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Objectives The objectives of this study were to determine whether a technology-enhanced weight-loss program, using a home pet health technology ecosystem, is an effective tool in feline weight-loss management in multiple-cat households and to evaluate its impact on cat behavior. Methods The study was a prospective parallel unmasked block-randomized controlled trial comparing two weight loss intervention groups: (1) traditional group with dietary restriction alone (n = 9); (2) technology group that used dietary restriction, digital scales, smart feeders, activity monitors and pet treat cameras (n = 6). A 12-week weight-loss program of client-owned indoor-only two- or three-cat households with at least one overweight cat was conducted in Canada and the USA. Owner impressions of the technology, weight loss rates, smart feeder data, activity monitor data and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) were assessed. Results The study was completed by 9/15 traditional group and 6/10 technology group cats. Dropouts were mainly due to owner issues unrelated to the study. The pet health technology ecosystem received favorable reviews (six responders). Smart feeders and home scales were perceived as valuable additions, while activity monitors and pet treat cameras were valued lower. The average weekly weight-loss rate (percent loss of initial body weight) was higher ( P = 0.036) in the technology group (0.694%) than in the traditional group (0.175%). Although not associated with weight-loss rates, technology group cats trended toward grazing feeding patterns and decreased daily activity counts, while HRQoL increased, on average, for all cats. Conclusions and relevance This introductory investigation suggests that a technology-enhanced weight-loss program would be accepted by cat owners and may deliver advantageous outcomes in multiple-cat households, providing an effective and practical tool in feline weight-loss strategies that will continue to evolve as new technologies become available. It also illustrates the potential value of data gathered from home monitoring devices and digital diaries, providing deeper insights into pet behavior.

Disasters and disease outbreaks have long been a catalyst for innovative applications of emerging technologies. The urgent need to respond to an emergency leads to resourceful uses of the technologies at hand. However, the best and most cost-effective use of new technologies is to prevent disease and improve resilience. In this paper, the authors present a range of approaches through which both opportunities can be grasped. Global connectedness enables more data to be collected and processed in emergencies, especially with the rise of open-source data, including social media. In general, the poorest and most remote populations are most vulnerable to disaster. However, with smaller, faster, smarter, cheaper and more connected technology, reliable, efficient, and targeted response and recovery can be provided. Initially, crowdsourcing was used to find people, map affected areas, and determine resource allocation. This led to the generation of an overwhelming amount of data, and the need to extract valuable information from that data in a timely manner. As technology evolved, organisations started outsourcing many tasks, first to other people, then to machines. Since the volume of data generated outpaces human capacity, data analysis is being automated using artificial intelligence and machine learning, which furthers our abilities in predictive analytics. As we move towards prevention rather than remediation, information collection and processing must become faster and more efficient while maintaining accuracy. Moreover, these new strategies and technologies can help us to move forwards, by integrating layers of human, veterinary, public, and environmental health data for a One Health approach.

Reviewing patient health parameter trends can strengthen veterinarian-client-patient relationships. The objective of this study is to identify characteristics associated with veterinarians' communication of health parameter trends to companion animal clients.Using a sequential exploratory mixed methods design, independent pet owner (n = 27) and veterinarian (n = 24) focus groups were conducted and analysed via content analysis to assess perceptions of how health parameter trends are communicated by veterinarians. Subsequently, a quantitative assessment of video recorded veterinary appointments (n = 917) compared characteristics identified in focus groups with health parameter trend discussions in practice. A mixed logistic model was used to assess characteristics associated with the occurrence of weight trend discussions.Fifteen characteristics relating to veterinarians' use of health parameter trends were identified across focus groups. Veterinarians discussed 77 health parameter trends in relation to bodyweight (57/77), blood work (15/77) and other health parameters (5/77), within 73 (73/917) appointments. The odds of a weight trend discussion were higher if the veterinarian identified the pet as overweight or obese compared to an ideal bodyweight (odds ratio (OR) = 2.17; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.15-4.09; p = 0.016).Mention of a health parameter trend was uncommon and rarely included use of visual aids. Health parameter trends related to bodyweight were discussed reactively, rather than proactively.

