Internal Medicine
What is a veterinary internal medicine specialist?
ACVIM Diplomates are Board-certified veterinary specialists who have received advanced training in small animal internal medicine. To become Board-certified, Diplomates must have completed four years of veterinary college, a one-year internship or equivalent, and two to three years in a recognized residency program. There are additional training and caseload requirements that must be met during residency. In addition, candidates must pass a series of rigorous examinations to become an ACVIM Diplomate.
When should I see a veterinary specialist?
Ideally, this is a decision you will make with your primary care veterinarian. They are the doctor that knows your pet, its current problems, and know how veterinary specialists can help. The mutual respect and cooperation between referring veterinarians and specialists is key to the smooth and effective handling of your pet’s care. However, if your pet’s medical issues are not improving despite the best efforts by your primary care veterinarian, a specialist may be able to offer new treatment options.
What is the Triad of Care?
We encourage animal owners to think of their visit to a veterinary specialist as an extension of their family veterinarian. Together, the primary care veterinarian, Board-certified veterinary specialist and the animal owner communicate and work together.
What services does an internal medicine specialist provide?
- -Endocrinology
- - Immunology
- - Gastroenterology
- - Hematology
- - Infectious disease
- - Nephrology
- - Pulmonology
What does an internal medicine specialist do?
An internal medicine specialist works with patients to obtain appropriate diagnostics, treatments, and management of complex diseases of the patient’s internal organs. Most of the patients referred to an internal medicine team have multifaceted diseases, multiple concurrent illnesses, or require specialized diagnostics.
Find out more at: https://www.acvim.org/resources-for/animal-owners(2)
Information on this page obtained from ACVIM.org