1. CEO & Executive Vice President
Analysis of Veterinary Education Programs for Public & Private Veterinarians
Dr. Ron DeHaven
CEO & Executive Vice President
American Veterinary Medical Association
OIE Global Conference on Veterinary Education & the
Role of the Veterinary Statutory Body
December 4-6, 2013
Foz do Iguazu, Brazil

2. “The foundation of every state is the education of its youth.”
Veterinary Education
“The foundation of every state is the education of its youth.”
- Diogenes Laertius; 3rd century AD
A crucial first step in establishing a strong educational foundation is to define minimum competencies for both public- and private-practice veterinarians to perform veterinary service tasks. Defining minimum competencies will also assist veterinary education establishments (VEEs) in developing and implementing curricula to allow graduates to achieve those competencies. Incorporating veterinary educational prerequisites and requirements into governance documents that regulate VS will help to ensure that those who deliver VS have an adequate knowledge and skills base to do so. Public-private partnerships may be particularly effective in designing and implementing curricula that address defined minimum competencies and assure the quality of VEEs. Through these partnerships, a system of continuous quality improvement is established that embodies the qualities essential to good governance practices. Such practices will ultimately strengthen national VS, better protect animal and public health, and ensure food security.

3. Outline OIE definitions OIE ad hoc Group on Veterinary Education
Quality assurance of veterinary education
Role of veterinary statutory bodies
Take home messages

4. National Veterinary Services
Governmental and non-governmental organisations that implement animal health and welfare measures and other standards and recommendations in the Terrestrial Code and the OIE Aquatic Animal Health Code in the territory. …are under the overall control and direction of the Veterinary Authority. Private sector organisations, veterinarians, veterinary paraprofessionals or aquatic animal health professionals are normally accredited or approved by the Veterinary Authority to deliver the delegated functions.
The next three slides are of OIE definitions (from the glossary of the Terrestrial Code at to ensure we are all on the same page and have a clear understanding of the scope and intent of the OIE in the education arena.

5. Veterinary Statutory Body
An autonomous regulatory body for veterinarians and veterinary para-professionals.
From OIE page on statutory bodies: Role of the Veterinary Statutory Body (VSB)
The OIE has recognized the need for all Members that have not already done so to create an independent veterinary statutory body (VSB), which is responsible for overseeing the quality and professional conduct of veterinarians working in the country. An effective VSB can help to ensure the excellence of the veterinary profession by setting standards for licensing and education (both initial and continuing) and by taking disciplinary action in cases of non-compliance with licensing requirements for the veterinary profession.
Closer collaboration between veterinary education establishments, Veterinary Services, VSBs and, as appropriate, veterinary associations should be established in order to improve veterinary governance globally.
The OIE is taking steps to improve global and regional recognition of the important role of VSBs. As part of this initiative, the OIE Regional Representation for Africa held a conference on ‘The role of Veterinary Statutory Bodies’ in Bamako, Mali on April The Bamako Declaration may be accessed here.
In future, the OIE envisages extending its ‘Twinning concept’, as successfully used to improve the competencies of veterinary laboratories, to veterinary education establishments and VSBs It is the responsibility of developed countries and international donors to assist developing countries improve their veterinary education for the global public good.

6. Education in the Terrestrial Code
Article : Outlines appropriate requirements for the self-evaluation or evaluation of Veterinary Services, to include, under veterinary education:
number of veterinary schools;
length of veterinary course (years);
curriculum addressing the minimum competencies of day 1 veterinary graduates and the post-graduate and continuing education topics to assure the delivery of quality veterinary services, as described in the relevant chapter(s) of the Terrestrial Code;
international recognition of veterinary degree.
Also, want to provide some context as to why the OIE is interested in the issue of veterinary education. First, the Terrestrial Animal Health Code, makes mention of the importance of veterinary education in ensuring quality Veterinary Services at several points —primarily in Section 3
Article : The policy and objectives of the veterinary statutory body…should be defined, notably with regard to minimum standards of education (initial and continuing) required for degrees, diplomas and certificates entitling the holders to be registered/licensed as veterinarians and veterinary para-professionals.
Note, this slide outline but two examples. These two examples provide reasons for OIE member countries to pay attention to the quality of veterinary education available and consider the OIE guidance documents on this issue that have been developed by the ad hoc Group on Education, reviewed and approved by the Code Commission, and ultimately adopted by the World Assembly.
The SPS Agreement)encourages the members of the WTO to base their sanitary measures on international standards, guidelines and recommendations, where they exist. The OIE is the WTO reference organisation for standards relating to animal health and zoonoses. The Terrestrial Animal Health Code and  the Aquatic Animal Health Code  traditionally addressed animal health and zoonoses, but they have, in recent years, expanded to cover animal welfare, animal production food safety, consistent with the expanded mandate of the OIE which is ‘to improve animal health worldwide’.

