Veterinary Medical Profession Research Articles

Can veterinary medicine improve diversity in post-graduate training programs? Current state of academic veterinary medicine and recommendations on best practices.

The American Association of Veterinary Clinicians (AAVC) convened a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity working group in March 2021 to address the limited diversity (including but not limited to ethnic, racial, and cultural diversity) in clinical post-DVM graduate training programs and academic faculty. Concurrent with a working group formation, the AAVC developed a strategic plan. The central mission of the AAVC is to develop, support, and connect academic leaders to fuel the future of the veterinary medical profession. House officers and their training programs are central to all goals outlined in the strategic plan. Amongst other strategic goals, the working group identified best practices for intern and resident recruitment and selection. We report herein from the current health profession literature ways to identify and recruit talented, diverse candidates especially those with non-traditional (atypical) preparation and experience. We also provide recommendations on best practices for intern and resident selection. This document highlights holistic approaches, some of which are incrementally being incorporated into the Veterinary Intern Resident Matching Program application, that emphasize diversity as a selection criteria for intern and resident selection an important step towards building a more resilient and inclusive workforce. These include expanding candidate assessment beyond grades and class rank into a more standardized method for screening candidates that includes consideration of life experiences and talents outside of veterinary medicine.

VETERINARY LEGISLATION AND GENERAL REQUIREMENTS TARGETING INSECTS AS FOOD

The European Commission's decision to approve the use of insects and their parts for human consumption caused a wave of public discussion and media interest in our country. However, the veterinary perspective on the matter seems to have remained in the shadow of the predominantly discussed ethical and moral considerations on the subject and the opinions of specialists from other fields such as technologists, nutritionists, and control authorities. This led us to consider the issue of the usage of insects as food ingredients for human consumption from the veterinarian's perspective. As a starting point, we use the knowledge about insects, normatively regulated as part of the education process during the study of veterinary medicine and acquired by veterinarians nowadays. In the course of reasoning, we compare that knowledge with the questions, which have arisen in front of the veterinary guild in connection to the input of insects into the composition of foods, and as ingredients of human nutrition, which the European bodies have officially accepted and permitted. We explored normative documents and literary sources, which could answer the question: "Does the veterinary medical profession have a place in this type of husbandry and food production in the future?".

Addressing the urgent health challenges of climate change and ecosystem degradation from a One Health perspective: what can veterinarians contribute?

Since the field of One Health was introduced in the early 2000s, veterinary medicine has provided leadership in working with other disciplines and sectors to identify effective, sustainable solutions to complex health problems that are shared by humans, animals, and the environment. Human-induced climate change has accelerated since the Industrial Age, resulting in serious adverse human, animal, and environmental health consequences. We summarize several drivers of climate change and ecosystem degradation connected to veterinary medicine. Building on previous studies and observations of others, we propose a set of urgent and actionable recommendations for individual veterinarians and the veterinary profession to mitigate and adapt to the health risks posed by climate change and ecosystem degradation at community, local, state, national, and international levels. In addition, we call for emphasizing the foundational relationship between climate change and ecosystem health to human, animal, and environmental health; integrating environmental health, climate change, and the diagnosis and treatment of climate-related adverse health outcomes into veterinary medical education and research; and providing ever-greater national and global leadership and participation by the veterinary medical profession to confront the causes and health consequences of human-induced climate change and ecosystem degradation, working in collaboration with other health professions, disciplines, and sectors.

Advancing Veterinary Medical Education Worldwide: Where Do We Go From Here?

Veterinary medicine is a global public good. A robust system of both public and private veterinary services is essential to protect animal health. Improved animal health leads to global food security and reduces poverty by increasing productivity, controlling transboundary diseases and expanding access to international markets. The quality of veterinary services is directly related to the quality of veterinary medical education, therefore, it is incumbent upon the entire global veterinary medical profession to support programs that improve education around the world.

Public Practice Opportunities for Veterinary Students to Enhance Veterinary Public Health Education.

