Deanna Purvis

Medical Director

Dr. Deanna Purvis was born in Vancouver, Washington. Despite her west coast beginnings, she spent many formative years in Pittsburgh, making it feel like home. She received her BS in Biology from Penn State University in 1983 and is a 1988 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania's School of Veterinary Medicine. She continued at the University of Pennsylvania for her internship in small animal medicine and surgery. Following her internship, she completed two years of residency training in small animal surgery at the University of Tennessee. During her surgical residency, she realized her passion for care of the critically ill patients. She shifted her focus and was accepted into the residency training program in Emergency and Critical Care at the Animal Emergency Center (Milwaukee, WI). Dr. Purvis earned Diplomate status in the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care (ACVECC) in 1994.

Since 1994, Dr. Purvis has directed emergency and critical care departments in Portland, Oregon; Springfield, VA; and was a consultant for the Regional Emergency Animal Care Hospital in Asheville North Carolina. She and two colleagues founded the California Animal Referral & Emergency Hospital in July of 2003 – establishing Santa Barbara California's first veterinary specialty hospital.

She enjoys working with referring veterinarians and clients to aid in their understanding of critical disease processes and life threatening emergencies. Her clinical interests include treatment of the geriatric patient/pain management; septic/SIRS patients; and those requiring immediate surgical intervention. She completed training and was certified to perform veterinary acupuncture in2005. Since then, she has enjoyed combining eastern and western medical approaches to provide optimal patient care and comfort.

Dr. Purvis is married and shares her home with three dogs, Kali-a Golden Retriever; Mack-a Staffordshire Terrier/Lab Mix from Long Island; and Deuce-a Smooth Coated Fox Terrier/Chihuahua mix rescued from California. In addition to her love of animals, she's an avid student of eastern philosophies, meditation and enjoys gardening and hiking.