The professional development series is moving from courses focused on separate topics to interconnected courses that provide opportunities for practice and growth in each of the main topics each semester. Outcomes are focused on the CBVE competencies of communication, collaboration, professionalism and professional identity, and financial and practice management. Connections to other courses are an important means of demonstrating the value of these competencies.

Rules of the road

• Each competency has 1-2 leaders that manage that “stream” throughout the course series.

• We have a PD course in each semester to enable practice and forward progress in all 4 competency areas each semester in years 1-3. DEI content is included in each semester.

• *PD courses will be deliberately connected to other courses practicing PD skills

• *Grading is contract-based and A-F for each semester.

• *Assessment will include 3 OSCEs and an ePortfolio to ensure students are meeting the milestone goals.

Purpose of the study

● Due to a progressive increase in average group size in SA Selective I, there was concern that it would be more difficult for students to collaborate effectively and divide work equitably

● Student groups in the Spring 2023 course were asked to assign group roles and create a group contract to encourage effective group work behaviors and facilitate student learning

Primary findings

● By the end of the 3rd class, the majority of students (84%) reported that their groups had

discontinued the use of group roles because they were able to collaborate effectively

without a need for distinct roles, as well as a feeling that the roles were “too structured”

● Student opinion on the usefulness of a group contract was generally positive or

equivocal

Conclusions

● In this course, a majority of student respondents felt that assigning group roles was

unnecessary but there may have been a neutral or positive benefit to completing a group

contract

● Further investigation could evaluate whether these collaborative group work strategies

may become more important in larger groups of >6 students

• The SNAPPS model (Summarize, Narrow, Analyze, Probe, Plan, Self-directed learning) has been reliably used in medical education as a learner-driven model for case presentations in a clinical setting. It is fast-paced and requires learners to commit to a list of differential diagnoses and to an intervention plan while explaining their reasoning.

• SNAPPS was included in a didactic case-based course in 3rd-year Spring to prepare students for a clinical environment.

• Students agreed that SNAPPS made them active participants in their learning, that it allowed them to receive immediate feedback from the instructor and encouraged them to share areas of uncertainty. From the instructor standpoint, step A: Analyze was extremely helpful to understand the students’ reasoning and correct it if necessary. Because the students asked the probing questions, they created the “learning moments”, requiring the instructor to pivot their teaching extemporaneously.

Why?

The Center for Animal Health and Food Safety serves as a World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) collaborating center for Veterinary Services Capacity Building. Through education and training, CAHFS provides support and solidarity to countries to help build skills and resources. Our capacity building initiatives aim to support the sustainable development of communities, countries, and regions that the WOAH serves, around the topics of animal health and disease control. Applying WOAH’s frameworks through implementation of the Twinning project allows to strengthen university-based Veterinary Medicine programs in order to prepare the veterinary workforce for current and future challenges locally and globally.

Primary findings (achievements)

Finding a balance between advising and requesting while connecting partners on different levels is very challenging. Moreover, overcoming cultural barriers and differences in established procedures and practices makes it difficult to implement changes. Our team is proud to build strong partnerships with all stakeholders, which allowed us to introduce significant changes to the veterinary program through expanding it, as well as provide specific training on previously identified issues, contributing to professional development of the faculty from the Samarkand University.

Conclusions

By improving the quality of veterinary education, promoting local research capacity, and building the foundations for a sustainable collaboration, the project leads to strengthening of veterinary service capacities in Uzbekistan to reduce the spread of zoonotic diseases and other public health risks associated with animal agriculture.

Learning equine dentistry relies heavily on visualization of normal dental structures and appearance of dental pathology. The nature of the procedure in a sedated, standing patient along with only one person being able to perform the exam at a time, creates hurdles for learning and comprehension of key skills for students interested in equine practice. Enhancing visualization during the equine oral exam allows for better understanding and engagement for students, as well as clients, and having a low cost borescope option is an approachable solution to this challenge.

Why the study was done: This is a review of the first iteration of the current process for peer review in the College.

Primary findings: Faculty members that are tenure-track / tenured or contract and in all ranks participated in all departments. Participation varied by department and generally leaves much room for improvement, with about 5% of faculty in VCS, about 16% in VPM, and about 38% in VBS being reviewed in the 2021-2022 academic year. Participants were surveyed and reported that the process was easy, that they got good ideas for improvement, and that it was great to have a new perspective on their teaching.

Conclusions: The goal is for all CVM faculty at any rank, with any percentage teaching appointment (DVM, graduate, undergraduate) to review and be reviewed annually and for the College to create a culture where this kind of review is the norm.

Why the study was done: A fascinating book about education is Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns (Christensen CM, Horn MB, Johnson CW, McGraw Hill, ISBN: 978-0-07-174910-7). It describes the business concept of disruptive innovation, the creation of a new product, service, or process in a way that meets current user needs and dramatically changes the standard paradigm. On-line teaching and movement toward more student-centered teaching are examples in education.

Primary findings: Student needs that are currently unmet in a traditional veterinary curriculum include individualized training that recognizes previous knowledge and skills, ability to demonstrate competence in ways other than through standard examination methods, and personal balance with elements of choice in pace and depth of education. Ways we could meet this challenge include using technology to permit students to identify, create, and share resources, increasing competency-based assessments and decreasing reliance on examinations as a sole measure of student success, and paying attention to needs of adult learners. Examples are provided of measures already in place at the UMN CVM.