Veterinarians have a long history of contributing to animal and human health; simultaneously, the veterinary medical profession has held the tenet of protecting public health. Veterinary education has shifted with societal needs over time and currently has curricula at US colleges of veterinary medicine (CVMs) largely focused on clinical practice and basic sciences. The focus of many veterinary curricula produces a veterinarian who meets the needs of the US pet owner. A void often exists in the knowledge and understanding of new veterinary graduates in the field of public practice and, in particular, public health. Students need to be able to find other learning environments and opportunities that help bridge this void. This article captures possible opportunities as best practices. Advising US veterinary students interested in public health and public health policy while considering these opportunities will help to enhance the likely experiences students have during their formal veterinary education. While no list of opportunities can be inclusive of all possibilities, the experiences listed here provide a solid foundation of options for students to include in the individualized aspects of their veterinary education.

Il moral distress dalla medicina umana alla medicina veterinaria: un’analisi comparativa

Gli studi sul disagio professionale nell’ambito delle professioni di aiuto sanitarie sono in continua crescita. Questi studi hanno identificato, tra le altre cose, diversi disturbi e disagi di natura squisitamente etica, come il moral distress, la cui diagnosi e cura rappresentano oggi un impegno di grande rilievo. Tuttavia, nell’ambito delle professioni d’aiuto che si occupano di animali, come quella del medico veterinario, difficilmente questi studi sono stati approfonditi, con ripercussioni anche gravi sull’esercizio professionale. In generale, infatti, la società fatica a comprendere quanto possa essere difficile per chi lavora con gli animali gestire i conflitti etici che si creano tra le esigenze professionali, le esigenze degli animali e le richieste di chi è proprietario o, comunque, referente per l’animale. Il moral distress è stato riconosciuto solo di recente in medicina veterinaria ed è provocato, come nell’ambito della medicina umana, dall’incapacità di trovare un accordo tra la propria vocazione e le tensioni morali che l’esercizio della professione procura ogni giorno. In questo contributo, attraverso una comparazione con gli studi realizzati nell’ambito delle professioni di aiuto sanitarie in medicina umana, viene esplorata la geografia morale del moral distress nel contesto della professione medico veterinaria, con uno sguardo alle specifiche problematiche etiche che sono coinvolte nella relazione triadica tra medico, paziente animale e proprietario.

Understanding veterinary students' intrinsic, extrinsic, and lifestyle values

Introduction: Workplace values are a significant factor in facilitating successful transitions from the classroom to the workforce and in the career development process. Furthermore, employees whose value system aligns with that of their coworkers and leaders report higher rates of job satisfaction. This study sought to determine what current doctor of veterinary medicine (DVM) students' value with respect to intrinsic, extrinsic, and lifestyle factors. Methods: A modified version of the work values checklist was administered to 100 3rd-year students at a large veterinary school located in the United States. Results: The three values rated most important among participants were “Have fun in your life and at work,” “Feel respected for your work,” and “Gain a sense of achievement.” The three values rated least important were “Be involved in politics,” “Compete with others,” and “Live abroad.” Conclusion: Overall, intrinsic and lifestyle values appear to play a larger role in DVM students' workplace preferences than extrinsic values. Researchers are encouraged to replicate this study at other institutions to determine the extent to which findings from this study are generalizable across the veterinary medical profession.

Milestone Educational Planning Initiatives in Veterinary Medical Education: Progress and Pitfalls.

Three milestone educational planning initiatives engaged the veterinary medical profession in the United States and Canada between 1987 and 2011, namely the Pew National Veterinary Education Program, the Foresight Project, and the North American Veterinary Medical Education Consortium. In a quantitative study, we investigated the impact of these initiatives on veterinary medical education through a survey of academic leaders (deans, previous deans, and associate deans for academics from veterinary medical schools that are members of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges) to assess their perspectives on the initiatives and eight recommendations that were common to all three initiatives. Two of the recommendations have in effect been implemented: enable students to elect in-depth instruction and experience within a practice theme or discipline area (tracking), and increase the number of graduating veterinarians. For three of the recommendations, awareness of the issues has increased but substantial progress has not been made: promote diversity in the veterinary profession, develop a plan to reduce student debt, and develop a North American strategic plan. Lastly, three recommendations have not been accomplished: emphasize use of information more than fact recall, share educational resources to enable a cost-effective education, and standardize core admissions requirements. The educational planning initiatives did provide collaborative opportunities to discuss and determine what needs to change within veterinary medical education. Future initiatives should explore how to avoid and overcome obstacles to successful implementation.

