Small animal clinics have always been the subject of discussion for clinical students. Those leaving the clinics to others always seem elated while those just about to work their rounds seem grumpy.
VNO looks into challenges faced by students in the small animal clinics and interviews one of the senior lecturers and consultants at the clinic in a bid to understand students' challenges.
While some of the students interviewed by VNO are of the opinion that they enjoyed the small animal clinics and had no challenges at all, others are of the opinion that the evening classes did not help matters, considering the fact that students would have been in school all day, attending the clinic during the appropriate clinic hours on the timetable, and still wait around in the evening for another ward round for some extra 2 hours which hinders students' receptivity.
Many students are also of the opinion that some stay off-campus, and going home at night is very risky.
Maryam, a DVM V student, said 'The challenge is just the evening time. 5-6pm should be enough instead of 5-7.'
Precious, a 500l student, in addition, opined that Doctors at the clinic are not exposing students to what it is they are administering to patients which ultimately causes students to learn little or nothing at the end of the day.
Small Animal Doctor's Response:
VNO reached out to the consultant and senior lecturer, Dr. Adejumobi, at the clinic on the complaints of the students.
In response, Dr. Adejumobi O. responded that the evening clinic cannot be changed; he stressed that it is there to assist students to _learn more._ 'It is an avenue to learn more about cases students are exposed to during the normal clinic hours,' he said.
Dr. Adejumobi also added that there are some clinical cases that seldom come up, which students might not be exposed to until they graduate. Evening clinic time is the best time to discuss those topics and get exposed to a lot of diseases, diagnosis, and treatment.
For Saturday and Sunday ward rounds, Doctor also commented that it was an opportunity to not only expose students to many more cases but also to imbibe in them the spirit of being a doctor, teaching them that there is no such thing as a Saturday or Sunday for a doctor. A doctor had to always be on board.
When asked about little to no instructions being given to students, he responded that little can be discussed in the presence of patients so as to prevent a pause in clinic work and patient load during the course of explanation.
Doctor Adejumo concluded that students should endure, he stated that there is much to learn within a very short period of time. 'You will soon graduate; it's what you know that you will practice. Learn more, stay more, and improve your skills,' he concluded.
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