CAHF Fellow: Dr. Connie Stevenson

CAHF Research Fellow Dr. Connie Stevenson. Photo: Myrna MacDonald.

With three generations of veterinarians in her family tree, Dr. Connie Stevenson’s career selection was a natural. “My great-grandfather and my grandfather and my uncles were veterinarians. It’s something that I grew up with, and it’s always been in the family.”

Her Bachelor of Science degree in biochemistry from Simon Fraser University was also a major motivator and piqued her interest in clinical pathology during her undergraduate veterinary degree at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine.

After graduating from WCVM in 1996, Stevenson spent eight years in a small animal practice in B.C. before deciding to return to WCVM in 2004 to pursue a Master of Veterinary Science degree in clinical pathology. During the past two years, Stevenson has been involved in the investigations of canine blood lactate levels and the usefulness of a hand-held device for measuring the levels — research that has led to two scientific papers based on the study’s results.

Her keenness earned Stevenson the distinction of being one of this year’s two CAHF Fellows — a title that Dr. Marion Jackson believes her graduate student earned through hard work. “Dr. Stevenson is a fine representative for the Fund, having dedicated her professional life to helping companion animals — initially through clinical practice and now by becoming skilled, clinical pathologist and by completing a very practical, applied research project.”

Now in the third and final year of her graduate program, Stevenson will gain additional experience in diagnostic clinical pathology and surgical pathology in the teaching hospital. She’ll also be preparing for the American College of Veterinary Pathologists’ board examinations — a significant achievement and an important credential for a diagnostic clinical pathologist.

For more information about Dr. Connie Stevenson and her research studies, please check out the stories in the Fall 2006 issue of Vet Topics.