Current Trends in the Sectors of Interest for Veterinary Medicine Students and Job Placements of Veterinarians in Kenya Drugs

The Veterinary Medical Profession is a world leader in developing medical and scientific understanding of companion and farm animals in a manner that supports society’s desire to care for and derive benefits from them. As the only health discipline with expertise across multiple species and ecosystems, veterinary medicine plays a vital role in protecting and enhancing human and animal health. In Kenya, the profession has been hit hard by both privatization and other government policies. Currently, little understanding exists among institutions and the public as to the challenges, threats, student job sector preferences and opportunities, and educational training needs for the Veterinary Profession. We conducted a cross sectional survey to assess these factors among veterinary medicine students and veterinarians in Kenya. The study involved forty veterinary medicine students from the University of Nairobi and twenty veterinarians practicing within Nairobi City County. The study was conducted between the months of December 2014 and March 2015. 73% (29/40) of the students preferred working in the private sector, with only 27% preferring the public sector. Bachelor of veterinary Medicine graduation class sizes sharply decreased from 111 in 1994 to a meager 32 in 2006, these numbers have slightly increased from the year 2007. About 80% (16/20) of the practicing veterinarians cited the private sector as the current largest employer of veterinarians in the country. 48% of the students (19/40) cited deregulation of the activities of veterinary paraprofessionals “Quacks” as the greatest threats facing the profession at present and in the foreseeable future. Another 50% (10/20) of the practicing veterinarians reported that wildlife practice is an emerging area of diversification, while small animal practice was identified as the current area with most employment opportunities. Further, approximately 70% of the veterinarians reported small animal practice as still underserved and has good future prospects for growth. Other areas identified as underserved included veterinary practice in the ASALs, Wildlife practice and Donkey and Equine practice.

Tips for providing P-12 students career day-type presentations about the veterinary profession.

Children begin forming career aspirations in elementary school, and in many cases, adults find themselves in careers that they decided on before 12 years of age.1–3 Tai et al4 report that eighth-grade students who had an expectation of a career in the life sciences were nearly twice as likely to graduate with a baccalaureate degree in the life sciences as were others who did not have that early expectation. Preliminary research has shown that introducing young students to veterinary medicine through formal curricula and activity books can positively impact their attitudes toward and interest in science careers, increase their desire to study science in college, and influence their perceptions of veterinary medicine.5,6 And educational experts cite classroom visits by role models and opportunities for role-playing by students as important means for students to learn about careers and the educational requirements needed to attain their occupational choices.2,7 Veterinarians and veterinary technicians are frequently invited to participate in career day activities at local schools or community centers. These presentations can provide an opportunity to encourage young students to pursue careers in the veterinary medical profession and provide information about the breadth of opportunities that the profession has to offer. But, for individuals who have not provided presentations in the past, accepting such an invitation can be intimidating. The present report was written by a team consisting of a veterinarian, elementary school teachers, and high school teachers and is intended to provide tips for veterinarians and veterinary technicians planning to visit classrooms or community centers to give career day presentations.

Promoting well-being among veterinary medical students: protocol and preliminary findings.

The veterinary medical profession has been the focus of increased concern as students and professionals have been found to be at risk of poor mental health outcomes. Two interventions were proposed as an attempt to improve student well-being individually and within romantic relationships. Preliminary results indicated that students who participated in the interventions experienced significant improvements in decreasing symptoms of depression and stress and relative improvements in relationship satisfaction with their partner. These noteworthy findings provide encouragement for the development of new interventions and future research focused on enhancing veterinary medical students' well-being.

