Journal of veterinary medical education最新文献

Approximately 10% of undergraduate student populations are neurodivergent. Such students have differences in executive functioning and social communication skills, which can confer both strengths and challenges in the academic environment. Specific challenges presenting in the veterinary curriculum include the intense workload, unpredictable nature of work, and high level of interpersonal and communication skills required in clinical settings. Extramural studies (EMS) occur remote from university support systems, adding further challenge for some students. A survey was sent to all current United Kingdom veterinary schools in 2022 to identify current support for neurodivergent students. An interactive roundtable discussion was held to brainstorm best practice for harnessing the power of neurodiversity in the clinical learning environment. Several consistent themes emerged. Most veterinary schools provide some degree of support for neurodivergent individuals, but support varies widely. Four of the 8 schools provide support at open days and/or following offers, with one school offering a summer school. Five schools confirmed that accommodations were made to clinical rotations and/or extramural studies in line with a support plan from their Disability Service. Despite these steps to assist neurodivergent students, support could, and should, be increased to improve the student experience. Suggested enhancements include a supportive environment for the empowerment of disclosure, neurodiversity awareness training for university staff and placement providers, provision of reasonable adjustment guidelines for EMS providers, clinical/intramural rotation orientation and support, and student access to a neurodiversity mentor/coach.

Students may struggle as they enter the veterinary curriculum because they have historically been successful academically and so may fail to recognize the necessary changes in study skills required to manage the increased content and rigor of veterinary training. This manuscript describes processes used by one school to help students better understand study strategies and to address students' academic and personal concerns that may impact their achievement.

Proficiency with ram breeding soundness examinations requires competency with palpation, a skill that can be difficult to teach and assess. There are limited small ruminant clinical skills models available, despite the advantages they offer in veterinary education. We developed reusable models for teaching ram breeding soundness examinations, focusing on scrotal assessment and palpation. Then we integrated these models into a practical session where multiple clinical aspects were included. We created anatomically normal ("sound") testes using 3D modeling software before editing these to display common abnormalities ("unsound" testes). Then, we 3D printed two-part molds and cast the silicone testes. Testes were inserted into siliconized, lubricated stockings facilitating free movement during palpation. Scrotal sacs were sewn from polar fleece and suspended to mimic natural orientation in a live, standing ram. As well as for scheduled classes, we used the models as a station in our course's Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) assessment. Our models offer advantages in the veterinary education context. Their relatively low cost and durability facilitates their classification as "open access" within our skills lab for student deliberate practice outside scheduled classes. They provide a uniform student learning experience that does not rely on live animals or clinical case load and aligns with best-practice recommendations from accrediting bodies. Student engagement and OSCE outcomes were good, but going forward it would be ideal to collaborate with a program that uses live rams for teaching and assessing this skill to directly examine the impact of our models on confidence and competence.

Within the evolving landscape of veterinary education in the United Kingdom, an increasing shift toward a distributed model of instruction necessitates that clinicians who assume the role of novice educators, receive training as clinical educators. The University of Surrey has pioneered a training program aimed at promoting understanding and application of educational theory in veterinary educator identity development. This study investigated the reflections of novice educators upon conclusion of their training to delineate the program's efficacy and identify areas of educator training necessitating further research and enhancement. A convenience sample of 53 reflective narratives was subjected to inductive thematic analysis. Three principal themes emerged. The first encapsulated an enhanced cognizance of student learning needs, underscored by foundational learning theories. Notably, the introduction of "feedforward" and the incorporation of student reflection within the feedback mechanism were identified as innovative concepts. The second theme revolved around the personal growth experienced because of participation in the training program, with 47% of reflections articulating profound introspection. The final theme explored the perceptions of the rewards and challenges associated with balancing the educational program with routine professional responsibilities, highlighting an increase in self-confidence and the obstacles encountered in allocating time for training.

A significant proportion of students in a given course may choose not to participate verbally. Instructor concerns about these "quiet" students include lack of participation in social aspects of learning and difficulty in assessing student engagement and understanding. Instructors and students at a college of veterinary medicine completed anonymous surveys. Instructors perceived a greater percentage of the class as quiet in lecture settings with more verbal participation in laboratory settings and clinical settings. Instructors in this program regularly asked questions during class but rarely cold called on students. Students enjoyed small group work and were very uncomfortable with cold calling. The primary reasons that students chose not to participate verbally in class were judgement by classmates and fear of being wrong or not knowing the answer. Suggestions for universal course design to better incorporate quiet students include giving all students time to formulate a response and using methods that minimize singling out of students, such as small group discussions and polling tools.

