Annual meeting report – 2011

The AASV held its 42nd annual meeting in Phoenix, Arizona, March 5-8, 2011. The meeting, held at the Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort, drew 930 total attendees, including 525 paid registrants and 130 veterinary students. The participants represented 22 countries. Attendees were offered the opportunity to visit a record 73 technical tables.

The theme of this year’s meeting was “Evidence-based practice: How do we get there?” The participants were presented with numerous educational sessions, including nine preconference seminars, two general sessions, three concurrent sessions, research topics, Industrial Partners sessions, Student Seminar, and poster sessions. The conference consisted of 24 hours of educational sessions, 15 student presentations, and 54 poster presentations.

Dr Locke Karriker presented the Howard Dunne Memorial Lecture entitled “Evidence-based practices: Myths and applications.” His lecture defined the importance of utilizing well-designed scientific studies to aid decision making and offered insights into how practitioners can use evidence-based medicine on a daily basis.

The 2011 Alex Hogg Lecture was presented by Dr Joe Connor. His lecture was entitled “Science-based medicine: What are the application barriers?” and Dr Connor was challenged with describing how he uses science in daily practice and how he balances experiential knowledge and science-based studies.

In addition, 14 AASV committees met on Saturday morning and the Board of Directors convened at the close of the meeting on Tuesday afternoon.

Swine Practitioner of the Year award

Dr John E. Baker was named 2011 Swine Practitioner of the Year. The award is given to the swine practitioner who has demonstrated an unusual degree of proficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of veterinary service to clients.

Dr Baker is the owner and founder of Warrick Veterinary Clinic in Boonville, Indiana. He is a 1981 graduate of the Purdue University School of Veterinary Medicine and initially practiced in Poseyville, Indiana. In 1984 he moved to Boonville to open a mixed-animal practice currently employing three additional veterinarians.

Dr Baker completed the Executive Veterinary Program in Swine Health Management at the University of Illinois in 1995.

“Receiving this award from my colleagues,” said Dr Baker, “is truly an honor. Working with pigs, swine producers, and practitioners has been a very satisfying and rewarding career. The friendships I have made make this the best job in the world.”

Dr Baker has been an active member of the AASV since 1981, and currently serves on the Board of Directors representing District 4 (Indiana and Michigan). He has served on numerous committees, including the Human Health and Safety Committee and the Operation Mainstreet Committee.

Dr Baker’s involvement in the veterinary profession is extensive and includes serving as the Swine Representative to the Indiana Board of Animal Health, where he is currently chairman of the board. He also belongs to the Indiana Veterinary Medical Association, the American Veterinary Medical Association, the Indiana Swine Group, and the Southwestern Indiana Veterinary Medical Association.

Dr Baker is committed to providing the best possible health care to his clients’ animals. He produces a monthly electronic newsletter for his swine clients and conducts swine-producer educational meetings. He and his wife, Andrea, currently reside at the family farm where he grew up. Their son, Jordan, obtained his DVM (2010) from Purdue University and is currently practicing with Dr Baker. Likewise, their daughter Natalie is in her first year of veterinary school at Purdue and is planning to work in the family business as well.

Dr John E. Baker, recipient of the Swine Practitioner of the Year Award

Howard Dunne Memorial Award

Dr Amy Vincent received the 2011 Howard Dunne Memorial Award that recognizes an AASV member who has made important contributions and provided outstanding service to the association and the swine industry.

Dr Vincent is a Research Veterinary Medical Officer at the USDA-ARS National Animal Disease Center in Ames, Iowa. Her research was instrumental in furthering the understanding of the 2009 Pandemic H1N1 influenza outbreak and its potential impact on the swine industry. Dr Vincent is the author of numerous scientific papers on a variety of swine diseases.

Dr Vincent has been a member of the AASV since 2000, and currently serves on the AASV Influenza Working Group. She has received numerous honors since joining USDA-ARS in 2004, including the USDA-ARS Special Administrator’s Award, the USDA Secretary’s Award, and the USDA-ARS Midwest Area Early Career Scientist Award.