7. Education and the Performance of Veterinary Services
The quality of education, both initial and continuing, is a critical building block of effective Veterinary Services.
Where inadequacies are identified, specific follow-up activities, such as OIE Twinning Agreements, may be considered.
In addition, within the OIE Tool for the Evaluation of Performance of Veterinary Services, also known as the PVS tool, education is mentioned as an area to be assessed and, when gaps are identified, treated. For example….
PVS = Performance of Veterinary Services
The evaluation of Performance of Veterinary Services is but the first step in The OIE PVS Pathway. This pathway is a global program resulting in sustainable improvement in compliance of a member country with OIE standards on the quality of Veterinary Services. It involves a PVS Evaluation conducted by OIE approved and trained experts after a member country has submitted a self evaluation; a PVS Gap Analysis; suggestions for treatments to improve four primary components: Veterinary Legislation, Public-Private Partnerships, Veterinary Education, and Laboratories; to be followed by a follow-up evaluation to assess improvement.
The Ad hoc Education Group work products are found with the Performance of Veterinary Services area of the OIE Web site at

8. OIE ad hoc Group on Veterinary Education
Established following first OIE Global Conference “Evolving Education for a Safer World” in November 2009.
Five in-person meetings between June 2010 and July 2012 plus electronic communications.
Established following 2009 OIE Global Conference “Evolving Education for a Safer World.”
Charge centered on defining minimum competencies for delivery of National Veterinary Services & developing model core curriculum to meet those competencies.
Completed its work with adoption of the Model Curriculum by OIE World Assembly of Delegates in May 2013.

9. Ad hoc Group Members Dr. Ron DeHaven, USA [Chair]
Dr. Saeb Nazmi El-Sukhon, Jordan
Dr. Louis Joseph Pangui, Senegal
Dr. Brian G. Bedard, The World Bank
Dr. Tjeerd Jorna, WVA
Dr. Froilán Enrique Peralta, Paraguay
Dr. Etienne Bonbon, DG-SANCO
Prof. Pierre Lekeux, Belgium
Dr. Timothy Ogilvie, Canada
Dr. Dao Bui Tran Anh, Vietnam
OIE provided, as always, excellent support to the AHG over its almost four years of activities, including
Dr Bernard Vallat, Director General
Dr Alex Thiermann, President, OIE Code Commission
Drs Sarah Kahn and Derek Bolton, Head, International Trade Department
Dr Wim Pelgrim, Chargé de mission
Mariela Varas, Chargée de mission - International Trade Department

10. Ad hoc Group Goals
Core competencies for all veterinarians that are relevant to the effective delivery of National Veterinary Services.
Address particular needs of developing countries

11. Tenets of ad hoc Group
Only some veterinarians will focus careers on delivery of National Veterinary Services, BUT
All veterinarians are responsible for promoting animal health & welfare and veterinary public health, AND
Many veterinarians perform work for National Veterinary Services, THUS THE NEED FOR…
The AHG based its work on these three tenets….

12. Ad hoc Group Work Products
…development of minimum competencies and model core curriculum relative to delivery of entry-level National Veterinary Services.
Again, the final work products of the AHG primarily consist of these two documents:
OIE recommendations on the Competencies of graduating veterinarians (‘Day 1 graduates’) to assure National Veterinary Services of quality
Veterinary Education Core Curriculum---OIE Guidelines

13. Minimum Competencies Document
Two sections
Basic Competencies: minimum knowledge, skills, attitudes and aptitudes required for a veterinarian to be licensed by a VSB.
Advanced Competencies: minimum knowledge, skills, attitudes and aptitudes required for a veterinarian to work within the Veterinary Authority.
Taking into account the vast societal, economic, and political differences among OIE Member Countries, including the different existing Veterinary Education Establishments accreditation schemes, this document sets out the competencies necessary for the Day 1 veterinary graduate to be adequately prepared to participate in National Veterinary Services at the entry-level.
Explanatory note: The Day 1 veterinary graduate should have mastery of basic competencies and a general awareness and appreciation of advanced competencies.
Basic competencies can be divided into “general” competencies (which are not addressed in detail in this document) and “specific” competencies.
Only those general competencies specifically relevant to national veterinary services are more precisely defined by the ad hoc Group

