The Vet Blast Podcast presented by dvm360

Shadi J. Ireifej DVM DACVS graduated from the State University of New York at Binghamton where he received his Bachelor of Science degree in Biology (2001, Magna cum laude). He then attended Cornell University where he received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree (2006, DVM). 

After completing his studies at Cornell, Ireifej participated in an intense one-year small animal medicine and surgery rotating internship at Angel Animal Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts (2007), followed by 2 rigorous one-year small animal surgical internships at Long Island Veterinary Specialists (LIVS) in Plainview, New York (2009). 

Ireifej achieved his board certification in small animal surgery by completing a three-year small animal surgery residency at LIVS (2012), and subsequently became a Diplomat for the American College of Veterinary Surgeons (DACVS). After operating for almost 10 years at LIVS, Dr. Ireifej elected for warmer weather, and transplanted to Las Vegas, Nevada in 2016.
 
In Las Vegas, Ireifej became a staff surgeon at Las Vegas Veterinary Specialty Center (LVVSC). In 2017, he began flying across the United States, performing surgeries at a number of emergency and specialty hospitals in need of surgical assistance. This was followed by a Chief of Surgery position at United Veterinary Specialty and Emergency in Silicon Valley, California. Managing their 3 locations, Ireifej and his team successfully cared for dogs and cats in the Campbell, Mountain View, and San Jose areas.
 
In 2018, Ireifej joined TrueCare for Pets in the Los Angeles, California area as Chief of Specialty, where he was instrumental in morphing the after-hours and weekend emergency hospital to a successful 24-7 emergency and multi-specialty veterinary hospital. While the size of the hospital tripled, Ireifej instituted hospital-wide protocols, managed the surgery, internal medicine, and oncology departments, and became a leading force on social media platforms. 

In 2020, Ireifej changed gears in his already illustrious career, finding a novel and state-of-the-art means of reaching concerned pet owners and their ill pets worldwide, VetTriage. Dr. Ireifej currently serves as their Chief Medical Officer. He has been published in scientific and medical journals and enjoys lecturing to a variety of audiences. He is known for being a positive force and energetic force, both professionally and personally.

Jackie Dueñas, DVM is an associate veterinarian at the dynamic Sunset Animal Clinic in Miami, Florida. She attended Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine on the island of St. Kitts. She then returned to the Sunshine State to attend the University of Florida to complete her clinical studies. Following graduation, there was no doubt that Dueñas would return home to practice in Miami.

Her love for her work shows in everything she does. Dr. Dueñas was featured on the discovery+ series Pop My Pet, where she performed life saving surgeries to pets in need. She also likes to share her life as a veterinarian on her social media channels, garnishing her a large following and a platform to bridge the gap between veterinarians and pet parents. Dr. Dueñas is most passionate about her role as a mom and finding balance between motherhood and vet med. She and her husband are the proud parents of two little boys. 

Jess Trichel, DVM joined the Suveto team as Vice President of Ownership Opportunities. In this role she helps veterinary team members explore and navigate the variety of ownership opportunities the Suveto network has to offer as well as supporting them on their path to becoming owners.
Trichel has dedicated her career to discovering ways to combine her veterinary training with her passion for business education. She has spent the last 8 years at Live Oak Bank building educational programming to help students and industry professionals understand the realities of veterinary financing and ownership. Prior to that, she graduated from Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine and practiced equine medicine for a short period of time in the Pacific Northwest.
She is currently based out of Wilmington, NC, where she balances her time enjoying life with friends and family, eating good food, reading interesting books, and going on adventures with her Australian Shepherd, Charles, and horse, River.

Renee Schmid, DVM, DABT, DABVT, is the Manager, Veterinary Medicine and Professional Services, Pet Poison Helpline and Senior Veterinary Toxicologist for Pet Poison Helpline/SafetyCall International. She has been with the organization since 2013 during which time she has had the opportunity to lead the team of veterinarians that span across the country and contribute to the management of the daily operations of Pet Poison Helpline. Schmid graduated from Kansas State University with a BS degree in Agriculture/Animal Science as well as a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree.    
While at Pet Poison Helpline, Schmid has managed over 25,000 cases involving animal poisoning and has presented on leadership and various toxins at both regional and national conferences.  Dr. Schmid has published scientific book chapters on the topics of thyroid supplements, diuretic drug intoxication, xylitol intoxication, general poisoning therapy, strychnine toxicosis, Compound 1080 toxicosis, anticoagulant rodenticide poisoning, cholecalciferol rodenticide poisoning, toxicities from human drugs—cardiovascular and poisonous plants: house plants and ornamentals. Schmid has also published peer-reviewed scientific articles on xylitol and mirabegron poisoning in dogs, as well as anesthesia induction in cats (Schmid et al. Acute Hepatic Failure in a Dog after Xylitol Ingestion and Schmid et al. Mirabegron Toxicosis in Dogs: A Retrospective Study, both in Journal of Medical Toxicology.  Schmid et al. Comparison of anesthetic induction in cats by use of isoflurane in an anesthetic chamber with a conventional vapor or liquid injection technique, JAVMA). 