BACKGROUND Communication practices used by veterinarians can impact client's involvement in decision-making. The objective of this study was to evaluate the level of client involvement in veterinary care decisions and factors impacting client involvement. METHODS A random sample of practising companion animal veterinarians and a convenience sample of pet owners were recruited. Each consultation was audio-video recorded and analyzed using the Observer OPTION5 instrument, adapted from human medicine, to assess veterinarians' level of shared decision-making. A mixed linear model was used to assess statistical associations between veterinarian, client and appointment-level factors and OPTION5 scores. RESULTS Sixty veterinarians and 909 of their clients were audio-video recorded during a consultation, of which 717 interactions included a decision identified for analysis using the OPTION5 instrument. Elements consistent with shared decision-making were uncommon, with a mean OPTION5 score of 22.6 (median = 20.0; sd = 13.05; range = 0-75) out of 100. OPTION5 scores were positively associated with the length of the appointment and negatively associated with the veterinarian's years in practice when controlling for statistical interaction between client income and appointment type. CONCLUSION Findings suggest an opportunity exists for veterinarians to incorporate more client involvement through increased use of shared decisionmaking behaviours during veterinary consultations.

In 2015, the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) developed the Competency-Based Veterinary Education (CBVE) framework to prepare practice-ready veterinarians through competency-based education, which is an outcomes-based approach to equipping students with the skills, knowledge, attitudes, values, and abilities to do their jobs. With increasing use of health informatics (HI: the use of information technology to deliver healthcare) by veterinarians, competencies in HI need to be developed. To reach consensus on a HI competency framework in this study, the Competency Framework Development (CFD) process was conducted using an online adaptation of Developing-A-Curriculum, an established methodology in veterinary medicine for reaching consensus among experts. The objectives of this study were to (1) create an HI competency framework for new veterinarians; (2) group the competency statements into common themes; (3) map the HI competency statements to the AAVMC competencies as illustrative sub-competencies; (4) provide insight into specific technologies that are currently relevant to new veterinary graduates; and (5) measure panelist satisfaction with the CFD process. The primary emphasis of the final HI competency framework was that veterinarians must be able to assess, select, and implement technology to optimize the client-patient experience, delivery of healthcare, and work-life balance for the veterinary team. Veterinarians must also continue their own education regarding technology by engaging relevant experts and opinion leaders.

Communication practices used by veterinarians can impact client's involvement in decision-making. The objective of this study was to evaluate the level of client involvement in veterinary care decisions and factors impacting client involvement.A random sample of practising companion animal veterinarians and a convenience sample of pet owners were recruited. Each consultation was audio-video recorded and analyzed using the Observer OPTIONSixty veterinarians and 909 of their clients were audio-video recorded during a consultation, of which 717 interactions included a decision identified for analysis using the OPTIONFindings suggest an opportunity exists for veterinarians to incorporate more client involvement through increased use of shared decisionmaking behaviours during veterinary consultations.

BACKGROUND Blood tests play a vital role in veterinary medicine, as they enable veterinarians to make decisions about their patients' medical care and provide opportunities to engage clients in veterinary care. The objective of this study was to explore perspectives of veterinary clients and veterinarians on current reporting practices for blood tests ordered in companion animal practice. The type of information communicated and client information seeking behaviours were examined. METHODS Two online surveys were distributed using snowball sampling: one targeting veterinary clients and one targeting veterinarians. RESULTS In total, 529 veterinary client and 416 veterinarian surveys were included in analyses. Significant differences were found between what blood test information veterinarian respondents felt they provided clients and what client respondents perceived they received with regard to their pet's blood tests. Almost 60% of clients somewhat or strongly agreed that they search the Internet if they do not understand why a test was ordered or what the results mean. Half of clients reported that they never receive a written report of their pet's blood work, 81% of whom were interested in receiving a copy. CONCLUSION Results of this research demonstrate opportunities to improve veterinarians' and clients' communication about blood tests.

