Toward a practice-based approach to legal education in the veterinary medical curriculum

I have a little dog, a little Maltese dog, Billy Byrd. He is approaching his 14th birthday. If I ever saw in this world anything that was made by the Creator's hand that is more dedicated, more true, more undeviant, more faithful than this little dog, I am at a loss to state what it is . . .We love that little dog. (Robert S. Byrd, U.S. Senator).     

Videoconferencing in a veterinary curriculum

Videoconferencing is a powerful and versatile method for distance learning. Videoconferencing incorporates real-time video and audio into connections with distant sites and, when combined with simultaneous Internet transmission of high-resolution images, enables veterinary educators to expand the classroom to include students and faculty from remote sites. The University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine (UTCVM) has used videoconferencing to deliver and receive entire courses, virtual rounds, seminars, journal clubs, and small meetings and for in-house transmission from one area of the campus to another. Responses from faculty and students at UTCVM indicate that videoconferencing technology will be a permanent part of the academic mission of the college for years to come. This article describes a number of veterinary school applications using distance-learning approaches that the authors hope will serve as examples upon which others can build.     

Virtual microscopy in a veterinary curriculum

Teaching faculty in the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine assist students in their professional education by providing a new way of viewing microscopic slides digitally. Faculty who teach classes in which glass slides are used participate in a program called Virtual Microscopy. Glass slides are digitized using a state-of-the-art integrated system, and a personal computer functions as the "microscope." Additionally, distribution of the interactive images is enhanced because they are available to students online. The digital slide offers equivalent quality and resolution to the original glass slide viewed on a microscope and has several additional advantages over microscopes. Students can choose to examine the entire slide at any of several objectives; they are able to access the slides (called WebSlides) from the college's server, using either Internet Explorer or a special browser developed by Bacus Laboratories, Inc.,(a) called the WebSlide browser, which lets the student simultaneously view a low-objective image and one or two high-objective images of the same slide. The student can "move the slide" by clicking and dragging the image to a new location. Easy archiving, annotation of images, and Web conferencing are additional features of the system.     

Tablet computers in the veterinary curriculum

Tablet computers offer a new method of information management in veterinary medical education. With the tablet computer, students can annotate class notes using electronic ink, search for keywords, and convert handwriting to text as needed. Additional electronic learning resources, such as medical dictionaries and electronic textbooks, can be readily available. Eleven first-year veterinary students purchased tablet computers and participated in an investigation of their working methods and perceptions of the tablet computer as an educational tool. Most students found the technology useful. The small size and portability of the tablet allowed easy transport and use in a variety of environments. Most students adapted to electronic notetaking by the second week of classes; negative experiences with the tablet centered on a failure to become comfortable with taking notes and navigating on the computer as opposed to writing and searching on paper. A few performance-related problems, including short battery life, were reported. Tablet software allowed conversion of faculty course notes from a variety of original formats, meaning that instructors could maintain their original methods of note preparation. Adopting a consistent naming convention for files helped students to locate the files on their computers, and smaller file sizes helped with computer performance. Collaboration between students was fostered by tablet use, which offers possibilities for future development of collaborative learning environments.     

Reviewing the undergraduate veterinary curriculum in Finland for control tasks in veterinary public health

To review and develop the undergraduate veterinary curriculum on official control in veterinary public health, an electronic survey was sent to 204 Finnish veterinarians employed in the field of food hygiene in 2005. The response rate was 44%. Most frequently cited as strengths of the current curriculum were extensive education and good knowledge. Respondents considered the main challenges in their work to be a wide field of activity, organizational changes, financial resources, organization of substitutes, and collaboration with decision makers. Of the 23 items to be included in the undergraduate curriculum, therefore, respondents prioritized state and local decision making, the role of the public servant, and leadership and management in the area of social factors; in the field of practical control work, in-house control systems, organizations and responsibilities, control techniques, and planning and targeting of controls were prioritized. Of areas traditionally covered in the undergraduate curriculum, legislation; legal proceedings and implications of controls; risks to human, animal, and plant health; and hazards in feed, animal, and food production were stated to be the most important. Although respondents were generally content with their career choice, veterinary public health tasks were not their first choice of career path immediately after graduation. Based on these findings, more attention should be focused on social aspects and practical training in official control in the undergraduate veterinary curriculum. The survey results also highlight the contrasts between society's needs and veterinarians' motivations and career-path expectations, which pose a significant challenge for future curricula.     

Meat inspection in New Zealand: prospects for change

Regulatory authorities are facing increasing challenges with respect to the newly-recognised public health risks associated with meat products. Meat inspection resources should be allocated according to their maximum ability to reduce food-borne hazards, rather than according to the classical rules of meat inspection. Scientific evaluation of routine post-mortem inspection procedures for each class of livestock, introduction of the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point approach to process control, on-line testing for microbiological hazards and residues, and effective management of production, processing and inspection data are central to this process. The meat inspection system that has evolved in New Zealand reflects a response to non-scientific forces such as market requirements and industrial practices rather than scientific discipline. In the future, the daily routine of meat inspectors will be extended well beyond their current slaughterfloor responsibilities, and veterinarians will require specialist skills. Science should be the basis for international food regulation and policy concepts such as equivalence or mutual acceptance are achievable on this basis.