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AUTUMN/WINTER 2016 ISSUE
ED I TOR I AL
Diplomas and Specialists
– Kirstie Pickles
BVMS MSc PhD Cer tEM(IntMed) DipECEIM MRCVS, European and RCVS Specialist in
Equine Internal Medicine
EQUINE MATTERS
14
If an equine vet in the UK wishes to become
a specialist in a given area of veterinary
work, the equivalent of a consultant within the
NHS, they need to undertake a demanding
three year postgraduate approved residency
programme in their chosen field, e.g. equine
medicine. Just getting a residency is the first
challenge as these are highly competitive
posts! The residency programme is supervised
by a current diplomate of the College and is
approved by the European College of that
discipline to ensure it provides the appropriate
level of training. Most residency posts are at
University veterinary schools but a few are
available at private practices. During the
programme, the resident will see complex
referral cases, increasing their knowledge of
disease mechanisms and medical procedures
and treatments. Additionally the candidate
must fulfil the following criteria:
1. Submit a case log of 600 cases in the
chosen area
2. Undertake additional training in related
disciplines e.g. anaesthesia, imaging and
pathology
3. Attend at least three major conferences
4. Present at least six professional
seminars/presentations
5. Publish two papers in peer reviewed
journals
Diploma candidates are then eligible to sit
two exams involving three written papers and
an oral/practical component. If they manage
to get through all that, they are awarded a
European College Diploma of their chosen
specialty. To maintain diplomate status,
reaccreditation takes place every five years
in order to ensure that the highest clinical
standards are maintained.
In the UK, only diplomates are allowed to
call themselves specialists in a given area to
aid identification of expertise by the animal
owning public. Should your horse require
referral to see a specialist, you can identify
their European College (or American)
Diploma status in an equine discipline by the
abbreviation ECE- (or ACV-) after their name.
You’re a vet - what’s next?
- Imogen Burrows
BVetMed Cer tAVP(EM) MRCVS, RCVS Advanced Veterinary Practitioner in Equine Medicine
After just over a decade in first opinion
equine practice, I realised I was beginning
to be asked, and ask myself questions I
didn’t know answers to. I felt I had a pretty
good field of knowledge in general equine
practice, but began to feel as if I needed
to know just that bit more - a bit like a
toddler at the ‘why
?
’ phase of development.
This led me to the next stage of my
professional development - studying
towards a certificate.
Getting back into the routine of studying as
well as working full time isn’t easy, but the
Advanced Practitioner Certification route is
now far more accessible for people in
practice - albeit an extra 100+ hours of
studying to do over each block of four
months. There are six modules to complete
and having once successfully done so, we
are entitled to sit another examination - this
gives us the Royal College of Veterinary
Surgeons approval in our chosen field.
The modular system allows vets to study
their particular interests, developing more
advanced practical skills and obtaining a
greater depth of clinical knowledge. Once
a vet has been awarded their RCVS
certificate they may then apply to become
a listed RCVS Advanced Veterinary
Practitioner, a status that must be renewed
every five years. At present disciplines
include Equine Practice, Equine Medicine,
Equine Surgery - Soft Tissue, Equine
Surgery - Orthopaedics, Equine Stud
Medicine and Equine Dentistry.
It all sounds very fancy, but what does it
mean to you
?
In practice, this translates into
your vet not only striving to answer the
questions ‘what is wrong with my animal
and what can be done
?
‘; but you being
confident that the clinician has been
assessed rigorously and proven they have
advanced skill set to offer you and your
horse.