Veterinary Emergency Responder Special Studies Program

 

The International Animal Welfare Initiative also supports the education opportunities and trainings of the veterinary students enrolled in the Veterinary Emergency Response Special Studies Program for the student club Students Veterinary Emergency

 

The International Animal Welfare Initiative also supports the education opportunities and trainings of the veterinary students enrolled in the Veterinary Emergency Responder Special Studies Program for the student club Students Veterinary Emergency Response Team (sVERT) at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.  UC Davis sVERT members receive training from staff and faculty from the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine and affiliated members of International Animal Welfare Training Initiative.  They complete requirements and become Disaster Service Workers of California and are able to deploy to emergencies and disasters untder the UC Davis Veterinary Emergency Team. 

VERT has been primarily a training entity for disaster and emergency related veterinary response and preparedness. As part of the training and in response to societal needs VERT had been activated on a local basis for assistance in disasters, as well as animal emergencies when additional expertise is needed for technical rescue. 

Horse Day
UCD-VERT Community Outreach at the 2018 Horse Day

 

VERT is focused on training of veterinary professionals, students,  first responders such as fire service and  animal services personnel, and animal emergency response teams in all aspects of animal related disasters including evacuation training, animal sheltering, triage, medical evaluation and treatment of injuries related to fire, flood, and technical large animal rescue. VERT has helicopter equine rescue expertise and has created protocols for animal airlift.

VERT has also performed demonstrations and training to community members on disaster preparedness at community events including County Fairs, 4-H Outreach, UC Davis Horse Day, UC Davis Picnic Day and more.

Mock incident
VERT training of veterinary students (sVERT) with UC Davis Fire Department

 

Display of the HALTER Project at the 2020 Sonoma
HALTER Project display at The Youth Agriculture and Animal Science Field Day 2020 
VERT Display at Sonoma 2020
VERT was invited by the HALTER Project for the outreach activity at The Youth Agriculture and Animal Science Field Day 2020 
VERT Outreach at Sonoma Fair
VERT,  invited by the HALTER Project, trained community members how to rescue a down horse at Sonoma County Fair 2019

 

VERT has partnered with the HALTER Project - Leading Residents to Safety and Preparedness in outreach activities. These include training of first responders and to communities in disaster preparedness.

 

What is sVERT's Special Study Program (SSP)?

A Special Study Program is a sequence of course modules for veterinary students that focus on study of specific knowledge, skills, and toolkit about emergency action in veterinary medicine. These skills include emergency animal shelter, triage, rescue, collaboration with other organizations and agencies, animal transportation, emergency treatment, and more! Our goal is to train future veterinarians to have skill sets to aid and lead in emergency situations involving the care of animals. 

sVERT Special Study Program Outcomes

  • IS 100 and IS 200 (ICS) and IS 700 (NIMS) and IS 800  certificates from FEMA

  • Certificate of Completion in Veterinary Emergency Responder issued by the International Animal Welfare Training Initiative

  • Disaster Service Worker (DSW) registration with the UC Davis California Veterinary Emergency Team (CVET)

Courses Offered to Veterinary Students (See Course Outline Here) 

  • Specialized Study Program Level 1 

  • Specialized Study Program Level 2 (for students who have completed SSP Level 1)

After completing all the requirements for each Specialized Study Program, each student will receive a certificate.

The Disaster Service Worker credential allows students to deploy to emergencies and disasters under the  California Veterinary Emergency Team (CVET) at UC Davis.  This credential can be maintained after students graduate from veterinary school and wish to remain deployable volunteers with CVET.

*This course is constantly improving to provide the most up to date information and knowledge for our students; the contents of the course might be subjected to change.