14. Basic General Competencies
Basic veterinary sciences
Taught early in the curriculum
Prerequisite to clinical studies
Clinical veterinary sciences
Competencies necessary to diagnose, treat and prevent animal diseases
Animal production
Includes health management and economics of animal production.
These are not defined further in the Minimum Competencies Document

15. Basic Specific Competencies
Directly relate to critical competencies in OIE Terrestrial Code
Each is defined, and learning objectives for the entry-level veterinarian are provided.
This document identifies eleven specific competencies and eight advanced competencies.
Explanatory note: The Day 1 veterinary graduate should have mastery of basic competencies and a general awareness and appreciation of advanced competencies.

16. Specific Competencies Outlined
Epidemiology
Transboundary animal diseases
Zoonoses
Emerging/re-emerging diseases
Disease prevention & control programmes
Food hygiene
Veterinary products
Animal welfare
Veterinary legislation and ethics
General certification procedures
Communication skills

17. Advanced Competencies
Instruction introduced during professional curriculum
Expertise better obtained through postgraduate CE and on-the-job training
Objective for the Day 1 graduate is to have a general awareness of, and appreciation for, each competency.

18. Advanced Competencies Outlined
Organisation of Veterinary Services
Inspection and certification procedures
Management of contagious disease
Food hygiene
Application of risk analysis
Research
International trade framework
Administration and management
Explanatory note: The Day 1 veterinary graduate should have mastery of basic competencies and a general awareness and appreciation of advanced competencies.

19. Minimum Competencies Serve as Guidance for…
Veterinary Education Establishments (VEE) in developing countries and countries with in-transition economies as they enhance and refine curricula.
OIE PVS assessors during evaluation of the education component of National Veterinary Services

20. Pathway to Competencies
Now need a tool to aid in developing and implementing a curriculum to teach these competencies and arrive at the expected outcomes.
Model Core Veterinary Curriculum

21. Scope of Model Curriculum
Primarily for developing and in-transition countries
Tools to improve quality of veterinary medical education
An initial step to enhance National Veterinary Services
NOT recommending adoption of a single global curriculum

22. Model Core Curriculum Maps courses to competencies
Provides recommendations on when each course should be taught in curriculum (early, mid, late)
Guideline for VEE’s seeking to improve educational quality
The OIE recognizes that these Guidelines refer to but one model core curriculum and does not presume that this is the only model that can be implemented to successfully educate veterinary students for provision of high-quality of National Veterinary Services. In addition, this model is intended to accommodate a variety of veterinary educational systems that occur over a four-, five- or six-year curriculum. For example in the USA, students typically complete at least two years of undergraduate university education to fulfil minimum educational prerequisites prior to being admitted to a VEE with a four-year curriculum leading to the professional degree of DVM (or VMD). In many other countries, veterinary schools accept students directly following successful completion of secondary (high) school, and the VEE curriculum is five or six years leading to a variety of degrees (BVM, BVSc, MV, MVS, MVSc). Furthermore in some countries, secondary school curricula may include courses more commonly taught in undergraduate university-level curricula in the USA or Canada. As such, the recommended sequencing of the courses in this Model Core Veterinary Curriculum must be adjusted to reflect the length of the veterinary degree programme and the pre-veterinary course requirements.

23. Competencies Mapped Example
Course
Sequence in Curriculum
General
Specific
Advanced
Biochemistry
Early X
Pathology
Mid
Zoonoses
Transboundary Diseases
Epidemiology
Emerging & Reemerging Diseases
Transmissible Diseases
Disease Prevention and Control Prog’s
Management of Contagious Diseases

24. Quality Assurance of Veterinary Education
Necessary to ensure VEEs meet- and continue to meet - established standards
Involves internal and external processes
Establishes process for continual improvement
Accreditation is the process of applying standard requirements that reflect societal and professional expectations to both self and peer reviews of an educational institution or programme, to determine whether that institution or programme complies with all, some or none of the standards

25. Accreditation
Process of applying standard requirements reflecting societal and professional expectations of an educational institution or program
Peer review is conducted by stakeholders in the academic program under evaluation.
Government recognition of accreditation process confers consequences to results.
Accreditation forms the basis on which to ensure delivery of effective Veterinary Services
Focus this part of the presentation on one example of an external QA program common in the USA and Canada and other countries, including the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand.
For veterinary medicine, these stakeholders include both those involved in the educational process and the end-users of the product of the educational process – that product being the new veterinarian or veterinary para-professional.
More on the last point later.

