Honeybees as a teaching tool in veterinary education.

Since the inception of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC), the use of animals in research and education has been a central element of the programs of member institutions. As veterinary education and research programs have evolved over the past 50 years, so too have societal views and regulatory policies. AAVMC member institutions have continually responded to these events by exchanging best practices in training their students in the framework of comparative medicine and the needs of society. Animals provide students and faculty with the tools to learn the fundamental knowledge and skills of veterinary medicine and scientific discovery. The study of animal models has contributed extensively to medicine, veterinary medicine, and basic sciences as these disciplines seek to understand life processes. Changing societal views over the past 50 years have provided active examination and continued refinement of the use of animals in veterinary medical education and research. The future use of animals to educate and train veterinarians will likely continue to evolve as technological advances are applied to experimental design and educational systems. Natural animal models of both human and animal health will undoubtedly continue to serve a significant role in the education of veterinarians and in the development of new treatments of animal and human disease. As it looks to the future, the AAVMC as an organization will need to continue to support and promote best practices in the humane care and appropriate use of animals in both education and research.

3D printing is a rapidly emerging technology successfully utilized in different fields of medical science and in recent years 3D printed specimens have been used in veterinary education. With the invention of affordable 3D printers, the application of superior quality 3D printed models of anatomical specimen is expanding as an effective teaching tool in veterinary anatomy education. The use of this technology has also in surgical planning, creating prosthetics, orthopedic implants, anatomical models, etc. In this technology, the 3D solid models are produced through a process of adding layer upon layer of materials from a computer aided design (CAD) model. In this chapter, the principle of 3D printing technology is reviewed including steps, materials, and techniques to be used for creating the anatomical models in veterinary education. The chapter emphasizes that successful use of this technology in veterinary anatomy education and surgery practice. This technology shows promising results in learning and understanding of 3D structures and their relationships, teaching and training purposes, guide surgical procedures, improve confidence of surgeons to perform complex surgical procedures and investigate new therapeutic approaches.

Agrarian universities play a significant role in the delivery of quality veterinary medicine by means of professional training. Special attention should be paid to terminological training of future specialists in veterinarian education. However, there is no systemic approach to realisation of terminological training in university practices. The purpose of the study is to provide a theoretical framework for terminological training of specialists in veterinarian education. The research was carried out on the basis of systemic and person-centred approaches. The concept of terminological training of veterinarians has been specified as a three-stage continuing process of developing the conceptual and terminological apparatus in the field of veterinary medicine, expertise and research work and its practical application in solving academic, professional and research tasks accompanied by the development of specialists’ motivation to constantly improve their professional language for continuous professional self-development. The aim of terminological training is to develop sequentially terminological literacy, terminological competence, and terminological culture in veterinarians. The content of terminological training is comprised of three directions: cognitive (the formation of a conceptual and terminological apparatus of specialists), practical (the formation of skills to use professional terminology to solve academic, professional and research tasks), and motivational (the development of high motivation to learn and improve the professional language for continuous professional self-education). The novelty of the study is associated with the conceptualization of terminological training in relation to its content and outcomes in veterinary education.

Experiential learning is essential in medical and veterinary student education and can improve students’ communication with clients during medical appointments. There is limited research in veterinary education investigating the effectiveness of experiential learning environments to provide an integrative approach to teaching. The present study uses an experiential learning environment to introduce an integrative approach to communication skills training in veterinary clinical education. Participants were final year veterinary students whose self-confidence around 28 common clinical communication statements frequently discussed in clinical practice was assessed before and after a 3-week experiential learning rotation. Client and veterinary doctor ratings on students’ performance were also assessed. Students’ self-confidence in all but one of the clinical communication statements improved significantly ( p < .05). Veterinary doctor and clients’ ratings were overall positive. The results from this study supports the use of experiential learning to promote an integrated learning approach in veterinary education.

