For 30 years, Michigan State University International Studies and Programs have recognized and celebrated the achievements of MSU faculty, staff, students, and community members in international research, teaching, and engagement through annual international awards. While the 2020 International Awards Ceremony originally scheduled for March 31 has been postponed, the College of Veterinary Medicine would like to recognize one award recipient for her achievements.
Sarah Corner, DVM, PhD, DACVP, academic specialist at the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory in the College of Veterinary Medicine, is the 2020 winner of the Special Recognition Award for Promoting International Understanding. Within the Anatomic Pathology section of the MSU VDL, Dr. Corner’s interests include surgical, molecular, reproductive, and zoo and wildlife pathology. While she has a long history of clinical and research experience with primates and other zoo and wildlife species, that work has expanded to include international service by providing domestic animal and wildlife pathology support and training in developing countries over the last five years.
In 2015, Dr. Corner served as the project leader and pathology instructor for Uganda Regional Field Diagnostics Training Workshops organized by the Uganda-Rwanda-Democratic Republic of Congo (URD) Pathology Network, also supported by the American College of Veterinary Pathologists and Veterinarians Without Borders US. She designed and led three-day field necropsy and sample collection workshops at five regional diagnostic laboratories in rural Uganda to train livestock and wildlife veterinarians and animal health workers around Uganda’s cattle corridor. She continues to be a member of the URD Pathology Network and coordinates international telepathology rounds.
Dr. Corner is also one of four founding DACVP members of the Global Health Pathology Network, partnered with the CL Davis and SW Thompson DVM Foundation. She has served on the steering committee and as a member since its creation in 2015. The organization’s goal is to serve as a centralized resource and knowledge base to facilitate pathology engagement in Global Health.
“With the Global Health Pathology Network, we have been able to expand efforts in providing veterinary pathology training and capacity building to not only East Africa, but to developing countries worldwide,” says Corner.
Since 2016, Dr. Corner has also been a veterinary pathologist volunteer for Gorilla Doctors (Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project and UC Davis Wildlife Health Center), providing in-country and telepathology diagnostic pathology support. In March 2020, Dr. Corner returned to Rwanda for three weeks of in-country service. Read more about that experience in a post written by Dr. Corner on the CVM blog.
Corner explains, “In countries such as Rwanda, where there are currently no veterinary pathologists, we can fill those gaps using telepathology and by providing in-country pathology support, which is critical for monitoring the health of endangered mountain gorillas and training field veterinarians in postmortem examinations, sample collection, and tissue processing.”
“I have also learned so much from these experiences, seeing diseases that are uncommon in the United States, working with new species, and learning from the regional veterinarians,” Corner reflects. “I hope to continue international pathology outreach throughout my career.”
The College of Veterinary Medicine and the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory are grateful to have Dr. Corner as part of the team. “Dr. Corner has been actively engaged in training, long-distance learning and diagnostic support that have a positive impact on livestock and wildlife health, directly and indirectly then impacting human health in the areas she serves,” says Dr. Rachel Reams, MSU VDL director. “Dr. Corner is a skilled scientist and teacher, and is an emerging leader in global veterinary pathology.”