Charles E. Short, DVM, PhD, DACVA, DECVAA established the programs in veterinary anesthesiology at the University of Missouri and then at Cornell University during his 64 year career as a veterinarian. He received his DVM from Auburn University in 1958. Dr. Short is an international speaker and meeting organizer on anesthesia and pain management and has provided over 700 invited lectures. In addition, he completed over 350 publications including coeditor of the textbook, "Animal Pain". He, with 6 colleagues, founded the ACVAA as a specialty in veterinary anesthesia and analgesia. He was a cofounder of the IVAPM. His passion included sharing his expertise with others.

Jennifer Johnson, VMD, CVPP has been a small animal veterinarian for 28 years, working as an associate, then owning and operating a busy 6-doctor practice in the Philadelphia suburbs. Pain management education is her passion, and Dr. Johnson has spent the last 15 years teaching colleagues about multimodal pain management options.  Her special interest is the use of photobiomodulation (laser therapy) and pulsed electromagnetic field therapy as non-pharma approaches to pain management.  In 2012, she achieved Certified Veterinary Pain Practitioner (CVPP) qualification through the International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management (IVAPM).  Now relocated to Arizona and a full-time educator, Dr. Johnson speaks nationally on pain management and digital thermal imaging, stressing the importance of pain identification in general practice.  She has published numerous articles and blogs, most recently authoring the chapter on pain management for Laser Therapy in Veterinary Medicine (Wiley 2017).  Dr. Johnson is the Immediate Past-President of the IVAPM. She consults for multiple veterinary medical advisory boards and is also a board member of eagleYcondor, providing children’s education and veterinary care to rural communities in Ecuador.

This episode is sponsored by Nationwide

Ryane E. Englar, DVM, DABVP, graduated from Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine in 2008. She practiced as an associate veterinarian in companion animal practice before transitioning into academia. Previously she was a clinical instructor of the Community Practice Service at the Cornell University Hospital for Animals, an assistant professor as founding faculty at Midwestern University College of Veterinary Medicine, and an assistant professor at Kansas State University. In 2020, Englar joined the University of Arizona College of Veterinary Medicine as an associate professor. She leads the clinical and professional skills curriculum, which includes designing and refining the standardized client encounters for student training in clinical communication. Her active areas of research examine how clinical communication drives relationship-centered care. Englar is passionate about advancing education for generalists by thinking outside the box to develop new course materials for hands-on learners. She has published 4 textbooks as sole author in the content areas of companion animal medicine and clinical communication. Her students fuel her desire to create. They inspire her to develop the tools that they need to succeed in clinical practice. When  Englar is not teaching or advancing primary care, she trains in ballroom dancing and competes nationally with her instructor, Lowell E. Fox. 

June Long, DVM has been a high-quality, high-volume spay/neuter (HQHVSN) surgeon for more than 6 years. She graduated from Auburn University's College of Veterinary Medicine in 2014 and was formally trained at the ASPCA’s Spay/Neuter Alliance in 2016. She routinely performs approximately 30 to 40 surgeries a day and has completed approximately 30,000 sterilization surgeries during her career. Over the years, she has become very comfortable performing more difficult surgeries and has mentored many veterinarians and veterinary students. She enjoys sharing her knowledge with veterinary professionals and is the creator of the online course "The Six Minute Spay," a RACE approved, 100%-online course that uses extensive video content to teach HQHVSN techniques. Long has been married for 11 years and has 3 daughters, 1 son, and 3 spoiled senior dogs.  

April Bays, CVT, VTS (ECC) is a certified veterinary technician with more than 20 years of experience. She became a Veterinary Technician Specialist in Emergency and Critical Care in 2013 and a Veterinary Cannabis Counselor in 2021. She enjoys teaching emergency topics and the art of critical care and critical thinking. She created Elevative Veterinary Training Solutions in 2020 to share her passion for excellence and emphasize technician empowerment and utilization. When she’s not eliminating pain or writing proceedings, you can find her supporting the many local breweries, backpacking, and getting lost in the wilderness. Literally.

Paul Diaz is a US Marine Corps veteran with over 20 years of corporate recruiting experience in several industries. He has a deep understanding of what it takes to build and lead high performing teams capable of achieving incredible results. He formed Hire Power Consulting to help other companies realize their recruiting team's full potential.

Ivan Zak, DVM, MBA, is a veterinarian, entrepreneur, and a passionate advocate for the well-being of veterinary professionals. Twelve years as an ER vet inspired Ivan to create SmartFlow, a first in the industry workflow optimization system later acquired by IDEXX. In 2019, Zak founded Veterinary Integration Solutions, an executive consulting firm where he helped veterinary groups systemize acquisitions integration and improvement of practices with special attention to burnout prevention. Along the way, he obtained an MBA degree in International Healthcare Management with a thesis in implementation of Lean thinking to improve the employee experience, pursuing his goal to make a sizable impact on the veterinary profession. Zak took the lead in Galaxy Vets, a new veterinary healthcare system co-owned by its employees with burnout prevention as a strategic priority.