1. Empowering Veterinary Herd Health Management: Insights into Education, Implementation, and Regulation Across Europe.
- Author
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Marić, Marina, Manghnani, Vidhi, Niemi, Jarkko K, Niine, Tarmo, De Briyne, Nancy, and Jansen, Wiebke
- Subjects
VETERINARY medicine ,FARM management ,SOFT skills ,ANIMAL welfare ,ANIMAL health ,HEALTH of cattle - Abstract
Simple Summary: Integrated veterinary herd health management improves animal health and welfare, public health, farm management, and economics. This study explores current veterinary herd health management education and training opportunities for veterinary students and professionals in Europe, identifying gaps, needs, and areas for improvement. An analysis of 41 European veterinary education establishments found that 83% (n = 34/41) taught veterinary herd health management in their curriculum, either as a standalone course and/or integrated into other subjects. However, while undergraduate education was generally adequate, coverage of more species (e.g., aquaculture) and enhancing soft skills instruction were identified as beneficial. A survey of primarily veterinarians working with cattle, poultry, pigs, and small ruminants assessed training gaps and needs in veterinary herd health management, mainly for soft skills and training certification. They reported challenges in effectively communicating its benefits to farmers and a lack of soft skills needed to promote the concept effectively. The majority of participating veterinarians were not aware of existing training programs (69.4%) and ongoing projects (59.6%) on this topic. To conclude, while undergraduate education on veterinary herd health management is generally adequate, enhancing post-graduate certified multi-species training opportunities, incl. soft skills training, was perceived as essential. In recent years, integrated veterinary herd health management (VHHM), improving animal health, welfare, food safety, public health, farm management, and economics, has become ever-more important in the European Union due to structural and regulatory advancements. A mixed-methods study analyzed the current state and gaps in VHHM education and training across Europe. Data from 41 European veterinary institutions showed that 83% (n = 34/41) offered VHHM education, either as standalone courses and/or integrated into other subjects. An online survey for veterinarians, primarily working with cattle, poultry, pigs, and small ruminants (75%; n = 86/114), assessed perceived training knowledge gaps and needs. The majority of respondents were unaware of VHHM training programs (69.4%, n = 43/62) or projects (59.6%, n = 59/99) and reported the biggest gaps in VHHM training certification (14%, n = 7/49), followed by soft skills (12%, n = 6/52) and demonstrating VHHM benefits to their clients (9%, n = 5/53). To conclude, while undergraduate VHHM education was generally adequate, enhancing post-graduate certified multi-species training opportunities, incl. soft skills VHHM training were perceived as essential. Our findings also underscored the urgent need for robust economic evaluations of preventive strategies across various animal species to allow veterinarians to better demonstrate VHHM's direct and indirect benefits to farmers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
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