The free movement of persons, goods and services within the European Union (EU) is one of the major principles established by the European treaties. This free movement shall now be reinforced through the full application of the new general system for the mutual recognition of professional qualifications, in which veterinary medicine is included. The success of this measure for internal market development imposes availability of professionals with the highest possible basic training and opportunities for continuing education and specialisation. Such benchmark definition requires the establishment of veterinary training throughout the EU to focus on the qualitative aspects of the basic training they impart. New production forms, new labour markets and a higher degree of consciousness of the producers and the consumers, together with an ever-increasing load of new information and knowledge in most veterinary fields had forced changes in veterinary education strategies. These changes have led to the adaptation of curricula and the application of new pedagogical concepts ultimately leading to the design of new, exciting programmes of veterinary training. Some of them use a combination of basic education and elective terms while others have focused training in species-oriented tracks already by the time students enter the clinical level. There is general consent that the quality of basal training must enable the student to achieve a level of confidence in life-long learning so he/she would be able to follow relevant CPD's and, eventually, pursue specialisation. At the same time, veterinary establishments are concerned with their ability to achieve these goals, mostly due to the usual high costs of veterinary training that constrain their chances to maintain equality of training levels through the EU. We need to find tools to harmonise veterinary training among the establishments of veterinary education in Europe, beyond the compulsory subject and training minimum requirements laid down by the Directive 78/1027. Harmonisation requires regulations but also awareness. Establishments of veterinary education must not only comply with regulations but also become aware of the advantages of quality assurance of their basic training. The present paper is a series of personal reflections by the author who ultimately addresses veterinary educators and interest organisations such as the European Association of Establishments for Veterinary Education (EAEVE) and the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe (FVE) to focus on strategies of quality assurance as the basis for claims of amendments of the EU-Directive/s regulating veterinary training in Europe.

Veterinary anatomy plays a crucial role in the curriculum for veterinary medicine and surgery. The integration of modern information technology in veterinary education can greatly benefit from innovative tools such as augmented reality (AR) applications. The aim of this study was to develop an accurate and interactive three-dimensional (3D) digital model of an animal skull using AR technology, aiming to enhance the learning of skull anatomy in veterinary anatomy education. In this study, a canine skull specimen was isolated, and the skull bones were scanned using a structured light scanner to create a 3D digital model of the canine skull, which was found to be indistinguishable from the original specimen by measurement of skull proportions. Furthermore, the interactive AR model of the canine skull, displayed using Unity3D, was subjected to testing and evaluation by 60 first-year veterinary medical students attending the gross anatomy of the animal. The students were divided into two groups: the traditional group and AR group. Both groups completed an objective test and a questionnaire. The evaluation of learning effectiveness in the test revealed no significant difference between the traditional group (which learned using textbooks and a canine skull specimen) and AR group (which learned using AR tools). However, in the questionnaire, students displayed high enthusiasm and interest in using the AR tool. Therefore, the application of AR tools can improve students' motivation for learning and enhance the comprehension of anatomical structures in three dimensions. Furthermore, this study exemplifies the use of AR as an auxiliary tool for teaching and learning in veterinary anatomy education.

Global veterinary leadership.

Cultural transmission of breed-specific beliefs about canine pain sensitivity occurs during veterinary education and training. However, breed-specific beliefs held by veterinarians do not align well with experimental measures of pain observed across dog breeds and are unlikely to be helpful in clinical decision making. The aim of the present study was to gain a deeper understanding of how dog breed pain stereotypes are developed and/or reinforced during clinical veterinary training. Non-participant, unobtrusive observations were conducted for a single clinical rotation block across three specialties. Field notes with contextual details were maintained and later transcribed and expanded using personal reflection. A thematic analysis revealed the following three themes: confusion and mixed messages related to instruction about pain; rotation microcultures and norms related to pain; and breed-specific messages related to pain identification and treatment decisions. As students processed their social interactions, we suggest that they may have internalized breed stereotypes and used these to inform their perceptions about patient pain. This information will help facilitate the development of training to enhance veterinary medical education and promote best practices for pain identification and management in canine patients.

To explore perceptions of faculty educators regarding the importance of nontechnical competencies in veterinary graduates and the placement of nontechnical competency development in veterinary education. Survey. All faculty members at 5 North American veterinary medical institutions. Participants rated the importance of 14 nontechnical competencies and indicated in which phase or phases of veterinary education such competencies should be developed (ie, curriculum placement). Differences in mean ratings were statistically evaluated, as were associations between ratings or curriculum placement and respondent institution, gender, experience, and discipline. Mean ratings of importance were above neutral for all competencies and were highest for ethical, critical thinking, and interpersonal and intrapersonal competencies; development of these competencies was favored in preveterinary and veterinary training. Ratings were lower for management and business competencies; development of these and other competencies was placed primarily in the clinical phase of the veterinary curriculum. Basic science, nonveterinarian, and junior faculty appeared to more strongly appreciate the importance of nontechnical skills, whereas large animal and midcareer faculty reported a more reserved degree of support. Female faculty were more likely to place nontechnical competency development throughout the educational process. Participants agreed nontechnical competencies are important for veterinary graduates; however, faculty perceptions differed from previously published findings regarding the relative importance of business and management skills. Those involved in faculty hiring, faculty development, and curricular planning should also be aware of disciplinary and career stage differences affecting faculty perspectives.