New Directions for Veterinary Technology

Veterinary technology has generally established itself well in companion-animal and mixed-animal veterinary medical practice, but the career's growth trajectory is uncertain. Michigan State University (MSU) convened a national conference, "Creating the Future of Veterinary Technology-A National Dialogue," in November 2011 to explore ways to elevate the veterinary technician/technologist's role in the veterinary medical profession and to identify new directions in which the career could expand. Veterinary technicians/technologists might advance their place in private practice by not only improving their clinical skills, but by also focusing on areas such as practice management, leadership training, business training, conflict resolution, information technology, and marketing/communications. Some new employment settings for veterinary technicians/technologists include more participation within laboratory animal medicine and research, the rural farm industry, regulatory medicine, and shelter medicine. Achieving these ends would call for new training options beyond the current 2-year and 4-year degree programs. Participants suggested specialty training programs, hybrid programs of various types, online programs, veterinary technician residency programs of 12-18 months, and more integration of veterinary technician/technology students and veterinary medicine students at colleges of veterinary medicine.

Animal poisoning - veterinary-medical and criminal-legal aspects

Apart from approved or planned poisoning with agricultural purpose, an increase in the number of cases of intentional animal poisoning (primarily referring to cats and dogs) has been detected in Serbia, and it is suspected that their number is significantly larger than the one shown by the official statistics data. Under the conditions prescribed by the Criminal Code of the Republic of Serbia, such activities may represent the crime of killing and torture of animals, but also the crime of causing a general danger. It would be impossible to conduct the procedure of discovering and proving these criminal offences and the responsibility of their perpetrators without findings and opinion of forensic veterinary-medicine experts. They play an important role when it comes to site inspection, crime scene processing, collecting the samples from the crime scene, processing of samples and autopsy and exhumation of a potentially poisoned animal body. Just like other evidence in criminal procedure, findings and opinion of experts of veterinary medicine are estimated in accordance with the principle of free assessment of evidence. However, due to the specificity of such cases of killing and torture of animals, their impact on court?s decision on the existence of criminal offence and perpetrator?s liability is crucial. In this paper, the authors discuss the scope of animal poisoning in Serbia, particularly in Belgrade, analyze possible criminal - legal consequences of these illegal activities and point out to a significant role that experts of veterinary medical profession have in discovering and proving such cases and the liability of their perpetrators.

How a Disaster Preparedness Rotation Helps Teach the Seven NAVMEC Professional Competencies: The Texas A&M University Experience

Changing societal expectations provide new challenges and opportunities for the veterinary medical profession. These changing expectations and approaches to the education of veterinary students in the future are reflected in the North American Veterinary Medical Education Consortium's report "Roadmap for Veterinary Medical Education in the 21st Century: Responsive, Collaborative, Flexible." They are also reflected in the expectations of the populace, who no longer find it acceptable that animals are not included in both planning for and responding to natural or manmade disasters. In response to the changing needs of society and the veterinary profession, Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine has developed a required rotation in the fourth-year curriculum on emergency planning and response. The unique requirements of emergency preparedness and response and the design of the rotation provide an ideal platform for providing this valued public service while simultaneously addressing the seven professional competencies outlined in the NAVMEC roadmap. This article describes an overview of the rotation and its content and identifies opportunities for students to practice these important professional competencies using the tools introduced in this new rotation.

A short history of veterinary workforce analyses

Views: Commentary 1051 T veterinary medical profession has a long history of attempting to ensure that sufficient numbers of veterinarians with sufficient amounts of training are provided to meet the needs of society. A statement prepared by the Joint Committee on Veterinary Education of the AVMA, the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges, and the Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges back in 1964 noted,

