Veterinary Technician Conference
March 28-29, 2008
Conference Speakers
Carol Akers, DVM. Dr. Akers graduated from Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine. She is now a first-year dental resident at the University of Illinois Veterinary Teaching Hospital.
Leiah Carney, CVT. Leiah graduated from Parkland College with her AAS in veterinary technology in 2001 and joined the ICU staff of the Veterinary Teaching Hospital. She is now taking on the exciting tasks of the weekend ER technician, where she enjoys the intensity of the emergency situations and new cases.
Deneen Cordell, CVT. After graduating from Parkland College, Deneen worked in small animal practices prior to joining the College of Veterinary Medicine. As the clinical coordinator for the anesthesia and pain management section at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital. She works with third- and fourth-year veterinary and veterinary technician students teaching the applications of anesthesia and pain management.
Misty Finn, CVT. Misty graduated from Parkland College in 2004 as a certified veterinary technician, which is also when she joined the University of Illinois Veterinary Teaching Hospital. She is now employed in the dentistry section of the hospital.
Alyssa Galligan, CVT. Alyssa attended Parkland College and received her AAS degree in veterinary technology. Since then she has been working at the University of Illinois. For the first three years she rotated throughout small animal internal medicine and has spent the last 13 years in the emergency and critical care area. She is now the head technician for this section and the clinical coordinator for ICU.
Susan Hartman, RRT. Sue is a registered radiologic technologist, registered in CT and certified in MRI. She graduated from Decatur Memorial Hospital School of Radiologic Technology and has worked in several hospital and clinical settings. She spent the last 18 years at Carle Clinic in Urbana, Ill., and joined the University of Illinois Veterinary Teaching Hospital in 2006.
Kimberly Knap, CVT, CCRP. Kim is the rehabilitation specialist at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital. She received a bachelor’s degree in animal sciences from the University of Illinois, and graduated from Parkland College’s veterinary technician program. She was among the first group to gain the Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practitioners designation. Kim is a nationally-recognized expert in rehabilitation, and helps instruct an elective course and rotation for veterinary and veterinary technician students.
Debra [Sam] McCall, CVT. Sam is an imaging technologist at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital and is the radiology clinical coordinator. She graudated from the Parkland College veterinary technology program and has earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education. She has worked at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital for more than 25 years and during that time has taught second-year veterinary technician and fourth-year veterinary students radiographic positioning of small and large animals.
Maureen McMichael, DVM, DACECC. Dr. McMichael received her DVM from Cornell University, completed an internship in private practice, a residency at Tufts Veterinary School, and is board certified in emergency and critical care medicine. Before joining the College of Veterinary Medicine in the fall of 2007 she started the emergency and critical care service at Texas A&M. That program grew to include a veterinary student rotation and a night and weekend intake service provided in collaboration with local veterinary practices. At the College of Veterinary Medicine she teaches small animal emergency and critical care.
Caroline Moller, CVT. Caroline graduated from the Parkland College veterinary technology program in 2002 and has been working in the imaging department at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital as an animal imaging technologist since that time. She helps teach fourth-year veterinary students and veterinary technician students about radiology and nuclear medicine.
Jessica Risley, CVT. Jessica is a 2002 graduate of the Parkland College veterinary technician program. She has been employed as an anesthesia technician at the University of Illinois since May 2002. She works with fourth-year veterinary students, teaching basic anesthesia and pain management.
Jennifer Rose, CVT. Jenny is a graduate of the Parkland College veterinary technician program. She has been an oncology technician at the Cancer Care Clinic at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital since 1997. Along with clinical duties, she works with fourth-year veterinary students and veterinary technician students, teaching the approach to oncology procedures and cheotherapy administration.
Beth Saupe, CVT. Beth graduated from the Parkland College veterinary technician program in 1989 and worked in private practice for a short time prior to joining the Veterinary Teaching Hospital in 1991. Before joining the radiology section, she worked in the hospital’s small animal surgical section and in the equine cardiology/respiratory research unit. She now specializes in nuclear medicine and teaches third- and fourth-year veterinary students the diagnostic uses of nuclear medicine and overall horse handling skills.
Melinda Smith, CVT. Melinda graduated from Parkland College in 1996 with a degree in veterinary technology and has been with the Veterinary Teaching Hospital since that time. She specializes in the hospital’s imaging department, working with all species and utilizing the latest imaging technology.
Jacqueline Wypij, DVM, GC-C. Dr. Wypij is a 2002 graduate of Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine. She completed an internship in small animal medicine and surgery at Kansas State University and spent a year in private practice as an emergency veterinarian in the Pacific Northwest. Dr. Wypij completed additional training in grief counseling and is a certified grief counselor. She is currently a medical oncology resident with the Cancer Care Clinic at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital.