WVC develops $8 million facility

LAS VEGAS—The world's largest veterinary conference is growing with 60,000 square feet of wet labs, office space and a testing site for the American Veterinary Medical Association's (AVMA) graduate equivalency exam.

Officials with Western Veterinary Conference (WVC) in Las Vegas say the addition will be housed roughly a mile away from the show's current home at Mandalay Bay and Convention Center.

Groundbreaking is expected next year and will likely make the facility available to 2006 WVC attendees who will be shuttled to and from the site, WVC Executive Director Dr. Steven Crane says.

"This is going to be really something to talk about," he says. "We've been doing 30 labs a show, and with this new facility, we could easily go to 60 or more. Probably our biggest challenge is that animals are difficult, if not unwelcome at hotel convention sites. Having them at this facility will protect our hotel premises against soiling, control barking, and we can easily house cattle and horses without protest. There will be no other place outside of veterinary colleges like it."

Facility offers CPE

The new facility also is the likely site for AVMA's Clinical Proficiency Examination (CPE), which is the fourth step of the Educational Commission for Foreign Veterinary Graduates (ECFVG). The test, a 3.5-day, hands-on clinical skills examination is administered by faculty of a college of veterinary medicine or other authorized institution and rates the clinical competency of graduates of non-accredited veterinary programs.

Crane says a backlog of CPE applicants has created a need for an additional testing space: "Few schools give the test right now. I know AVMA has been most interested in getting more sites to do this."

For rent

To offset costs, WVC officials plan to rent and/or lease the facility to human medical shows and private wet lab providers during off time.

"There seems to be a great need," Crane says. "We're marking this facility as specific, unique and world class."