The change in perceived ‘importance’ and ‘usefulness’ of veterinary public health during final-year rotations of veterinary students at the University of Liverpool

Abstract

The global community is facing a challenging twenty-first century, with many disciplines not meeting society’s needs with regards to employment and retention of staff; veterinarians are no exception. Worryingly, the shortage of veterinarians within public health roles is predicted to increase within the near future. This pilot study aimed to gain a better understanding of how final-year veterinary students perceive Veterinary Public Health (VPH) at the University of Liverpool during their final-year VPH rotation. To do this, students were categorized into groups based on their stated career destinations and gender, to determine if there is a correlation between the two. We hoped to discover if the perception of VPH in terms of ‘usefulness’ and ‘importance’ changed during their final-year rotation week. A paper-based questionnaire was designed and given to students at the beginning of their rotation week to complete - Part 1 - whilst Part 2 was completed at the end of the week. In total, 172 students were surveyed across the study period, none of whom expressed a planned career pathway in public health. Overall, 83% of students’ scores for two analysed questions regarding ‘importance of VPH to the veterinary profession’ and ‘usefulness of VPH to that student’s individual career’ improved by at least one point between Monday and Friday. The largest group of students to see an increase were small-animal focused students; where 86% gave a higher score on Friday for both questions compared to Monday. No gender-specific preference was seen between participants expressing an interest in VPH-based careers, and stated gender had no statistical impact on whether a student score increased or decreased between Monday and Friday for both analysed questions.