Kansas State University veterinary medical student wins communication excellence scholarship from Bayer
Friday, May 13, 2016
Third-year student Michelle Chen, left, presents fourth-year student Jeni Nezerka with a Bayer Excellence in Communication Award at the College of Veterinary Medicine's recent annual honors banquet. | Download this photo
MANHATTAN — Jeni Nezerka, Kansas City, Missouri, a fourth-year student in Kansas State University's College of Veterinary Medicine, is the university's recipient of a Bayer Excellence in Communication Award.
Twenty-seven veterinary schools participated in the 2016 competition that presented a total of $70,000 in scholarship awards. The competition is sponsored by Bayer HealthCare LLC Animal Health.
"Effective client communication is a really important aspect of veterinary medicine," Nezerka said. "I am very honored to be recognized for my communication skills. I hope to keep working on developing good methods to effectively communication with clients throughout my career."
"We greatly appreciate the support that Bayer Animal Health gives our outstanding veterinary students,” said Ronnie Elmore, associate dean for academic programs, admissions and diversity programs in the College of Veterinary Medicine. "We are committed to not only helping our students gain veterinary knowledge, but also to help them to develop the skills required to effectively practice veterinary medicine. This includes effective communication skills. We are very proud of Jeni and her accomplishments."
Incorporating effective communication skills in veterinary practice, as well as other medical professions, has long been recognized as one of the main tasks in delivering comprehensive medical care to patients. The competition challenged students to submit a filmed interview in a clinical setting between the veterinary student and a client. Entries submitted at each school were evaluated by a panel of faculty judges. Faculty selected their school's local winner using a scorecard developed by nationally renowned veterinary faculty who specialize in communication. Each regional level winner received a $2,500 scholarship.
The Bayer Excellence in Communication Award is one facet of a larger initiative aimed at advancing the communication skills of the next generation of veterinarians. In 2002, Bayer partnered with the Institute for Healthcare Communication to establish the Bayer Communication Project. This collaborative partnership resulted in communication skills training modules offered to colleges of veterinary medicine for incorporation into their curriculum.
A full list of recipients and the national winner is available at http://prn.to/1TQzSmt.