Dr Vincent attended Iowa State University (ISU) where she received her master’s degree (1997) and DVM (2002, with honors). She went on to complete a PhD (2004) in immunobiology, also at ISU.

Dr Amy Vincent, recipient of the Howard Dunne Memorial Award

Meritorious Service Award

Dr Warren D. Wilson was named the 2011 recipient of the Meritorious Service Award that recognizes individuals who have provided outstanding service to the AASV.

Since 1975, Dr Wilson has been an active member of the AASV. Dr Wilson has been an ardent supporter of the AASV Foundation and has been integral in its leadership and fundraising efforts. He has been a member of the Foundation board for the past 6 years and served as its chairman for the past 3 years. The Foundation supports research grants, veterinary student scholarships, externships, student travel stipends, and the Heritage Award.

Dr Wilson received his DVM degree (1969) from the University of Minnesota and MS degree (1999) from Iowa State University. He is also a graduate of the Executive Veterinary Program (1995) from the University of Illinois and is a Diplomate of the American College of Theriogenologists. He also received his certification in Swine Health Management with the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners in 2001.

Dr Wilson was an associate veterinarian in practices in Minnesota and Wisconsin before founding the River Valley Veterinary Clinic in Plain, Wisconsin, in 1972, where he practiced until 1994. Following practice, Dr Wilson joined Bayer Animal Health in 1994 and is currently a Senior Swine Technical Service Veterinarian with Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health.

He and his wife share six children and fourteen grandchildren. They currently reside in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin.

Dr Daryl Olsen (right) presented Dr Warren Wilson with the Meritorious Service Award

Young Swine Veterinarian of the Year

The Young Swine Veterinarian of the Year Award was presented to Dr Marlin Hoogland. It is given annually to an AASV member 5 or fewer years post graduation who has demonstrated the ideals of exemplary service and proficiency early in his or her career.

“I am very honored and humbled to receive this award,” remarked Dr Hoogland. “God has richly blessed me with a wonderful and fulfilling career in swine veterinary medicine.”

Dr Hoogland is a graduate of Iowa State University, where he received both his DVM and a master’s degree in Veterinary Microbiology and Preventive Medicine in 2005. He is currently a practitioner with Murphy-Brown’s Western Operations headquartered in Algona, Iowa. He is an integral part of a production management team responsible for producing 3 million market hogs per year. Dr Hoogland also serves as a member of the company’s in-house research team, where he is accountable to provide production and technical input into research project design, analyses, and implementation planning. Dr Hoogland is a 2009 graduate of the University of Illinois’ Executive Veterinary Program.

Dr Hoogland presented at the 2008 AASV meeting in San Diego on “Managing high mortality” and again in the 2010 AASV meeting in Omaha on “Managing respiratory disease in nursery and wean-to-finish.” He currently serves on the AASV’s Advanced Techniques Conference Committee.

Dr Hoogland resides in Iowa with his wife, Valerie, and their four daughters: Katlyn, Erica, Olivia, and Elizabeth.

Dr Marlin Hoogland, recipient of the Young Swine Veterinarian of the Year Award

Technical Services/Allied Industry Veterinarian of the Year

Dr Dale Polson received the 2011 Technical Services/Allied Industry Veterinarian of the Year Award. Established in 2008, the award recognizes swine-industry veterinarians who have demonstrated an unusual degree of proficiency and effectiveness in delivery of veterinary service to their companies and their clients, as well as given tirelessly in service to the AASV and the swine industry.

Dr Polson is the Senior Veterinarian, Technical Resources for Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc (BIVI). In his position, Dr Polson is committed to improving the productivity and profitability of swine farms and production systems. Over the last 20 years, he has published and presented extensively on porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) detection, measurement, and management methods. He has directed the implementation of several large farm- and system-level PRRS control and elimination projects.