PUBLIC HEALTH THREAT CAUSED BY ZOONOTIC DISEASES IN BANGLADESH

Diseases and infections shared between animals and humans are mainly called zoonotic diseases which may be categorized as emerging, reemerging and neglected. All types of these diseases occur t hroughout the world including Bangladesh. The results on the prevalence and effects of zoonotic diseases in humans and animals of Bangladesh are analyzed from the published literatures and presented in this report. It appears from the literature that there are about 1415 human pathogens of which 61% are zoonotic and nearly half of all human pathogens can be classified as emerging, of which 75% of these are caused by zoonotic pathogens. The major zoonotic bacterial diseases recorded in Bangladesh are Anthrax, Tuberculosis, Brucellosis, Salmonellosis, Campylobacteriosis and Leptospirosis, of which only Anthrax has been reported as clinical outbreaks form in both the humans and cattle. During the period 2009 to 2012, anthrax caused death of hundreds of cattle and more than 650 cases of cutaneous anthrax in humans including fatalities in two humans associated with anthrax. The major reported viral zoonotic diseases in Bangladesh include Avian influenza, Rabies, Nipah virus infection, Japanese encephalitis, Rotavirus and Dengue fever. Avian influenza caused by highly pathogenic H5N1 in humans and poultry in Bangladesh and about six humans affected with H5N1 but all of them have recovered. Since 27 March 2007 when Avian influenza was reported to have occurred for the first time in Bangladesh, this virus spread in 51 out of 64 districts with more than 480 outbreaks, culled more than two million poultry birds and cost Tk. 55 billion (US $ 757.9 million) in Bangladesh. Rabies is considered as a priority zoonosis in Bangladesh and it is mainly transmitted to humans and food animals mainly through dog bite nearly 100,000 people and at least 2000 died of rabies in 2009 in Bangladesh. Nipah virus infection is an important emerging infectious disease has been recognized since 2001 in Bangladesh and up to February 2011, 173 humans cases have been identified, of which 110 (63.58%) died. Japanese encephalitis (JE) is a vector borne zoonotic disease, first recognized in Bangladesh since an outbreak in 1977 and 12.38% encephalitis patients had JE virus infection which was associated with mortality, physical disability and cognitive difficulties. Rotavirus is a worldwide distributed zoonotic disease affecting mammals and birds and it has been reported from Bangladesh in humans (23.75%), animals (12 to 43.78%) and broiler birds (13.15%) associated with diarrheic syndrome. Dengue fever was first reported in Bangladesh in 1964 and outbreak that began in 2000 predominantly caused by DENV-3 in which 5551 cases recovered and 93 Dengue related deaths were reported. The dermatomycosis has been reported in 9.3% cattle, 18.6% goats and 25.2% in contact humans. The major zoonotic parasites recorded in cats in Bangladesh include Paragonimus westermani (9.09%), Ancyclostoma tubaeforme (36.36%), Dirofilaria immitis (9.09%), Toxocara cati (45.45%) and Toxoplasma gondii (9.09%), in dogs include Diphyllobothrium latum (13.3%), Diphylidium caninum (16.69%), Echinococcus granulosus (9.17%), Ancylostomum caninum (9-100%), Gnathostoma spingerum (40.0%), Toxocara canis (23.3%), Trichuris vulpis (13.8%) and in pigs include Entaemebea histolytica (17.24%) and Balantidium coli (60.34%). The prevalence of zoonotic protozoan diseases recorded in humans in Bangladesh include amebiasis (E. histolytica 4.71% & E. dispar 12.6%), giardiasis (21% in children & 51% in malnourished children), cryptosporidiasis (1.4 to 3.5% in diarrheic patients) and visceral leishmaniasis (kala-azar) which was first reported in Jassore in 1824 but still sporadic outbreaks are occurring in the different districts in Bangladesh. Sero-surveillance studies showed 16 to 17% cattle, 17.65 to 53.6% sheep, 12.09 to 35.4% goats and 15.89% women had T. gondii antibodies in Bangladesh. It appears from these results that all types of emerging, reemerging and neglected zoonotic diseases are widely prevalent and pose a great threat to human health in Bangladesh. Neglected Veterinary medical profession and its extension services, poor people without any knowledge of zoonotic diseases who are in close contact with livestock and their products, and unhygienic processing, maintaining and marketing the livestock and livestock products have made the situation graver in Bangladesh.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bjvm.v9i2.13451

Changes in teaching of nontechnical skills, knowledge, aptitudes, and attitudes at US colleges and schools of veterinary medicine between 1999 and 2009

