Kind river is the Chinese translation of my name. My parents wanted me to be a river that flows to different parts of the world. I never thought about that until I graduated from Tufts [Cummings School] as a veterinarian. The world opened up beautifully after Tufts [Cummings School].
Dr. Olivia Chan, V03 Blazed a Career Path that Spans the Fields of Veterinary Medicine — and the World
Chan reflects on her work in clinical practice, public policy, pharmacology, research, and education, and her time at Cummings School
Dr. Olivia Chan’s first patient was her pet turtle. Though she was unable to cure him, the turtle sparked an interest in zoology that has endured since her childhood in Hong Kong and spread widely into various fields in human and veterinary medicine, where she has distinguished herself as a clinician, policy advisor, researcher, teacher, and pharmacologist.
Chan, V03 (she/her) emigrated to Canada for her undergraduate studies at the University of Toronto and describes her double major in toxicology and pharmacology as two sides of the same coin, “How do drugs cure you, and how do drugs turn against your body? How can that transfer to public health—if there’s an infection in animals, what would happen in humans?”
Those questions led her down a fascinating and highly rewarding educational and career path. After completing her undergraduate degree, Chan’s next move was to New York City to earn her Master of Public Health at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, focusing on health policy and management and epidemiology. She conducted research into drug use and public health education in the city. While originally planning on medical school after Columbia, she found herself more interested in digging deeper into epidemiology in the context of zoology and One Health and set her sights on veterinary school instead.
Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University brought together the realms of public health, community medicine, and conservation with a focus on global awareness for Chan.
“I went into Tufts [Cummings School] very excited and curious and came out equally, if not more excited and curious,” she says. “As an alum, I’m always grateful. I cannot speak more highly of Cummings School. Every veterinary school produces vets, but the way they do it is so intentional, organic, and flexible. I’m not saying it’s easy, it was both hard and rewarding. I was given trust by the school that I would be able to make it through the program. That gave me the confidence to handle the hard and complex with grace and perspective. Tufts [Cummings School] did it well.”
While the opportunities at Cummings School let her explore every avenue of interest, the people made just as strong an impression on Chan. Her cohort came from all walks of life and had varied interests in veterinary medicine, from equine medicine to small animal practice to theriogenology. She remains close to her Cummings School friends to this day.
“Tufts [Cummings School] grows such a wide diversity of people,” says Chan. “The infrastructure, the hardware of the campus, continues to become better and better, and the software—the people—the warmth of the people and professionalism of the faculty, hands down I have no regrets.”
Chan took on three externships while at Cummings School to explore various aspects of veterinary medicine. While working at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta during the first SARS outbreak in Hong Kong, her mentor asked her to translate instructional materials from English to Chinese for travelers. It was a key moment for Chan to put her Chinese language skills to use for the benefit of public health.
An externship at the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito, California, Chan had a completely different but equally broadening experience in ocean conservation, treating injured and sick seals, sea lions, sea turtles, stingrays, and other marine life. She stresses the significance of these varied experiences and that Cummings School provides both the connections and the time for students to participate in externships.
Through those Cummings School connections, Chan was also able to participate in an aquatic veterinary medicine program called AQUAVET at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, where she compared studies on the stress levels of shrimp and crawfish and techniques to investigate those parameters.
“Because Tufts [Cummings School]allowed this kind of diversity, I was able to go back to Hong Kong with all different experiences in clinical medicine that I very much treasure,” says Chan.
Tufts [Cummings School]grows such a wide diversity of people. The infrastructure, the hardware of the campus, continues to become better and better, and the software—the people—the warmth of the people and professionalism of the faculty, hands down I have no regrets.
Dr. Olivia Chan, V03
“This is why I wanted to study veterinary medicine at Tufts [Cummings School],” says Chan. “It was a mint moment when I was able to train Sri Lankan vets and physicians in public policy implementation and epidemiology. My Ph.D. was an extension of veterinary school, the clinic, and the public policy curiosity I’ve always had. The Ph.D. program allowed me that complexity, that international scope of how wide and how deep I can go—that was rooted from Tufts.”
During and after her Ph.D., Chan taught veterinary nurses in epidemiology and public policy and published research on antibiotic resistance and other topics, including how veterinary medicine could continue to be taught in Myanmar during the civil war.
Through all these endeavors, Chan continually gave back to her local community and internationally. She was a veterinary advisor on a board of associates in Hong Kong that provides guide dogs for the blind, advice for breeders, educational outreach to schools, and check-ups for animals in low resource areas. She also designed a program educating a local population in Cambodia on raising chicken and fish to ensure sustainable food security.
Chan further expanded her clinical repertoire attaining certification in traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture after seeing the effect these treatments had on a few of her patients when medical treatments were failing. She drew on this expertise in her next venture.
While in the Ph.D. program, Chan developed veterinary phytochemical formulas to treat chronic kidney disease, skin issues, and forms of cancer. In collaboration with her colleagues in the Ph.D. program and a pharmaceutical company, Chan extrapolated from an herbal formula for humans to develop veterinary herbal supplements, drawing on a mix of traditional Chinese medicine and veterinary medicine. The supplement has been on the market for several years now to treat kidney disease in pets. They later created formulas to treat skin diseases and cancer in animals.
In her latest chapter, Chan has returned to the states as a postdoctoral research scientist and veterinary resident at the Institute of Comparative Medicine at Columbia University, focusing on research and teaching the incoming generation of veterinary students.
“I am doing the post-doc fellowship and residency to make me a better teacher and researcher,” says Chan. “My D.V.M. at Tufts [Cummings School] and Ph.D. at Hong Kong University opened my mind to experiences in international projects and different species. That sits well with what I’m doing now, and it’s a good place to consolidate and expand what I knew before, mainly on the research and clinical sides.”
Chan recalls an anesthesiologist at Cummings School who trained her to document the respiratory rate of a patient every five minutes by stethoscope. “I remember the anesthesiologist drilled very clearly that this is the standard you have to hold up to. In small animal practice, I always do that as a surgeon and push that with vet techs. Don’t just go by the machine; check the heart rate by stethoscope. I see this at Columbia, too—the seriousness, professionalism, and authenticity of genuine good medicine and practices.”
In her off time, Chan writes and submits manuscripts of her research for publication and spends time with her husband and three sons. She comments on the busyness and fullness of her life, “When I was young and on call one Christmas morning, I was doing an ER ultrasound for a bloated dog with my six-month-old in a Baby Bjorn. I still remember that day. Happiness comes from being able to juggle a few things. As I grow older, I appreciate that complexity and enjoy the process.”
Two decades after graduating from Cummings School, she still feels the impact of her time there.
“I never have a day of boredom,” says Chan. “Cummings [School] has a place for everyone, and yet a little helicopter that sends people off to different places. As ‘a kind river,’ the name my mom and dad gave me, Cummings [School] has given me different perspectives and a strong framework. My next goal is to become a better teacher, researcher, and clinician, pass on my knowledge, and contribute to whatever field I am in.”