Dr Polson was instrumental in the development and subsequent gifting of the PRRS Risk Assessment Tool/Production Animal Disease Risk Assessment Program to AASV. This tool has become a fundamental utility to understand internal and external PRRS virus risks inherent to farms, flows, and systems as swine veterinarians and their clients design PRRS control programs. In addition, Dr Polson has published many articles and is a frequent speaker at veterinary and producer meetings. He has served on a number of AASV and industry committees.

Dr Polson joined the technical team at BIVI in 1997, when BIVI acquired NOBL Laboratories where he had worked since 1993. Dr Polson received his DVM (1982) from Iowa State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine. He also completed a master’s program at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1988 and earned a PhD from the University of Minnesota in 1997.

Dr Polson married his wife Kathy in 1987. They have four children: Jessica, Ethan, Emily, and Julia, and currently reside in Ankeny, Iowa.

Dr Dale Polson, recipient of the Technical Services/Allied Industry Veterinarian of the Year Award

Student Seminar and scholarships

During the annual meeting, the American Association of Swine Veterinarians Foundation awarded scholarships totaling $25,000 to 15 veterinary students.

Alexander Primus received the $5000 scholarship for top student presentation. Alexander is a second-year veterinary student at the University of Minnesota. His presentation was titled “Identification of a new potentially virulent Brachyspira species affecting swine.” Alpharma Animal Health provided the financial support for the Best Student Presenter award.

Recipient of the $5000 scholarship for Best Student Presenter during AASV’s Student Seminar: Alexander Primus, University of Minnesota. Pictured with Alexander is Dr Rodger Schneck of Alpharma Animal Health, sponsor of the Student Seminar and Best Student Presenter Award.

Additional scholarships totaling $20,000 were provided by Eli Lilly and Company Foundation on behalf of Elanco Animal Health.

Four veterinary student presenters received $2500 scholarships: Deanne Day, Iowa State University; Peter Schneider, Iowa State University; Kimberly Schultz, Iowa State University; and Andrew Stas, University of Pennsylvania.

Dr Kevin Eggers (right) on behalf of Elanco Animal Health presented scholarships provided by Eli Lilly and Company Foundation. Recipients of the $2500 AASV Foundation scholarships were (from left) Andrew Stas, University of Pennsylvania; Peter Schneider, Iowa State University; Kimberly Schultz, Iowa State University; Deanne Day, Iowa State University.

Five veterinary student presenters received $1500 scholarships: Jordan Graham, Iowa State University; Kristy Kenney, North Carolina State University; Jessica McKinney, University of Illinois; John Prickett, Iowa State University; and Paul Thomas, Iowa State University.

Dr Kevin Eggers (right), on behalf of Elanco Animal Health, presented scholarships provided by Eli Lilly and Company Foundation. Recipients of the $1500 AASV Foundation scholarships were (from left) John Prickett, Iowa State University; Paul Thomas, Iowa State University; Jordan Graham, Iowa State University. Not pictured: Kristy Kenney, North Carolina State University and Jessica McKinney, University of Illinois.

Student presenters receiving $500 scholarships were Jeremy Johnson, Iowa State University; Anna Massie, University of Illinois; Marlena McCarty, The Ohio State University; Allison Meiszberg, Iowa State University; and Britni Miller, University of Illinois.

Dr Kevin Eggers (center), on behalf of Elanco Animal Health, presented scholarships provided by Eli Lilly and Company Foundation. Recipients of the $500 AASV Foundation scholarships were (from left) Jeremy Johnson, Iowa State University and Allison Meiszberg, Iowa State University. Not pictured: Anna Massie, University of Illinois; Marlena McCarty, The Ohio State University; Britni Miller, University of Illinois.

Veterinary students representing 12 universities submitted 50 abstracts for consideration. From those submissions, 15 students were selected to make oral presentations during the annual meeting. Alpharma Animal Health, sponsor of the Student Seminar, provided a $750 travel stipend to each student selected to participate.

