SAIN was developed and is run by University of Glasgow veterinary students who want to do more for the animals in need in their community. It is a collaborative effort spread between students in all stages of the program, to raise awareness and funds to help care for these animals coming into the University of Glasgow School of Veterinary Medicine. Working alongside the University's Small Animal Hospital and the Weipers Centre Equine Hospital, SAIN aims to help both small and large animal alike.
How SAIN Got Started...- By Rose Baker, primary founder of SAIN
The concept of SAIN was a collaborative effort between myself, my fellow final years, and the clinicians at the University of Glasgow. On several occasions early in my final year I found myself chatting with students or clinicians about cases they had recently been involved with where they felt that the patient hadn't received the most beneficial care they deserved due to financial constraints. These were stories made to pass the time over lunch or while we were conversing in the hospital, but each student and clinician that I spoke with always expressed the wish that there was something more that could have been done to help these patients and their loving owners. One night while waiting on an emergency patient to arrive at the Weipers Centre I was talking about these stories with the surgeons and students that were on-duty with me and the concept of a student fund was brought to light. I decided that it was a totally viable idea, and while it would initially start as a small project, it was a concept that had the ability to grow and mature into something great if given the right support. Meanwhile we would hope to make a difference in the life of one or two patients who might otherwise not have been able to receive care at the Vet School. Therefore, over my Christmas holiday I sat down with the heads of the Weipers Centre and the Small Animal Hospital, as well as the Head of the School and talked with them about ways we could make a student fund an asset to the patients of the University. I began to draft a proposal to present at the first GUVMA (Glasgow University Veterinary Medical Association) meeting of the year. Once finalised, I brought the proposal to the GUVMA committee and received unanimous approval to set up the fund. Afterwards I set out to establish a committee of students with representatives from every year, since students from each year would be help contribute to the fund. Once organised we set out to lay the foundation of SAIN (including the brainstorming of its name), and here it is today! It truly has been a collaborative effort and one that I've happily received the support of the our fellow students and the staff at the University and I hope the fund continues to grow and mature into a continual source of benefit to the many patients of the University of Glasgow's School of Veterinary Medicine! 
Rose is a recent graduate of the University of Glasgow. She was born in Virginia, but is currently living in North Carolina, where she works as an intern at NC State College of Veterinary Medicine. In her free time Rose loves to bake and read poetry. |
“...each student and clinician that I spoke with had always expressed the wish that there was something more that could have been done to help these patients and their loving owners.”
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