Health science schools are increasingly promoting teaching training among their faculty. Reported challenges for such programs revolve around lack of time and lack of support for faculty and other teaching staff to pursue such training. This is a description of the components of a teaching training program that is available for all instructional faculty and staff at a veterinary college. Components described include a formal teaching development program with information about participant satisfaction, an educational support website, an annual Education Day, and ancillary programs available throughout the academic year to provide just-in-time support for teaching.

Animal welfare and animal abuse, although measurable, exhibit a high degree of subjectivity that conditions how they are perceived and the level of sensitivity. Both elements are influenced by individual and sociodemographic factors. To determine the perception of animal welfare among veterinary students and to study the main sociodemographic factors influencing the assessment of animal welfare. To evaluate animal welfare perception at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria's Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, a 20-question survey was deployed via the Google Surveys platform. Distributed across all academic years, it was facilitated with QR codes located within the faculty premises. The data collection occurred from November 1, 2022, to November 30, 2022. A total of 223 students responded the questionnaire about perception of animal abuse, which represents 56.3% of the total enrollment in the academic year 2022-2023. Sensitivity to animal welfare, including academic training on how to respond to animal abuse, increased as students progressed through their studies. However, as students approached the end of their studies, they became less willing to make voluntary efforts. The profile of the veterinary student least sensitive to animal abuse appeared to be men without dogs who reside in rural habitats and have family members involved in hunting or fishing. We propose the implementation of intensive courses on animal welfare throughout the veterinary curriculum, along with an understanding of the veterinarian's role in reporting animal abuse. This approach aims to foster a foundation of critical awareness and commitment to animals.

Edge-and-corner (E&C) pathology is defined as clinically relevant findings in diagnostic imaging that are located at the physical periphery of studies and thus easily overlooked. Satisfaction of search is a perceptive interpretation error which can compound the difficulty of detecting E&C lesions. Guiding veterinary students to systematically identify these lesions would likely benefit their training, and the authors sought to determine whether teaching the concept of satisfaction of search could influence students' ability to detect E&C lesions. Sixty-five students beginning their clinical radiology rotation were recruited and allocated into treatment, placebo, and control groups. All were taught systematic imaging review techniques, though only the treatment group was taught about satisfaction of search error. A radiographic interpretation quiz was administered to assess students' ability to detect E&C lesions, determine whether awareness of satisfaction of search error impacts E&C lesion detection, and assess general preparation for the rotation based on application of knowledge from pre-clinical coursework. Additional associations between quiz performance and grade point average (GPA), pre-clinical radiology grade, veterinary school of matriculation, and weeks of clinical year experience were evaluated. No significant difference in detection of E&C lesions was found between any groups, though GPA, radiology course grade, and school of matriculation were significantly associated with general quiz performance. Results indicate that E&C lesion detection is a difficult task for students, that brief, lecture-based teaching of satisfaction of search error does not influence E&C lesion detection, and that pre-clinical grades at the authors' institution are predictive of imaging rotation preparedness.

People with disabilities experiencing low socioeconomic position are priority populations when considering access to veterinary care. In this population, intersectional inequities lead to adverse health outcomes for both those individuals and the companion animals they care for. Community-based veterinary clinics provide an opportunity to target these inequities from a culturally sensitive lens, intending to improve human and animal outcomes. We conducted a process evaluation of a student-led community-based clinic for this population to better understand client satisfaction, assess learning outcomes among veterinary students, and improve program delivery and services. During academic year 2020-2021, the monthly clinics had 162 appointments in total with a median 15 Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) candidates volunteering at each clinic. Clients and volunteers responded to survey questionnaires designed to elicit information about their experiences with the clinic, including open-ended questions for further elucidation of measurable indicators of client-, patient-, and student-level impact. Clients attributed enrollment in the clinic with improved quality-of-life and reduction of financial burden; the program saved clients approximately $2,050 per pet during the evaluation year. Furthermore, the clinic widely facilitated completion of the college's core Primary Care and Dentistry learning outcomes. Beyond curriculum-standard learning objectives, students also reported positive attitude changes and increased readiness to provide care to people with disabilities and people experiencing low socioeconomic position. The results of this evaluation have significant implications for both veterinary and public health pedagogy. Especially, they highlight the significance of community health practice in veterinary trainee education.