The World Association for Veterinary Dermatology (WAVD) are delighted to announce that the recipient of the Peter Ihrke Scholarship for 2019 is Dr. Ivelina Vacheva from Bulgaria.
Dr. Vacheva graduated from Sofia Forestry University in Bulgaria in 2008 and has worked in general practice as a veterinarian in Central Veterinary Clinic, Sofia, Bulgaria since graduation. She is a highly motivated individual with a strong interest in veterinary dermatology.
She attended three European School of Advanced Veterinary Studies courses in Dermatology in Vienna in 2012, 2013 and 2014. She is a founding member of the Bulgarian Association of Veterinary Dermatology and a member of the European Society of Veterinary Dermatology (ESVD). She attended the World Congress of Veterinary Dermatology (WCVD) in Bordeaux in 2016; the ESVD Eastern European Conference in Riga, 2017 and in Sofia, 2018 and the ESVD- ECVD Congresses in Dubrovnik and Liverpool in 2018 and 2019 respectively. In 2017, she was the recipient of the Ulli Runge Harms (URH) Award.
Her supervisor for the URH Award, Dr. Lucia Panakova, Dipl.ECVD states “Ivelina is highly motivated to enhance her knowledge about veterinary dermatology and to improve her practical skills. She is a very friendly, communicative and open-minded person, following and reading scientific papers and actively participating in journal club. Ivelina speaks fluent English, and her written English is excellent. I have very high expectations of her future involvement in both the educational and practical leadership for veterinary dermatology in Bulgaria in the future.”
The WAVD Peter Ihrke Scholarship provides the opportunity for an individual from an under-privileged region to attend a two-to-four week externship at the veterinary dermatology service of the University of California, Davis Veterinary School. The scholarship is fully funded by the WAVD and contributes from 6000 to 8000 USD to fund a low cost, return economy airfare, modest accommodation and a meal allowance for two to four weeks and professional liability insurance. Dr. Veronica Pareja from Ecuador and Dr. Sabrina Costa from Brazil are past recipients of the 2017 and 2018 Peter Ihrke Scholarship. Both individuals report that the experience was life-changing.
The mission of WAVD is to make a sustainable contribution to the expansion of knowledge and skills in veterinary dermatology in geographic regions where access to such education is challenging. WAVD Scholarship recipients must demonstrate how they will utilise the knowledge they have gained to assist the organisation in fulfilling this aim.
Dr. Vacheva has some worthy plans to use the knowledge gained from the scholarship to assist in training veterinary technicians and veterinarians when she returns to Bulgaria. WAVD are proud to support her efforts and believe she is a most a worthy recipient of the Peter Ihrke Scholarship. WAVD would also like to thank Dr. Stephen White and Dr. Catherine Outerbridge for graciously hosting the recipients of this excellent scholarship that encourages us all to reflect on the importance of Peter’s contribution to our discipline.
Due to COVID-19, Dr. Vacheva was unable to complete her month at UC Davis, thus her visit has been changed to October, 2023.
Mandy Burrows
December 2019
Chair Scholarship Committee