26. Accreditation Components
Establish minimum standards
Self-evaluation prepared by the program assessing how it meets each standard
Peer review and on-site visit by third-party experts
Accreditation decision by recognized accreditor based on whether program meets standards
Ongoing review on a regular cycle
Standards need to address items essential for delivery of educational program and desired outcome.
Accreditation standards are not meant to be static. Instead, standards must be reviewed on a regular basis to ensure that they accurately reflect the minimum expectations for a given society and profession at a given time (3). As such, accreditation standards will vary among countries and regions, dependent, in large part, on societal needs and financial and other infrastructural resources. To ensure that accreditation reflects the needs of a given society, whether those needs are defined on a local, national or regional basis, input on standards must be sought from all stakeholders. Thus, through the process of self and peer review, and the continuing refinement of standards, the accreditation of educational programmes is both a system of quality assurance and of quality improvement.
Examples include finances, curriculum, faculty, outcomes assessment, facilities.

27. Examples of Accrediting Entities
Australia and New Zealand
Australasian Veterinary Boards Council
United Kingdom
Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons
USA & Canada
AVMA Council on Education
Accreditation process of each of these entities is or authorized by the government, be it federal, state, or provincial. As such, VEE accredited by these entities (that is, have a positive outcome to the accreditation process and meet the standards) and the students at and graduates of such accredited program have certain rights such as access to student loans, eligibility for licensure or registration to practise).

28. Role of Veterinary Statutory Bodies
An autonomous regulatory body for veterinarians and veterinary para-professionals
Incorporating veterinary educational prerequisites and requirements into governance documents that regulate the profession to help ensure those who are licensed have an adequate knowledge and skills to practice the profession
Despite the myriad career paths available to graduate veterinarians, the educational process leading to the first professional degree should provide all graduates with at least a basic understanding and skill level in those areas that most affect Veterinary Services (VS), as defined by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). If graduates do not receive these fundamental skills, the capacity of VS will be adversely affected, as will the protection of animal and public health and the assurance of food security. In addition, a well-educated veterinary workforce will better be able to understand and actively participate in and advance good governance practices – namely, predictable, open and enlightened policy-making; a bureaucracy imbued with a professional ethos; and a strong civil society participating in public affairs (32). Such practices are a necessary base on which to provide quality VS through strong public-private partnerships. For these reasons alone, it seems appropriate for the veterinary authority to recognise the importance of veterinary education and include basic minimum requirements within governance documents that define and regulate national VS.
Education leading to the first professional veterinary degree (e.g. DVM, VMD, BVSc) is a vital link in assuring the delivery of efficacious VS and, hence, protecting animal and public health. It is thus appropriate that the quality of that education is addressed legislatively at the regional, national or local level. This is most often accomplished through a process of licensure, certification or registration.

29. Veterinary Statutory Bodies USA
Individual states license veterinarians so that they may legally practise veterinary medicine in that state.
Licensure is a state government activity, with authority granted by the state legislature to the veterinary regulatory board in each state.
The composition and scope of the regulatory boards are defined legislatively in each state’s veterinary practice act. Both AVMA, the non-governmental, national professional veterinary association in the USA, and the American Association of Veterinary State Boards (AAVSB), a non-governmental association of veterinary state (USA) and provincial (Canada) regulatory boards, provide model veterinary practice acts that state governments may use to create, assess and modify their own practice acts.

30. Key Take-Home Message #1
OIE minimum competencies and model core curriculum are excellent tools to assist educational programs, particularly in developing countries.

31. Key Take-Home Message #2
OIE minimum competencies and model core curriculum are excellent tools to help in the PVS assessment as it relates to quality of veterinary education.
minimum competencies has real value across country borders in ensuring, for example, that an international health certificate issued by a veterinarian in one country may be regarded with confidence by the authorities in the receiving country, since they know that such certification was provided by a qualified individual. Establishing an accepted set of minimum competencies also provides additional information with which to conduct PVS assessments. This, in turn, will lead to the identification of gaps in educational infrastructure that can be improved upon to enhance the VS of OIE Member Countries.

32. Key Take-Home Message #3
Ongoing quality assurance of veterinary and para-veterinary educational programs is important to the advance the profession - and may be best carried out on a national or regional level to reflect differences in societal needs and professional expectations.

33. Key Take-Home Message #4
Government recognition of minimum educational standards for veterinarians and para-veterinarians practicing in the private and public sectors helps ensure quality of the profession, which in turn improves animal and human health and welfare.

34. Thank You!