The emergence of COVID-19 spurred the formation of myriad teams to tackle every conceivable aspect of the virus and thwart its spread. Enabled by global digital connectedness, collaboration has become a constant theme throughout the pandemic, resulting in the expedition of the scientific process (including vaccine development), rapid consolidation of global outbreak data and statistics, and experimentation with novel partnerships. To document the evolution of these collaborative efforts, the authors collected illustrative examples as the pandemic unfolded, supplemented with publications from the JMIR COVID-19 Special Issue. Over 60 projects rooted in collaboration are categorized into five main themes: knowledge dissemination, data propagation, crowdsourcing, artificial intelligence, and hardware design and development. They highlight the numerous ways that citizens, industry professionals, researchers, and academics have come together worldwide to consolidate information and produce products to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Initially, researchers and citizen scientists scrambled to access quality data within an overwhelming quantity of information. As global curated data sets emerged, derivative works such as visualizations or models were developed that depended on consistent data and would fail when there were unanticipated changes. Crowdsourcing was used to collect and analyze data, aid in contact tracing, and produce personal protective equipment by sharing open designs for 3D printing. An international consortium of entrepreneurs and researchers created a ventilator based on an open-source design. A coalition of nongovernmental organizations and governmental organizations, led by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, created a shared open resource of over 200,000 research publications about COVID-19 and subsequently offered cash prizes for the best solutions to 17 key questions involving artificial intelligence. A thread of collaboration weaved throughout the pandemic response, which will shape future efforts. Novel partnerships will cross boundaries to create better processes, products, and solutions to consequential societal challenges.

Research in big data, informatics, and bioinformatics has grown dramatically (Andreu-Perez J, et al., 2015, IEEE Journal of Biomedical and Health Informatics 19, 1193–1208). Advances in gene sequencing technologies, surveillance systems, and electronic medical records have increased the amount of health data available. Unconventional data sources such as social media, wearable sensors, and internet search engine activity have also contributed to the influx of health data. The purpose of this study was to describe how ‘big data’, ‘informatics’, and ‘bioinformatics’ have been used in the animal health and veterinary medical literature and to map and chart publications using these terms through time. A scoping review methodology was used. A literature search of the terms ‘big data’, ‘informatics’, and ‘bioinformatics’ was conducted in the context of animal health and veterinary medicine. Relevance screening on abstract and full-text was conducted sequentially. In order for articles to be relevant, they must have used the words ‘big data’, ‘informatics’, or ‘bioinformatics’ in the title or abstract and full-text and have dealt with one of the major animal species encountered in veterinary medicine. Data items collected for all relevant articles included species, geographic region, first author affiliation, and journal of publication. The study level, study type, and data sources were collected for primary studies. After relevance screening, 1093 were classified. While there was a steady increase in ‘bioinformatics’ articles between 1995 and the end of the study period, ‘informatics’ articles reached their peak in 2012, then declined. The first ‘big data’ publication in animal health and veterinary medicine was in 2012. While few articles used the term ‘big data’ (n = 14), recent growth in ‘big data’ articles was observed. All geographic regions produced publications in ‘informatics’ and ‘bioinformatics’ while only North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia/Oceania produced publications about ‘big data’. ‘Bioinformatics’ primary studies tended to use genetic data and tended to be conducted at the genetic level. In contrast, ‘informatics’ primary studies tended to use non-genetic data sources and conducted at an organismal level. The rapidly evolving definition of ‘big data’ may lead to avoidance of the term.