Approximately 150 scientists attended the Human Health Safety of Animal Feeds workshop at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on January 23, 2004, to discuss issues pertaining to Salmonella-contaminated animal feed and their impact on public health. The workshop followed an article published in Clinical Infectious Diseases, which provided three recommendations to reduce human foodborne disease caused by Salmonella-contaminated animal feed (1). The first recommendation stressed the need for microbial contamination surveillance to determine how feed contaminants, particularly Salmonella, pass through the food chain. The second recommendation was to establish hazard analysis and critical control point programs to minimize Salmonella contamination by identifying and controlling sources of feed contamination. The third recommendation was to implement the Salmonella-negative standard in the feed industry. The purpose of the workshop was to elicit discussion on these and other recommendations concerning the human health safety of animal feed. A variety of organizations were represented at the workshop, including international government agencies, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and consumer groups. Speakers offered perspectives on bacterial contamination of animal feed, including examples of human illnesses traced to Salmonella-contaminated feed, and data showing how contaminated animal feed contributes to human foodborne illness. The opening plenary session focused on international experiences in controlling Salmonella in animal feed. Officials from the National Veterinary Institute of Sweden and the Norwegian Agriculture Inspection Service gave an overview of the control measures implemented in Sweden and Norway to ensure Salmonella-negative animal feed. Norway and Sweden have extensive surveillance programs for Salmonella control in animal feed. The measures implemented in Norway and Sweden are important contributing factors to the virtual absence of Salmonella in the food supply in their countries. Several U.S. government agencies, including CDC; USDA; and the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, presented research findings at the workshop. Presentations included results from animal feed commodity studies that look at the factors contributing to microbial pathogens, mycotoxins, and chemical residues in animal feed. Researchers from FDA and Washington State University also provided data indicating that contaminated animal feed continues to be a source of Salmonella in food animals. Further studies are necessary to document the precise contribution of contaminated animal feed to human illness. Nevertheless, some presentations suggest that practical interventions are available to reduce the prevalence of Salmonella-contaminated animal feed. Collaboration among all groups was stressed as a useful measure in controlling contaminated animal feed in the future. A compact disk, including all of the presentations, agenda, and list of participants from the workshop, is available online at http://www.cdc.gov/narms/mce/animalfeeds.htm.

Current methods used to communicate and present the complex arrangement of vasculature related to the brain and spinal cord is limited in undergraduate veterinary neuroanatomy training. Traditionally it is taught with 2-dimensional (2D) diagrams, photographs and medical imaging scans which show a fixed viewpoint. 2D representations of 3-dimensional (3D) objects however lead to loss of spatial information, which can present problems when translating this to the patient. Computer-assisted learning packages with interactive 3D anatomical models have become established in medical training, yet equivalent resources are scarce in veterinary education. For this reason, we set out to develop a workflow methodology creating an interactive model depicting the vasculature of the canine brain that could be used in undergraduate education. Using MR images of a dog and several commonly available software programs, we set out to show how combining image editing, segmentation and surface generation, 3D modeling and texturing can result in the creation of a fully interactive application for veterinary training. In addition to clearly identifying a workflow methodology for the creation of this dataset, we have also demonstrated how an interactive tutorial and self-assessment tool can be incorporated into this. In conclusion, we present a workflow which has been successful in developing a 3D reconstruction of the canine brain and associated vasculature through segmentation, surface generation and post-processing of readily available medical imaging data. The reconstructed model was implemented into an interactive application for veterinary education that has been designed to target the problems associated with learning neuroanatomy, primarily the inability to visualise complex spatial arrangements from 2D resources. The lack of similar resources in this field suggests this workflow is original within a veterinary context. There is great potential to explore this method, and introduce a new dimension into veterinary education and training.

British chef and food activist Jamie Oliver ignited a firestorm in January 2011 when he mentioned on the Late Show with David Letterman that castoreum, a substance used to augment some strawberry and vanilla flavorings, comes from what he described as “rendered beaver anal gland.”1 The next year, vegans were outraged to learn that Starbucks used cochineal extract, a color additive derived from insect shells, to dye their strawberry Frappuccino® drinks2 (eventually, the company decided to transition to lycopene, a pigment found in tomatoes3). Although substances like castoreum and cochineal extract may be long on the “yuck factor,”4 research has shown them to be perfectly safe for most people; strident opposition arose not from safety issues but from the ingredients’ origins. But these examples demonstrate that the public often lacks significant knowledge about the ingredients in foods and where they come from. This is not a new development; the public relationship to food additives has a long history of trust lost, regained, and in some cases lost again. The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic (FD&C) Act of 19385 was passed shortly after the deaths of 100 people who took an untested new form of a popular drug, which contained what turned out to be a deadly additive.6 The new law was consumer oriented and intended to ensure that people knew what was in the products they bought, and that those products were safe. The law has been amended over the years in attempts to streamline and bring order to the sprawling task of assessing and categorizing the thousands of substances used in foods, drugs, and cosmetics. One result of this streamlining is that under current U.S. law, companies can add certain types of ingredients to foods without premarket approval from the thin-stretched Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In other words, there are substances in the food supply that are unknown to the FDA. In 2010 the Government Accountability Office (GAO) concluded that a “growing number of substances … may effectively be excluded from federal oversight.”7 Is this a problem? The answer depends on whom you ask.

