Kim Conway
Unlike many of her classmates who grew up wanting to be a veterinarian, Dr. Kim Conway’s dream wasn’t realized until much later. Growing up in Orange County, California, Kim was heavily involved in her high school and church theater programs following her childhood aspiration of becoming an actress. She even enrolled at Cal State University, Fullerton (CSUF) as a Film major until she discovered an unexpected interest in infectious diseases and switched to double majoring in Health Science and Biology. During her final two years at CSUF, she engaged in research with Dr. Paul Stapp in the ecology department and says she attributes her academic success and interest in research to him. Their studies were on ground squirrels and botflies, focused more on research than clinical medicine, but it piqued her initial interest in epidemiology. She then applied to UC Davis with the intention of studying both epidemiology and veterinary medicine, and graduated with her DVM in 2018.
During the years of Kim’s DVM training, Kim took advantage of every opportunity to combine her interest epidemiology with her veterinary training, starting in 2015 when the USDA recruited for help to respond to the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza outbreak in Iowa. After seeing veterinarians doing exactly what she wanted to do with her career, she loved every minute of the 12 hours days, seven days a week response for two months. She felt this experience really kick-started her path towards veterinary epidemiology. After returning from Iowa, she became the UC Davis President of the Veterinary Public Health Club, completed a 2-week foreign animal disease training at the Center of Excellence for Emerging and Zoonotic Animal Diseases Epidemiology, and completed externships with the USDA, Center for Epidemiology and Animal Health, and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. She was also selected to participate in the USDA Smith-Kilborne program, CDC’s Veterinary Student Day, and the Emory University Epidemiology in Action course.
Although Kim initially intended to complete the MPVM program immediately after her DVM training, she opted to reinforce her clinical training after graduation through working in clinical practice for two years. She then returned to UC Davis in 2020 to complete her MPVM as planned, while continuing to work at vaccine clinics. Kim is grateful for the time she spent working in clinical practice, but was very happy to return to UC Davis to pursue her ultimate goal of working in veterinary epidemiology.
Kim did several important things during her MPVM: complete the program in one year, acquire skills in epidemiology and statistics, and complete an important research project examining risks and perceptions of pets that are owned by people who are unhoused. At the same time that she initiated her research project, she also helped start the new Davis PAW clinic for pets of the unhoused in Davis, CA. Kim had a unique MPVM experience as she was a member of the only cohort that was entirely virtual due to COVID. While she wishes she had the chance to meet more of her classmates and professors in person, she is very glad she had opportunity to design her own study, collect primary data, learn new laboratory techniques, and publish her findings.
After the MPVM, Kim completed an epidemiology fellowship at the California Department of Public Health where she spent one year at the Food and Drug branch studying a foodborne outbreaks, CBD in pet food, and dietary supplement adulteration. Upon completion of the fellowship, Kim accepted a job at the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) as an avian disease veterinarian and epidemiologist. Within the first few months of her employment at CDFA, she was deployed as a Planning Epidemiologist to respond to yet another Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza outbreak, drawing on all of the skills she has learned since her initial deployment as veterinary student in 2015. She says she is particularly grateful to Maurice Pitesky, who taught her everything she needed to know for her new job after taking his MPVM foodborne epidemiology class. Kim plans to take the ACVPM exam next year to become board certified in Preventative Veterinary Medicine.
Kim is a busy lady, but still finds some time to do things that enrich her life in addition to her career as a veterinary epidemiologist. During her free time, she indulges in the Sacramento craft beer scene and goes hiking with her fiancé Scott, loves her cat Jude, and is very close with her family. She also enjoys cooking, trying out new recipes, and has recently gotten into running. Kim is excited to see where her career takes her next!