Social media services such as Twitter are valuable sources of information for surveillance systems. A digital syndromic surveillance system has several advantages including its ability to overcome the problem of time delay in traditional surveillance systems. Despite the progress made with using digital syndromic surveillance systems, the possibility of tracking avian influenza (AI) using online sources has not been fully explored. In this study, a Twitter-based data analysis framework was developed to automatically monitor avian influenza outbreaks in a real-time manner. The framework was implemented to find worrisome posts and alerting news on Twitter, filter irrelevant ones, and detect the onset of outbreaks in several countries. The system collected and analyzed over 209,000 posts discussing avian influenza on Twitter from July 2017 to November 2018. We examined the potential of Twitter data to represent the date, severity and virus type of official reports. Furthermore, we investigated whether filtering irrelevant tweets can positively impact the performance of the system. The proposed approach was empirically evaluated using a real-world outbreak-reporting source. We found that 75% of real-world outbreak notifications of AI were identifiable from Twitter. This shows the capability of the system to serve as a complementary approach to official AI reporting methods. Moreover, we observed that one-third of outbreak notifications were reported on Twitter earlier than official reports. This feature could augment traditional surveillance systems and provide a possibility of early detection of outbreaks. This study could potentially provide a first stepping stone for building digital disease outbreak warning systems to assist epidemiologists and animal health professionals in making relevant decisions.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate mean body weight (BW) over the lifespan of domestic cats stratified by breed and sex (including reproductive status [neutered vs sexually intact]). ANIMALS 19,015,888 cats. PROCEDURES Electronic medical records from veterinary clinics in the United States and Canada from 1981 to 2016 were collected through links to practice management software programs and anonymized. Age, breed, sex and reproductive status, and BW measurements and measurement dates were recorded. Data were cleaned, and descriptive statistics were determined. Linear regression models were created with data for 8-year-old domestic shorthair, medium hair, and longhair (SML) cats to explore changes in BW over 3 decades (represented by the years 1995, 2005, and 2015). RESULTS 9,886,899 of 19,015,888 (52%) cats had only 1 BW on record. Mean BW for cats of the 4 most common recognized breeds (Siamese, Persian, Himalayan, and Maine Coon Cat) peaked between 6 and 10 years of age and then declined. Mean BW of SML cats peaked at 8 years and was subjectively higher for neutered than for sexually intact cats. Mean BW of neutered 8-year-old SML cats increased between 1995 and 2005 but was steady between 2005 and 2015. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE The large dataset for this study yielded useful information on mean BW over the lifespan of domestic cats. This could be a basis for BW management discussions during veterinary visits. A low frequency of repeated BW measurements suggested a low frequency of repeated veterinary visits, especially after 1 year of age, making engagement of cat owners in the health of their animals particularly relevant.

The Global Food Safety Partnership (GFSP) is a public/private partnership established through the World Bank to improve food safety systems through a globally coordinated and locally-driven approach. This concept paper aims to establish a framework to help GFSP fully leverage the potential of open models. In preparing this paper the authors spoke to many different GFSP stakeholders who asked questions about open models such as: what is it? what’s in it for me? why use an open rather than a proprietary model? how will open models generate equivalent or greater sustainable revenue streams compared to the current “traditional” approaches? This last question came up many times with assertions that traditional service providers need to see opportunity for equivalent or greater revenue dollars before they will buy-in. This paper identifies open value propositions for GFSP stakeholders and proposes a framework for creating and structuring that value. Open Educational Resources (OER) were the primary open practice GFSP partners spoke to us about, as they provide a logical entry point for collaboration. Going forward, funders should consider requiring that educational resources and concomitant data resulting from their sponsorship should be open, as a public good. There are, however, many other forms of open practice that bring value to the GFSP. Nine different open strategies and tactics (Appendix A) are described, including: open content (including OER and open courseware), open data, open access (research), open government, open source software, open standards, open policy, open licensing and open hardware. It is recommended that all stakeholders proactively pursue "openness" as an operating principle. This paper presents an overall GFSP Open Ecosystem Engagement Strategy within which specific local case examples can be situated. Two different case examples, China and Colombia, are presented to show both project-based and crowd-sourced, direct-to-public paths through this ecosystem.