Judges representing private practice, academia, and industry selected the recipients on the basis of communications skills in the writing of the abstract and the presentation of the case report, and on applicability of the research to swine medicine.

Student Poster Competition

The American Association of Swine Veterinarians provided an opportunity for 15 veterinary students to compete for awards in the Veterinary Student Poster Competition. Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc sponsored the competition, offering awards totaling $4000.

On the basis of scores received in the original judging of abstracts submitted for the AASV Student Seminar, the top 15 abstracts not selected for oral presentation at the annual meeting were eligible to compete in the poster competition.

Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc announced the following awards during the AASV Luncheon on March 7:

$500 award: Evan Van Beusekom, University of Minnesota – Top student poster entitled “Euthanasia by electrocution in 5-kg to 15-kg nursery pigs.”

Recipient of the $500 award for best student poster: Evan Van Beusekom, University of Minnesota (left). Pictured with Evan is Dr Reid Philips of Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc, sponsor of the Veterinary Student Poster Competition.

$400 awards: Hannah Lowe, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine and Andrea Pitkin, University of Minnesota.

Recipients of the $400 Veterinary Student Poster Competition awards were (from left) Hannah Lowe, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine and Andrea Pitkin, University of Minnesota. Dr Reid Philips (right) presented the awards on behalf of Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc.

$300 awards: Jessica Abbott, Iowa State University; Amber Hazel, University of Minnesota; and Chase Stahl, Iowa State University.

Recipients of the $300 Veterinary Student Poster Competition awards were (left to right) Chase Stahl, Iowa State University and Jessica Abbott, Iowa State University. Not pictured: Amber Hazel, University of Minnesota. Dr Reid Philips (right) presented the awards on behalf of Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc.

$200 awards: Kyle Alberti, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine; Natalie Baker, Purdue University; Joshua Duff, North Carolina State University; Mihály Kertész, University of Budapest (Hungary); Gilbert Patterson, University of Pennsylvania; Abigail Redalen, University of Minnesota; Michael Slattery, Iowa State University; Sarah Taylor, University of Guelph; and Lisa Thompson, North Carolina State University.

Recipients of the $200 Veterinary Student Poster Competition awards were (left to right) Michael Slattery, Iowa State University; Mihály Kertész, University of Budapest; Abigail Redalen, University of Minnesota; Sarah Taylor, University of Guelph; Lisa Thompson, North Carolina State University. Not pictured: Kyle Alberti, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine; Natalie Baker, Purdue University; Joshua Duff, North Carolina State University; and Gilbert Patterson, University of Pennsylvania. Dr Reid Philips (right) presented the awards on behalf of Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc.

In addition to the poster competition awards, each student poster participant received a $250 travel stipend from Alpharma Animal Health and AASV.

Annual Business Breakfast

Dr Paul Ruen reported on the association’s membership and activities. He stated that there are 1711 members, including 355 student members. Dr Ruen thanked outgoing directors Drs Nate Winkelman (District 9) and Ernest Sanford (District 11), and Daren Miller, student delegate to the board, for their service. He congratulated re-elected board members Drs Matthew Turner (District 2) and Doug Groth (District 5), incoming directors Drs Scott Dee (District 9) and George Charbonneau (District 11), and alternate student delegate Shamus Brown.

New officers

Dr Randy Jones, Kinston, North Carolina, was installed as the president of the AASV during the Business Breakfast on March 8. He succeeds Dr Paul Ruen, Fairmont, Minnesota, who is now immediate past president. Dr Tara Donovan, Richland Center, Wisconsin, has ascended to president-elect. The newly elected vice president is Dr Matt Anderson, Algona, Iowa.

Save the dates

The 2012 annual meeting is scheduled for March 10-13, 2012, in Denver, Colorado.

Photo courtesy statement

All photos courtesy of Tina Smith.