To identify changes in the teaching of nontechnical skills, knowledge, aptitudes, and attitudes (SKAs) at US colleges and schools of veterinary medicine between 1999 and 2009. Design-Cross-sectional survey. All 28 US colleges and schools of veterinary medicine. Procedures-An electronic questionnaire was sent to the entire study population. Results were compared with published results of a similar survey performed in 1999 of colleges and schools of veterinary medicine in the United States and Canada. A 100% response rate was achieved. All respondents were found to offer at least 1 course related to SKAs in 2009, compared with 94% (29/31) of respondents in 1999. A total of 110 such courses were documented, compared with 47 in 1999. In 2009, 26 of the 28 (93%) colleges and schools had at least 1 course related to SKAs that was required, compared with 17 of the 31 (55%) respondents to the 1999 survey. Courses were most commonly incorporated in years 1 and 3 of the curriculum and were most often valued at 1 or 2 credit hours. Forty-one of 67 (61%) courses had been developed since 1999. The most common topics were communication and financial management. Results demonstrated an increased commitment to teaching the SKAs on the part of the US colleges and schools of veterinary medicine. However, the question remains as to how effective these initiatives will be in enhancing the economic success of graduates and the veterinary medical profession in general.

Creating a French - Romanian Bilingual Terminology of Veterinary Parasitology

The veterinary medical profession is regulated in Europe: any European veterinarian can work in other European countries, and the multilingual terminology resources are tools used in their work. In this context, terminologists contribute to offer them reliable and safe tools. The purpose of our research, carried out on the sub-field of the Veterinary Parasitology, is to provide a French - Romanian bilingual terminology on this topic. The corpus linguistic techniques enabled our researches: we created a corpus, VeTheses, containing 2193 DVM thesis (Doctor of Veterinary Medicine thesis), collected from 11 years (1998-2008) of the four French Veterinary Faculties, thesis available in digital format, on the topic of Domestic Vertebrates, work which is part of a wider terminology project. In order to realise the term extraction, we applied successive methods to this corpus. The quantitative analysis of the DVM thesis was made through the textometric toolbox Lexico 3, software used in order to establish the characteristic elements, statistics, concordances, and repeated segments. The results of this work on the corpus have been introduced in our database VeTerm. Given the scale of the project, we pursued the study of terminology of Veterinary Parasitology. The conclusions revealed the problems and solutions arising during the creation of a bilingual terminology.

Student Perspectives on Animal-Welfare Education in American Veterinary Medical Curricula

Animal welfare is a subject of increasing interest to society, and the veterinary medical profession has an opportunity--and a duty--to provide leadership and expertise. This commentary presents the view of two veterinary students at the Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine and the University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine on the current state of animal-welfare education in American veterinary colleges. In our experience, animal welfare and its related disciplines are underemphasized in current American professional curricula. We present a case for why animal welfare must be a cardinal subject of instruction in veterinary colleges, detail the essential components of sufficient animal-welfare education, and discuss specific methods for integrating animal welfare into the current curricula. We strongly encourage veterinary colleges to identify animal-welfare education as a priority and to work toward increasing instruction and educational resources in this critical topic area.

Veterinary public health: Past success, new opportunities

Animal diseases are known to be the origin of many human diseases, and there are many examples from ancient civilizations of plagues that arose from animals, domesticated and wild. Records of attempts to control zoonoses are almost as old. The early focus on food-borne illness evolved into veterinary medicine's support of public health efforts. Key historical events, disease outbreaks, and individuals responsible for their control are reviewed and serve as a foundation for understanding the current and future efforts in veterinary public health. Animal medicine and veterinary public health have been intertwined since humans first began ministrations to their families and animals. In the United States, the veterinary medical profession has effectively eliminated those major problems of animal health that had serious public health ramifications. These lessons and experiences can serve as a model for other countries. Our past must also be a reminder that the battle for human and animal health is ongoing. New agents emerge to threaten human and animal populations. With knowledge of the past, coupled with new technologies and techniques, we must be vigilant and carry on.