Veterinarians in the United States and abroad are faced with growing public concern for the welfare of animals, particularly those in production. To prepare veterinarians to exert the leadership expected by the public and industry, steps should be taken to provide instruction in animal welfare at veterinary colleges. The ultimate goal is to offer courses in animal welfare in a consistent manner on a global scale, utilizing existing expertise in an efficient and cost-effective manner. Given the intense curricula of veterinary schools and the scarcity of instructors trained in animal welfare, a nontraditional approach is needed to educate veterinary students in the United States and abroad in animal welfare. Michigan State University (MSU) is developing a graduate-level, online interactive course in animal welfare assessment. The course will approach the topic of animal welfare education from a holistic, multidisciplinary standpoint (encompassing ethics, economics, and behavior) and address issues important to the general public and the international community. The MSU course will draw on renowned international animal welfare experts, allowing students to receive high-quality education that would be difficult in any other circumstance. The course will bridge an important gap in the veterinary curriculum and offer a complete and congruous education in animal welfare to veterinarians worldwide. The MSU course will also serve as a model for collaboration in content assembly and course delivery, by using technology to leverage global expertise in the interests of educational equity. In addition to innovative technology, such as the use of Web-collaboration software to create the course, a variety of media that enable students to interact with the material will also be incorporated throughout the course. Thus, the course will not only utilize the Internet to provide access to high-quality material, but will also require the active participation of the student, which is needed for effective learning.

A great deal of effort has been expended on trying to determine whether traditional instruction, online learning, or some combination of the two is of greater educational effectiveness. This may be the wrong question. Rather than determining whether one delivery mechanism is superior to another, it is more important to choose the best method(s) of delivery to achieve specific educational objectives, taking into consideration the different learning styles and circumstances of the target audience. Although appropriate use of technology offers potential for improved learning, there are other compelling reasons to use technology in medical education, such as reaching a different audience or accessing unique expertise that would otherwise be unavailable. This article explores the ramifications of three important drivers of technology adoption for medical education: (1) public access to medical knowledge on the Internet; (2) change in what constitutes medical knowledge; and (3) the impending shortage of educators. Some approaches are proposed, including veterinary examples, to the challenges presented by these changes.

SUMMARYA cross-sectional field study was performed to evaluate infection in dogs and cats living on farms withMycobacterium bovis-infected cattle. The purpose was to determine pet infection status and assess their risk to farm families and/or tuberculosis-free livestock. Data and specimens were collected from 18 cats and five dogs from nine participating farms. ELISA testing forM. bovisandM.aviumwas conducted. Fifty-one biological samples were cultured; all were negative forM. bovis, although otherMycobacteriumspecies were recovered. No radiographic, serological or skin test evidence of mycobacterial infection was found. These negative results may be due to the low level ofM. bovisinfection in the cattle and the limited duration of exposure of pets to infected cattle residing on the same farm. No evidence was found to indicate that pets residing onM. bovis-infected Michigan cattle farms pose a risk to humans orM. bovis-free livestock; however, precautionary advice for farm owners was provided.

Our global interconnectedness has first been expressed in the transformation of business and entertainment, but it will have profound effects on all aspects of our lives, including education and health. Today's students are accustomed to supplying and consuming user-generated content, such as the videos of YouTube, and to using social networking applications, such as MySpace. This can be turned to their advantage in the development of work skills for the twenty-first century. Central among these skills will be the ability to work in teams that cross disciplinary, cultural, and geographic borders.

