VMD 411: Veterinary Clinical Medicine-I (General and Systemic) (2+1)

SCOPE OF VETERINARY MEDICINE

Clinical practice

• All veterinarians have a professional responsibility to the community and an important part to play in the economic and social well being of the nation. The primary responsibility of veterinarians in practice is to serve the public through the provision of high quality care for the health and welfare of their animals, whether these animals are kept as pets or for leisure activities, are working animals, farm livestock, or wildlife.
• Veterinary practices are distributed through the country in towns and rural areas. These may involve one veterinarian working on their own but, more commonly, several veterinarians work together. The type of practice varies according to the location. In large cities, for example, practices may deal only with companion animals such as dogs, cats and caged birds. This is commonly referred to as 'small animal' or 'companion animal' practice. In farming areas, the emphasis is on farm livestock such as cattle, sheep, deer and pigs, although other animals such as dogs, cats and horses will also be dealt with ('large animal' or 'mixed' practice). Some practices, particularly in areas where there are large numbers of horses, may deal mainly or solely with them ('equine practice').
• Veterinarians in clinical practice in today generally operate from well-equipped clinics containing x-ray equipment, surgery and animal hospital facilities and laboratory equipment for conducting clinical pathology. There are also private and government-run laboratories that provide diagnostic services for practitioners through the testing of samples of various kinds from their animal patients. These can be for bacteriology, parasitology, virology, pathology, biochemistry and so on. These laboratories commonly employ veterinarians with advanced training.
• Clinical practice offers an interesting career with plenty of variety. Apart from other veterinary skills, it requires an ability to assess facts in investigating outbreaks of disease in order to arrive at a satisfactory diagnosis. Common sense, independence and the ability to work with people of the farming community or other animal owners are necessary. The graduate engaged in this work has ample opportunity to exercise and extend knowledge and practical skills gained during university education.

Some special characteristics of particular types of practice

• Large animal (Farm animal) practice
  • Diagnosing and treating disease in individual animals is an important part of all clinical practice and in some cases it is the major concern. In farm animal practice, however, the veterinarian has additional responsibilities centred on the flocks and herds that make up farming enterprises. Veterinarians have an important contribution to make to the productivity of these flocks and herds by assisting with the planning and development of flock and herd health programmes, monitoring the health status and production of the animals, often working in collaboration with other animal production advisers. Veterinarians in these practices also have an important part to play in national disease control and eradication schemes, in maintaining the quality of animal products in keeping a lookout for exotic diseases or pests that may be brought into the country and in ensuring and promoting animal welfare.
• Equine Practice
  • Some private practitioners practice only in the care of horses, which makes a valuable contribution to the economy. Success in racing requires absolute fitness and by helping to achieve this, veterinarians have significantly contributed to the outstanding reputation of gallopers and trotters. They also play an important part in keeping horses that are used for other sporting and leisure activities fit and well.
• Companion Animal Practice
  • In larger towns and cities, ample opportunity exists for restriction of practice to companion animal work including cats, dogs and other family pets. Most urban small animal practices use similar techniques to those available at a public hospital. In the field of medicine this involves the diagnosis and treatment of such widely differing diseases as diabetes, dysentery, and cancer. Abdominal, thoracic and orthopaedic surgery is routine, although some procedures require specialised equipment that not every practice may have. The use of techniques such as blood transfusion, fluid therapy and advanced procedures for repairing bone fractures are examples of skills that can be expected of a veterinarian providing surgical services. Within companion animal practice, specialisation is becoming increasingly common so that specialist veterinary ophthalmologists, dermatologists, behaviourists and surgeons accept referrals from other companion animal veterinarians.

Food Safety Authority

• This newly setup authority sets standards for food safety for exports of animal (and horticultural) products, and for meat and dairy products for domestic consumption. It is a food safety assurance organisation that provides food evaluation, verification, and certification services to the food production industries. It is concerned with quality control and hygiene in meat and other animal products. Many veterinarians can work in meat processing establishments and are responsible for the standards of hygiene and meat inspection in meat processing establishments to ensure that meat and meat products are fit for human consumption, and can be certified for export or domestic consumption.

Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry

• There are many career opportunities for veterinarians in the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in various cadres.

Veterinary Diagnostic Services

• Diagnostic Services are provided by government and privately owned laboratories. They are staffed by veterinarians, with advanced training in disciplines such as diagnostic pathology, microbiology, virology, parasitology, clinical biochemistry and haematology.

Veterinary Education

• An important employer of veterinary graduates is the education sector, with the different kinds of Veterinary and Animal Science Programmes , being the major employer in this area. Veterinary staff are responsible for most aspects of the training of BVSc undergraduates, diploma students and postgraduate veterinary studies up to doctoral level. An important aspect of the work of the staff is the conduct of research and supervision of postgraduate student research.

Veterinary Research and Technical Services in Industry

• As you would expect in any economy which is so firmly based on animal production, a considerable industry exists in certain packets of India(eg. Poultry in Namakkal District of Tamilnadu) to provide veterinary pharmaceuticals, feedstuffs, and other aids to the maintenance of animal health and production. This industry requires the professional skills of veterinarians, and there are posts available in such fields as technical advisory services and research. Many of these can lead to senior executive management roles.

International Veterinary Science & Service

• There are development projects for livestock industries in overseas countries. A number of veterinarians are involved in projects concerned with this development, with some projects being on a very large scale.

• A veterinary degree can lead to a great diversity of other careers including employment in animal welfare, conservation biology, specialist clinic construction, animal feed formulation and manufacture, and zoological parks.

Other career opportunities