Veterinary Boilermakers Take Part in Purdue One Health Alumni Reunion

Dr. Kei Hui, Purdue’s First Lady, greets Purdue first-year veterinary student Nicholas Vedo, who is with classmate Jordan Kintigh and Dean Bret Marsh at the Purdue Memorial Union North Ballroom.

Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine faculty, staff and students turned out for Purdue University’s first One Health Alumni Reunion, which was held on the West Lafayette campus November 14-16. They joined more than 150 Boilermakers from a variety of medical professions who came together to network and participate in timely discussions with Purdue President Mung Chiang, First Lady Kei Hui and fellow alumni.

Dr. Sanjeev Narayanan and Dr. Kenitra Hendrix, who teamed-up to give a presentation on Antimicrobial Resistance at Purdue’s first One Health Alumni Reunion on November 15, are joined by Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Kathy Salisbury and Dean Bret Marsh at Stewart Center.

One Health Alumni Reunion attendees with Purdue Veterinary Medicine ties included Dr. Gordon Coppoc, Purdue professor emeritus of veterinary pharmacology, and his wife, Harriet, along with Department of Basic Medical Sciences faculty members Mindy Anderson and Dianne Little.

The event was designed for Boilermakers who serve in the medical profession in roles that support human, animal, plant, and environmental health. The activities began with a Welcome Reception Thursday night, November 14 at the Dauch Alumni Center and then continued Friday at the Purdue Memorial Union ballrooms and Stewart Center with a variety of talks and networking sessions. Among the presenters were two PVM faculty members and administrators who addressed the topic of antimicrobial resistance. Dr. Sanjeev Narayanan, head of the Department of Comparative Pathobiology and interim associate dean for research, and Dr. Kenitra Hendrix, director of the Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory and clinical associate professor of veterinary diagnostic microbiology, teamed up to give a talk entitled, “Antimicrobial Resistance in the Human-Animal Interface—Rise and Spread of Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria.”

During a special lunch session Friday in the PMU North Ballroom, attendees were treated to a Fireside Chat that featured Purdue President Mung Chiang talking with Elanco Animal Health President and CEO Jeff Simmons. Purdue Veterinary Medicine students were invited to join in a special student networking session later that afternoon to meet and learn from alumni, staff and faculty leaders.

The One Health Alumni Reunion followed the launch last spring of the Purdue Alumni Medical Network as a new affinity network of alumni and friends working in the field of health care, including veterinary medicine. The network was established with the leadership of Dr. Hui, a practicing physician and physician advisor with extensive experience in the health care field, who brings enthusiasm for both medical expertise and alumni engagement to her role at Purdue.

Professor of Large Animal Internal Medicine Laurent Couëtil and Assistant Professor for the Human Animal Bond Leanne Nieforth helped represent the College of Veterinary Medicine at the One Health Alumni Reunion networking sessions November 15.

Writer(s): Kevin Doerr | pvmnews@purdue.edu

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