Peter Atkinson completed his veterinary training at the University of Adelaide and shortly after starting a career in clinical practice, decided to pursue his interests in population health. He commenced a PhD at the University of Adelaide in 2022, focusing on the ecology of vector borne diseases in Australia, using canine heartworm as a proxy to develop his epidemiological skills. Specifically, he focuses on i) applying the principles of the ecology of the canine heartworm parasite to study its spatial distribution across Australia, and ii) the diagnosis of canine heartworm infection through traditional and Bayesian diagnostic test evaluation. He completed his membership qualification In the epidemiology chapter of the Australian and New Zealand College of Veterinary Sciences in 2023, and is now an associate lecturer in Veterinary Epidemiology and Evidence Based Medicine at the University of Adelaide. He aims to provide an approachable evidence basis for in-clinic and patient-side decision making and hopes to complete his PhD in 2025.