In March 2024, the Pacific Egg and Poultry Association, which has served the egg and poultry industry for over 100 years in 11 US western states and Canada, awarded Professor Simone Stoute as its 2024 PEPA Scientist of the Year, an accolade that has been bestowed on scientists in the poultry field for the past several decades.

A graduate of the UWI St Augustine School of Veterinary Medicine, Stoute is a professor of Clinical Diagnostic Veterinary Medicine, and is the Branch Chief of the Turlock Diagnostic Lab at the University of California, Davis (UC Davis).

Stoute recently spoke to UWI Today to reflect on her award, career, and the importance of poultry science.

Reflecting on the award, Stoute said, “Receiving the award and being acknowledged by the North American poultry industry is especially meaningful for me as minorities are largely underrepresented in my field.”

“I would say that this award wasn’t driven by any one research project that I have worked on per se, but it’s more of a testament to my contributions to poultry disease surveillance, diagnostic work, and also my applied research on matters of economic relevance to the industry.”

Stoute explained that since poultry is a major, global food source, poultry medicine plays a critical role in ensuring the health of animals in the food production system by identifying and mitigating the spread of diseases.

With the recent COVID-19 pandemic and the effect of climate change on increasing the spread of animal diseases, food producers must take poultry medicine seriously and maintain high standards for their production processes.

“We (humans) handle and eat poultry, so it is important that our poultry is healthy and does not carry diseases which can be transmitted to us.

“At our lab at UC Davis, we do intensive surveillance for diseases that not only affect poultry, but also impact human health, such as Salmonella and avian influenza/bird flu.”

Born and raised in Trinidad, Stoute has always had a love for animals, which motivated her to pursue veterinary medicine as a life career.

After graduating from St Joseph’s Convent, Port-of-Spain, Stoute completed a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree at The UWI St Augustine.

2004, she did a brief stint as a small animal veterinarian.

“At that time, I kind of always envisioned myself as being a small animal veterinarian. So, after graduation, I practiced as a small animal veterinarian for one year, and I found it just wasn’t a good fit for me.”

At a crossroads, Stoute decided to explore her interest in poultry medicine, leading to her working as a teaching assistant in the Poultry Department at The UWI St Augustine Veterinary School of Medicine.

During that time, she worked with Dr Gabriel Brown, who she credits with fostering her passion for poultry medicine, and encouraging her to seek opportunities abroad.

“With poultry medicine, I saw the role of the veterinarian as someone who could help producers to maximise productivity, and I just fell in love with it.

“But he [Dr Brown] always encouraged me to take my career to the next level and get more exposure for myself and to explore different concepts of practice.

After applying for different programmes, she was accepted into an Avian Pathology residency at UC Davis from 2007 to 2009. She then went on to complete a PhD in Molecular Virology at the Ohio State University from 2009 to 2012, and served as a Director at Cornell University’s Duck Research Laboratory from 2012 to 2014.

“Over the course of those years, laboratory diagnostics was just something that I found to be really rewarding. I had always loved California and the diagnostic lab at UC Davis, so when I got the opportunity to return, that’s exactly what I did.”

Since returning to UC Davis as an assistant lecturer in 2014, Stoute has risen through the ranks to her current professorship.

She credits her experience at UWI St Augustine for shaping her work ethic and drive.

“Having a strong foundation at UWI was helpful for me to transition to academia in the wider world. “UWI sets a high standard for its programmes and requires you to be organised, responsible, and have a larger vision, which helped me.

“I have also had great mentors at UWI, which contributed to building my skills and knowledge.”

At UC Davis, Stoute is passionate about paying it forward and supporting her students and faculty as she felt she has been supported.

“The next stage of my career will not be “me focused”, but rather about me helping others who are now starting out in their careers. Whether it be residencies or collaborations for research, I want to give back to society in that way.”

Stoute mentored Trinidad-born Dr Shayne Ramsubeik, a former student and UC Davis graduate who was a resident in her lab. She considers this a full-circle moment given her own residency days.

“He [Dr Ramsubeik] has returned to Trinidad, and will now be playing a role in supporting the poultry industry, developing diagnostics and helping with research. I think that his returning home and continuing to collaborate with me will be very beneficial to both the poultry industry and UWI.”

Stoute is hopeful that the next generation of Caribbean poultry scientists will contribute to the further development of the region’s poultry industry in areas such as research and diagnostic services.

Stoute encourages aspiring veterinarians to not underestimate the value they can bring to the field – regardless of specialisations – and she is calling on them to expand their horizons.

“While you are in your programme, start putting “feelers” out there and look for opportunities. A lot of internships and residencies will provide you with livable financial support where possible.

“In conclusion, also look for avenues to gain practical international experience. While it may be easy to find local vets to work for, I encourage you to reach out to veterinary clinics from all over the world, to pursue externships and seeing practice opportunities internationally and to learn and get broader experience from them, even if it’s just for a week or two.”