-Horenstein, PhD is Distinguished Teaching Scholar and Professor; Director, CTSI Educational Development & Evaluation; Co-Director, HRSA Faculty Development in Dentistry, Colleges of Dentistry and Education, Department of Community Dentistry and Behavioral Science, Box 100415, 1395 Center Drive D9-26, Gainesville, FL 32610. Correspondence regarding this article can also be addressed directly to: Lsbhoren@ufl.edu.

Publication Date

12-5-2016

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

DOI

10.46743/2160-3715/2016.2505

Recommended APA Citation

Sanchez, L. C., Kwiatkowski, A., Abbott, J., Zimmel, D. N., & Behar-Horenstein, L. S. (2016). Assessing Readiness for Clinical Practice: Students’ Perspectives of their Veterinary Curriculum. The Qualitative Report, 21(12), 2191-2208. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2016.2505