Emergency and Critical Care Internship

The Centre for Animal Referral and Emergency (CARE) is seeking applicants for their Emergency and Critical Care Internship program.

About CARE

CARE is a multidisciplinary veterinary specialist and emergency hospital in Collingwood, centrally located on the fringe of Melbourne's CBD.  It is a busy and progressive hospital with a large group of experienced staff including specialists in Internal Medicine and Surgery and an excellent, experienced team of Emergency veterinarians, nurses and support staff. 

CARE has a large range of current, high quality diagnostic equipment, including a new digital radiography suite, Phillips Infiniti and POC ultrasound machines, computed tomography, Surgivet multi-parameter monitors, Gettinge servo-u ventilators, Fisher and Paykel high flow nasal oxygen, a large number of oxygen cages, Radiometer blood gas machine, a complete Idexx in-house laboratory suite and endoscopy equipment.

The Emergency and Critical Care Department is a high-volume service that is genuinely focused on the provision of the best standard of care for every patient.  We see over 10,000 emergency and critical care cases per year, exposing interns to a wide range of presentations and illness severities. Our clients are genuinely interested in doing the best thing for their pets and allow us to do our job properly. We see a large number of critically unwell pets, treating large numbers of trauma, sepsis, heart failure and transfusion-requiring patients every year. The working environment at CARE is distinguished by a cooperative and supportive approach to case management, both within the department and with the other sections of the hospital.  We are invested and take pride in our contribution to the outcomes of patient treatment. 

About the Emergency and Critical Care Internship

This internship program is an exciting opportunity to immerse yourself in an intensely rewarding and fast paced discipline.  It is focused on the provision of clinical exposure, structured mentorship and continuing education to engender confidence, develop clinical competence and serve as an introduction to the academic aspects of emergency and critical care.  Beyond this, the role has the potential to provide further opportunities for career progression within the discipline. 

The program is a fixed term full-time 12-month position. The majority of the year would be spent within the Emergency Department, but there would also be short rotations through other specialist departments.  The internship incorporates a range of benefits, which are included to capitalise on learning opportunities and optimise the value of the program for the intern, including:

• Early active participation in the ECC environment without the immediate pressure of primary case responsibility and a progressive transition to case responsibility based on readiness, and with the support and guidance of assigned mentors.  Accordingly, all shifts will be rostered alongside another experienced ECC clinician – no sole charge is required at any time point during internship.
• Active involvement in daily ECC rounds and attendance at regular ECC tutorials
• Rotation through other departments of the hospital, specifically surgery and internal medicine, to further develop the intern's knowledge and skills in these areas. Additionally, there is access to, and considerable opportunity for, interaction with specialists in all departments on a daily basis.  Beyond the obvious benefits, this also often allows for the follow-up of cases beyond the direct involvement of the Emergency Department.
• Mentorship by senior ECC veterinarians – a majority of our permanent staff in the Emergency department have earnt MANZCVS (ECC) status.
• Regular scheduled intern-specific tutorials, case-based discussions and journal club throughout the year.
• Encouragement, support and provision for preparation for Membership examinations of the Australian and New Zealand College (if eligible) or other post-graduate training opportunities.
• Consistent exposure to a large, diverse caseload supports familiarity with common presentations and ensures early application of knowledge.
• Professional and social interaction with the intern group within the hospital
• Competitive remuneration including 5 weeks of annual leave and 1 week of study leave for conference or externship attendance.
• Access to Greencross employee benefits, including National Symposium, other internal CE opportunities, vet registration payment, a CE allowance and RECOVER certification.

About our successful internship applicants

The ideal applicant is:

• Eligible for registration with the Veterinary Practitioners Board of Victoria
• A recent or new graduate with a passion for ECC.
• Conscientious and hard-working, with excellent attention to detail
• Someone who shares our strong emphasis on the standard of patient care and optimizing treatment outcomes through thoughtful case management and discussion.
• Comfortable, genuine and effective in their written and verbal communication with clients, referring vets and other hospital staff.
• Engaged and interested to learn from those around them and open to constructive feedback.
• Interested and able to join, and work harmoniously within, a team environment.

How to apply

Please click the apply button here and include an updated CV and cover letter telling us why you would like to join CARE, if you would like to discuss this opportunity in more detail you can contact:

Sharleen Crooks on or [email protected]

Angela Goldman on or [email protected]