Veterinary courses and events
assist ongoing education

EVENTS and courses scheduled for this year for small animal veterinarians and health workers are as follows:

33rd WSAVA Congress and 14th European FECAVA Congress, August 20-24, 2008 - Dublin, Ireland: Registration is now open! Start planning your trip to Dublin and register now to take advantage of early bird registration. Deadline to avail of early registration fees - May 9, 2008. With cheap direct flights to Dublin (Aer Lingus) from Europe and USA/Canada and even more options for our UK visitors (Ryan Air, BMI) getting to Dublin couldn’t be easier! To avoid disappointment, why not book your hotel now, for further information check out our website: http://www.wsava2008.com/

WSAVA/FECAVA 2008 scientific program: This is now available for you to download from the congress website; it offers a comprehensive package to delegates whether they are specialists, experienced practitioners or veterinarians starting up in companion animal practice. Veterinary nurses and animal health technicians have a weekend program.
Pre-congress meetings: These meetings will take place on Wednesday 20th August 2008 in the Veterinary Sciences Centre, University College Dublin covering emergency medicine, feline medicine and avian medicine and surgery.

International Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Symposium (IVECCS): September 17-21, 2008 - Phoenix, Arizona. The Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Society (VECCS), the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care (ACVECC) and the Academy of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Technicians (AVECCT) combine to present four-and-a-half days of world-class continuing education. This intense clinical symposium will feature comprehensive programs on small animals, exotics and equine for veterinarians, technicians and hospital staff. IVECCS is considered to be unsurpassed in CE quality and clinical relevance. The theme for IVECCS 2008 is "Imaging for Emergency and Critical Care" which will emphasize the latest in technology and practical application to optimize clinical patient care. Contact information: VECCS, 6335 Camp Bullis Road 12, San Antonio, TX, 78257, USA. Ph: 800-948-3227 or 210-698-5575, Fax: 210-698-7138.

The Royal Veterinary College Haematology and Cytology course online. April 21 - June 1, 2008. Course fee £499 + vat - £583.83. This six-week course is designed to improve your knowledge and skills in interpreting blood smears and cytological specimens frequently seen in small animal practice. Participants will develop a logical approach to interpretation of peripheral blood smears and cytological samples through a case-based approach. Problems addressed will include haematology, abdominal and thoracic fluids, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, urinary sediment analysis and liver fine needle aspirates. It is suitable for all clinicians in small animal practice who wish to improve their approach and their skills in interpreting blood smears and cytological preparations. This program was reviewed and approved by AAVSB's RACE Program for continuing education. Please contact the AAVSB's RACE program at race@aavsb.org should you have any comments/suggestions regarding this program's validity or relevancy to the veterinary profession. RVC e-cpd courses allow veterinarians from around the world to participate in interactive online learning. The courses offered in 2008 cover a range of topics relevant to clinical practice. The courses run for six weeks and are moderated by expert clinicians. Depending on the course topic, they consist of a mixture of case presentations and assessment, radiographs, downloadable reference sources (notes, text book references, relevant journal articles), quizzes, web links and online discussions. There is no need to log on at any particular time of the day or night so the courses can be completed in your own time. However, you do need to be able to spend at least five hours each week on the course and log on several times throughout each week to get maximum benefit. For further information please call +44 (0) 1707 666 865.

Dentistry and Oral Surgery course: May 18-23, 2008 - Orlando, Florida. This course will allow the attendee to become proficient in the recognition, diagnosis and treatment of common oral diseases in dogs and cats. This course includes laboratories in oral radiography, oral surgery and periodontal disease. This course will include but is not limited to regional anesthesia, surgical extractions, oral fracture repair, endodontics, restorative dentistry and orthodontics. The goals of this course are to allow the attendee to become proficient with the recognition, diagnosis and treatment of very common oral diseases in dogs and cats.
Course textbooks: Veterinary Dentistry Practice and Principles. Wiggs RB, Lobprise HB. 1st ed. Wiley-Blackwell; 1997; and Veterinary Dental Techniques. Holmstrom SE, Frost P, Eisner ER. 3rd ed. Saunders; 2004. The course leader is William Gengler, DVM, DAVDC.

Dermatology course: May 18-23, 2008 - Orlando, Florida. This dermatology course will focus on common, everyday dermatologic conditions seen in practice, with an emphasis on practical diagnosis and treatment options. Each day, the course will begin with an intensive series of theme-focused lectures; subjects covered will include allergies, skin infections, endocrine skin diseases, feline skin diseases, scaling diseases, nodular and draining skin lesions, and nail disease. Each evening, we will highlight the practical value of the day’s lecture material with a "Putting It Together for Practice" session. These sessions will use case discussions, interactive exercises, "dry lab" activities, and visual tutorials to show you how the day’s learnings can be applied to your practice. Another important theme of the course is ear disease, a common concurrent issue in patients with skin disease. A full day of lecture will be complemented by a 3-hour wet lab where participants can practice ear examination, video otoscopy, and ear irrigation techniques. Additional practical skills taught during laboratory sessions include instruction in skin cytology, dermatophyte culture, and interpretation of serum-based allergy tests.

In order to provide the best learning experience, registrants are required to complete a series of readings and a self-assessment exercise prior to the course. This foundation material will not be covered in the lectures; rather, it will be built upon. Come prepared for an interesting and dynamic week of practical approaches to skin disease! Further information on all these courses and events can be found on the IVIS website: www.ivis.com