In veterinary education, data from biomedical or natural sciences are mostly presented in the form of static or animated graphics with no or little amount of interactivity. These kinds of presentations are, however, often not sufficient to depict the complexity of the data or the presented topic. Interactive graphics, which allow to dynamically change data and related graphics, have rarely been considered as teaching tool in higher education of biomedical disciplines for veterinary education so far. In order to study the applicability and the usefulness of interactive graphics in biomedical disciplines for lecturers and students in veterinary education, three different courses from biomedical disciplines were exemplarily implemented as interactive graphics and evaluated in a pilot study by a survey amongst lecturers and students of our university. The interactive graphics were built using the Shiny environment, a web-based application framework for the statistic software R. The survey amongst lecturers and students was based on questionnaires covering questions on the handling and usefulness of the digital teaching tools. In total, n = 327 students and n = 5 lecturers participated in the evaluation study which revealed that the interactive graphics are easy to handle for lecturers and students, and that they can increase the motivation for either teaching or learning. In total, 71% of the students affirmed that interactive graphics led to an increased interest for the presented contents and 76% expressed the wish to get taught more topics with interactive graphics. We also provide a workflow that can be used as a guideline to develop interactive graphics.

Microplastics (MPs), as an environmental contaminant, pose a significant risk to both animal and human health through the food and water supply chains. Honey, widely recognised as a safe and health‐oriented food product, may become compromised if its production process involves non‐biodegradable MPs. This study was conducted as a systematic review, using comprehensive searches of PubMed, Scopus and ScienceDirect to investigate the effects of MP on honey bee and human health, and the potential route and main species and composition of MP contamination in honey. This review highlights the impacts of MPs on honey bee health, including mortality, sucrose response, sucrose habituation, olfactory learning, memory recall, colony performance, body size and growth, gut microbiota and viral infection. From a mechanistic perspective, MPs can disrupt the equilibrium of the gut microbiota, adversely impact the function of the immune system, and undermine neural signalling pathways that are critical for learning and memory processes in honey bees. It is crucial to consider the applied aspects of these findings in beekeeping practices, including adopting sustainable practices to mitigate exposure to MPs and minimize contamination in honey production. The study also provided detailed information on honey bee contact routes with MPs, the environment (air, water, soil, pollen), and routes of exposure to MPs in beekeeping practices (plastic composition of the hive and beekeeping activities). MPs can adversely affect human health by altering energy homeostasis, causing oxidative stress, immune system deficiencies, malnutrition, reduced growth and decreased reproductive rates. Synthesis and applications. The findings of this study are highly relevant to both the beekeeping industry and public health policymakers. By identifying key contamination routes and the detrimental effects of microplastics (MPs) on honey bee health and honey quality, this research provides actionable insights for beekeepers to adopt sustainable hive management practices that minimise MP exposure. Additionally, the study underscores the need for regulatory policies to control MP pollution, ensuring the safety of honey as a food product and protecting both pollinators and human health.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is a remarkable hybrid. Part regulatory agency, part public health agency, it sits at the intersection of science, law, and public policy. The FDA’s mission can be considered in the context of 2 broad dimensions: the products it regulates and its core functions. Both fall under the rubric of protecting and promoting the public health. The FDA’s remit is both broad and diverse: altogether, the agency has regulatory responsibility for >20% of the US economy. The products it is charged with overseeing through its various centers1 encompass food and cosmetics (regulated by the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition); food and drugs for animals, including companion animals and animals used for food (regulated by the Center for Veterinary Medicine); and medical devices, drugs, and biologics (regulated by the Centers for Devices and Radiological Health, Drug Evaluation and Research, and Biologics Evaluation and Research, respectively). Tobacco products were added to the FDA’s portfolio by the Tobacco Control Act of 2009, and are overseen by the Center for Tobacco Products. Regardless of the specific product regulated, the FDA’s core mission remains the same: to protect the US population by helping to ensure the fundamental safety of the food Americans consume and the medical products prescribed by their clinicians. At the same time, this primary mission is complemented by a mandate to promote the public health by reviewing research and taking appropriate action on the marketing of regulated products in a timely manner. Not only do people need access to advances in nutrition and medical therapies, but also the American spirit is itself characterized by a strong current of scientific and technological innovation. At first glance, differences in these 2 priorities, protecting the public safety and promoting the public health through encouraging innovation, might …