Food systems educators face a double challenge: (1) the inherent change in scope and perspective from raising animals to producing safe food in an environmentally conscientious manner; and (2) the unprecedented demand for higher education, both nationally and internationally. In the modern world, small numbers of producers are capable of feeding a growing population. As demographics have shifted from rural to urban areas, more global livelihoods are derived from manufacturing and services than from agriculture. Education, as one of those services, is accounting for an increasing percentage of world trade, through the physical translocation of students and, more recently, through online education. Within the veterinary realm, colleges outside the United States seek accreditation to better compete for students, and there is increasing pressure from private schools. Today's food systems require a high level of veterinary expertise, with specialization in a particular production system as well as the ability to contribute as part of a larger team that can address economic, bio-security, biological-waste, animal-welfare, food-safety, and public-health concerns. The need for different expertise from food systems specialists (indeed, shortages of all types of veterinary specialists), combined with global competition in education, is a call to action for the veterinary profession. This is an opportunity to revisit and reorganize the delivery of veterinary education, making use of new collaborative technologies for greater efficiency and effectiveness.

In this article, advances in the application of medical media to education, clinical care, and research are explored and illustrated with examples, and their future potential is discussed. Impact is framed in terms of the Sloan Consortium’s five pillars of quality education: access; student and faculty satisfaction; learning effectiveness; and cost effectiveness. (Hiltz SR, Zhang Y, Turoff M. Studies of effectiveness of learning networks. In Bourne J, Moore J, ed. Elements of Quality Online Education. Needham, MA: Sloan–Consortium, 2002:15–45). The alternatives for converting analog media (text, photos, graphics, sound, video, animations, radiographs) to digital media and direct digital capture are covered, as are options for storing, manipulating, retrieving, and sharing digital collections. Diagnostic imaging is given particular attention, clarifying the difference between computerized radiography and digital radiography and explaining the accepted standard (DICOM) and the advantages of Web PACS. Some novel research applications of medical media are presented.

Background: The threat of a global pandemic posed by outbreaks of influenza H5N1 (1997) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS, 2002), both diseases of zoonotic origin, provoked interest in improving early warning systems and reinforced the need for combining data from different sources. It led to the use of search query data from search engines such as Google and Yahoo! as an indicator of when and where influenza was occurring. This methodology has subsequently been extended to other diseases and has led to experimentation with new types of social media for disease surveillance. Objective: The objective of this scoping review was to formally assess the current state of knowledge regarding the use of search queries and social media for disease surveillance in order to inform future work on early detection and more effective mitigation of the effects of foodborne illness. Methods: Structured scoping review methods were used to identify, characterize, and evaluate all published primary research, expert review, and commentary articles regarding the use of social media in surveillance of infectious diseases from 2002-2011. Results: Thirty-two primary research articles and 19 reviews and case studies were identified as relevant. Most relevant citations were peer-reviewed journal articles (29/32, 91%) published in 2010-11 (28/32, 88%) and reported use of a Google program for surveillance of influenza. Only four primary research articles investigated social media in the context of foodborne disease or gastroenteritis. Most authors (21/32 articles, 66%) reported that social media-based surveillance had comparable performance when compared to an existing surveillance program. The most commonly reported strengths of social media surveillance programs included their effectiveness (21/32, 66%) and rapid detection of disease (21/32, 66%). The most commonly reported weaknesses were the potential for false positive (16/32, 50%) and false negative (11/32, 34%) results. Most authors (24/32, 75%) recommended that social media programs should primarily be used to support existing surveillance programs. Conclusions: The use of search queries and social media for disease surveillance are relatively recent phenomena (first reported in 2006). Both the tools themselves and the methodologies for exploiting them are evolving over time. While their accuracy, speed, and cost compare favorably with existing surveillance systems, the primary challenge is to refine the data signal by reducing surrounding noise. Further developments in digital disease surveillance have the potential to improve sensitivity and specificity, passively through advances in machine learning and actively through engagement of users. Adoption, even as supporting systems for existing surveillance, will entail a high level of familiarity with the tools and collaboration across jurisdictions. [J Med Internet Res 2013;15(7):e147]