Your new BSAVA President

25 April 2016

Professor Susan Dawson graduated from Glasgow and following several years in practice, studied for a PhD in feline virology at the University of Liverpool. She gained her PhD in 1992 and since then has remained at Liverpool. She has worked in the area of infectious disease for over 20 years and her current interests are on zoonotic infections and public health.

Susan has been involved with BSAVA since she graduated and served on the Education committee before
joining the officer team as Junior Vice President. She said her first involvement sparked an inspiring journey; “The other vets at my first job took me to a BSAVA regional course one evening soon after I started – it was part of the induction into the practice and seen as a really important thing to do,&” she said. “Then I attended Congress and BSAVA events became an important part of my networking and support mechanisms.&”

She is relishing the challenge of being President and paid tribute to her predecessors and the wider BSAVA community for their hard work and enthusiasm; “I have some very hard acts to follow who have done a fantastic job for the BSAVA. As we look toward the start of BSAVA’s 60th anniversary celebrations, it is a good time to look back and see how the BSAVA has developed over the years into what it is today. Many remain members all their working lives and one of my ambitions is to ensure we create an environment where members want to be part of BSAVA because it contributes positively and meaningfully to their professional lives.

“In my ‘day job’ working with students, I see a great future for the profession in the hands of these enthusiastic and confident young people. I have been lucky with some fantastic mentors and role models throughout my own career and I intend to focus on developing this concept – our current members and volunteers are the role models for future vets, and the BSAVA is the perfect setting for developing those role models.&”

Congress also signals new structures in some BSAVA committees. The new BSAVA Board of Officers pictured left to right are; Ian Ramsey (Honorary Secretary), John Chitty (Vice President), Susan Dawson (President), Tricia Colville (Senior Vice President), Philip Lhermette (Junior Vice President) and Sheldon Middleton (Honorary Treasurer).

Visit our ‘who’s who’ section here to find out more about each officer and all view all committee lists.