Bayer Awards Students at 27 Veterinary Schools $70,000 in Scholarship Funding

University of Missouri student named 2014 National Winner of the Bayer Excellence in Communication Award

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May 15, 2014, 08:06 ET

SHAWNEE, Kan., May 15, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Bayer HealthCare LLC Animal Health today announced that Katherine Nadolny, a senior at the University of Missouri's College of Veterinary Medicine, is the national winner of the second annual Bayer Excellence in Communication Award (BECA). 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 clients.^[1] BECA, established to recognize effective communication in the veterinary profession, rewards veterinary students who are executing this critical core skill that needs to be taught and learned to the same degree as other clinical skills.^[2] Twenty-seven veterinary schools participated in the 2014 competition that presented a total of $70,000 in scholarship awards.

National winner and University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine senior, Katherine Nadolny, receives the second annual Bayer Excellence in Communication Award (BECA). Left to right: Dr. Neil C. Olson, Dean, College of Veterinary Medicine; Katherine Nadolny, BECA National Winner; Dr. Ronald Cott, Associate Dean for Student & Alumni Affairs; Dr. Adrienne Willette, Veterinary Technical Services, Bayer (PRNewsFoto/Bayer HealthCare Animal Health)

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.

Sixteen schools submitted the video of their school-level winner to compete for the additional $2,500 national scholarship award. In her submission, Nadolny, recipient of the national scholarship, outscored the competition with strong core communication skills, including effective use of open-ended questions, empathy and reflective listening in a clinical setting.

"The University of Missouri would like to thank Bayer, located within the Animal Health Corridor, for supporting this vital communication skill-building program, which is helping veterinary schools shape future veterinarians," said Dr. Neil C. Olson, dean, University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine. "We are ecstatic that one of our own Mizzou Tigers, Katherine Nadolny, has received this coveted award and scholarship. She is an exemplary student whose future in veterinary medicine looks bright."

"It is especially gratifying to witness the enthusiasm shown by veterinary students who competed in the 2014 Bayer Excellence in Communication Award," said Ian Spinks, president and general manager, Bayer HealthCare Animal Health, North America. "We commend Katherine and the 26 other school-level winners. Their grasp of the importance of communication in the veterinary clinical setting is inspiring and increasingly critical to the future of the veterinary industry."

"The Bayer Excellence in Communication Award fits in seamlessly with the University of Missouri's curriculum, which emphasizes the importance of effective communication in a clinical setting," said Nadolny. "This experience has reinforced my commitment to build upon my communication skills as I look to graduation and entry into the veterinary profession. I want to thank everyone at Bayer for their continued support of the veterinarian community and I encourage all students to practice open communications with their clients."

A long-standing commitment to strengthening veterinary communication
The Bayer Excellence in Communication Award (BECA) is one facet of a larger initiative aimed at advancing the communication skills of the next generation of veterinarians. In 2002, Bayer HealthCare Animal Health 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. Selected faculty from all U.S. veterinary colleges has been trained via the Bayer Communication Project "Train the Trainer" program.

The University of Missouri will receive complimentary tuition for one faculty member to attend an upcoming Bayer Communication Project "Train the Trainer" course developed and taught by the Institute for Healthcare Communication.

The winning veterinary students from the other schools in the 2014 Bayer Excellence in Communication Award program are:

Magdalene Stewart, Auburn University
Ayshea M. Quintana, University of California-Davis
Jenny Ross, Colorado State University
Elizabeth Ann Glucksman, Cornell University
Andrew Torchia, University of Florida
Kristin Scarlett Timmons, University of Georgia
Erica Morton, University of Illinois
Stephanie Turner, Iowa State University
Arthur Charles, Kansas State University
Jacque Stahl, Louisiana State University
Allison Peterson, Michigan State University
Jessica Carmack, University of Minnesota
Hillary May, Mississippi State University
Cassandra Horvath, Ohio State University
Jill Weber, Oklahoma State University
Jamie Senthirajah, Oregon State University
Tiffany Premo, Purdue University
Elliot Williams, Ross University
Kelsey Quinn, University of Tennessee
Odeliah Bouganim, Texas A&M University
Kim-Khanh Tran, Tufts University
Emily Coates, Tuskegee University
John Gil, Virginia Tech
Kyle Heaton, Washington State University
Megan Williams, Western University
Seth Oberschlake, University of Wisconsin

About Bayer HealthCare
The Bayer Group is a global enterprise with core competencies in the fields of health care, agriculture and high-tech materials. Bayer HealthCare, a subgroup of Bayer AG with annual sales of EUR 18.9 billion (2013), is one of the world's leading, innovative companies in the healthcare and medical products industry and is based in Leverkusen, Germany. The company combines the global activities of the Animal Health, Consumer Care, Medical Care and Pharmaceuticals divisions. Bayer HealthCare's aim is to discover, develop, manufacture and market products that will improve human and animal health worldwide. Bayer HealthCare has a global workforce of 56,000 employees (Dec. 31, 2013) and is represented in more than 100 countries. More information at www.healthcare.bayer.com

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Forward-Looking Statements
This release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Bayer Group or subgroup management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Bayer's public reports which are available on the Bayer website at www.bayer.com. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.

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^[1] Bonvicini, K. A., & Keller, V. K. (2006). Academic Faculty Development: The Art and Practice of Effective Communication in Veterinary Medicine. Journal of Veterinary Medical Education, 33(1), 50-57.

^[2] Adam, C. L., & Kurtz, S. M. (2006). Building on Existing Models from Human Medical Education to Develop a Communication Curriculum in Veterinary Medicine. Journal of Veterinary Medical Education, 33(1), 28-37.

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SOURCE Bayer HealthCare LLC Animal Health