Professional

Responsible medicine use: but who is responsible?

There is good reason why many medicines are prescription only (POM-V); in the case of antibiotics this is to ensure they are not misused resulting in the rapid development of antimicrobial resistance...

Models for charging in practice: how should farm veterinary surgeons earn their living?

During my 25-year professional career, there has always been a certain tension around how farm veterinary surgeons earn their keep. Traditionally, one would say, medicine sales have supported income...

Evaluating evidence in practice

The word value is very difficult to define, as whatever an individual gets from an object or process, is extremely variable and dependent on that individual's wants or needs at the time of asking....

Would a veterinary surgeon manage COVID-19 this way?

The difficulties in controlling the coronavirus pandemic is a reflection of the unmanageable biosecurity risks of large numbers of people moving between populations and dispersing within those...

Getting more out of farmer meetings: a practical guide for advisors

Holding a meeting or workshop is a resource-heavy exercise; they take time to plan and organise, require materials, a venue, sometimes food, and usually persistent advertising and marketing. Engaging...

Evidence-based veterinary medicine: searching the evidence in practice

Evidence-based veterinary medicine techniques can be of enormous value to the general practitioner. There are some key processes to apply in order to search and find the science behind questions that...

Courageous Conversations: discrimination faced by students undertaking production animal clinical EMS

The problem of discrimination in the veterinary profession can seem like an insurmountable issue. At the recent Courageous Conversations conference Charlotte McCarroll discussed some of the research...

Considering your wellbeing needs in practice

As a graduate it is important to be challenged and be taken outside of your comfort zone. After all, a great many things you will be faced with are new, and a mentor on EMS once put it to me that as a...

Can communication in farm animal veterinary practice be improved through a focus on the non-verbal element? A clinical forum

In my opinion eye contact is one of the most important forms of non-verbal communication. It enables me to gauge the meaning of a conversation and it also demonstrates that I am engaged with the topic...