Conclusions: Disruptive innovation by definition is not continuing change in a set paradigm but is upheaval to better meet user needs. This is not a direct assault on that traditional paradigm but instead requires instructors and administrators to recognize the value of new tools and ideas and to use them in ways that best foster student learning and personal management in their years of veterinary training.

Why the study was done: Faculty have raised concern about student evaluations of teaching being more negative over time. Previous work had demonstrated that the majority of student comments were constructive. This study was done to compare evaluations from before COVID, for the first full year under COVID restrictions, and for the following year to calculate percentage of constructive, positive, and negative comments.

Primary findings: Number of comments decreased over time. Percentage of negative comments did not increase over time and percentage of comments that was constructive did not change over time, remaining high. Percentage negative comments was strongly negatively correlated with overall course rating; the lower the course was rated, the more negative comments that course received.

Conclusions: Percentage of negative comments did not increase over time and percentage of constructive comments remained high, suggesting that the faculty perception of increasing negativity is not an accurate reflection. The strong correlation between percentage of negative comments and overall course rating suggests the negative comments are due to student frustration with the course overall and that this could be addressed by specific attention to what aspects of the course are most problematic for students and instructors.

Why the study was done: Research questions were the following: (1) Will veterinary students retain information presented about learning, memory, and study skills, (2) Will presentation of this information make them aware of what resources exist, and (3) Will additional reading about this material or working through exercises with this content be correlated with increased academic achievement? First year fall veterinary students were provided with three required or elective sessions about study skills and had available to them independent learning modules throughout the semester. Students were surveyed early and again late in the semester to identify their knowledge of most effective study skills, with additional questions added to the second survey regarding their self-confidence in their study skills and their knowledge of academic resources.

Primary findings: Ninety-eight percent of the class chose to participate. Students did retain information about learning, memory, and study skills as evidenced by a significant change in survey scores (p<0.0001), 63% of participants agreeing or strongly agreeing that they were able to develop the necessary study skills to complete the semester well, and 64% of participants agreeing or strongly agreeing that they feel prepared for academic challenges in the future. Students did retain information about available academic resources, with 76% of participants agreeing or strongly agreeing that they were aware of study skills resources. Attendance in course sessions and completion of independent modules was not associated with academic scores.

Conclusions: Students are responsive to learning about metacognition and believe they can develop the study skills they need to succeed in this curriculum; this coursework will continue.

Why the study was done: The goal of curriculum in any discipline should be to ensure students attain knowledge and become competent in skills that will be necessary for them to succeed in their chosen career. This requires us to answer the following question – What knowledge and skills in theriogenology do year-one practitioners actually use? Veterinarians who were alumni of Minnesota, Pennsylvania, or Auburn and who were completing their first year of practice identified knowledge and skills used commonly (at least once a month) or very commonly (at least once a week) from a list of all topics in a model theriogenology curriculum created by the American College of Theriogenologists. Forty-eight surveys were returned (30 small animal, 5 equine, 2 food animal, 11 mixed).

Primary findings: Small animal practitioners did not commonly do reproductive work and were focused on sterilization. Equine and food animal practitioners did reproductive work commonly and only within their species of interest. Mixed animal practitioners did reproductive work in small animals similar to dedicated small animal practitioners, did bovine and small ruminant work to a more limited extent than dedicated food animal practitioners, and did not do reproductive work in horses. 

Conclusions: Data like this can be used to ensure students are being exposed to appropriate topics in theriogenology in core and tracked courses and during their clinical training. Response rate was low; further work should be completed before work of this kind is used to guide curriculum development.

Why you did the study?

• Veterinary anatomy programs face the challenges of limited specimens, instructor shortages, and reductions in anatomy contact hours.

• We surveyed DVM anatomy programs regarding content delivery and specimen procurement/preparation to better understand how programs currently operate.

Primary Findings

• The majority of programs utilize embalmed specimens and embalm some of the specimens used in-house.

• Fresh tissue and plastic models were the most common alternatives/supplements.

Conclusions

• Building collaborations to share innovations and resources could help programs to meet educational goals in the face of ongoing challenges.

Why the study was done: Non-Traditional Pets is a 1-credit fully on-line course taught in year 1 spring. The course is an overview of husbandry and common disorders in exotic pet species. The course is contract graded and students have extra credit cases available to permit them to make up some lost points by working through common disorders and practicing clinical decision-making skills. In 2022, extra credit cases were offered in Google Forms. The format was clear but not engaging. Grading and keeping track of scores earned by students was cumbersome for the instructor. In 2023, the Center for Educational Innovation provided support for creation of more engaging versions of these cases as Canvas quizzes.

Primary findings: In 2022, 17 students (16.2% of the class) completed a total of 41 cases, with three students completing 1 case, four completing 2 cases, and ten completing 3 cases. In 2023, 28 students (26.7% of the class) completed a total of 62 cases, with nine completing 1 case, seven completing 2 cases, eleven completing 3 cases, and one completing 6 cases.

Conclusions: Many things may impact how readily students undertake extra credit work including other course responsibilities and drive for a higher grade. Students completed more cases overall in the more engaging format and the use of cases as Canvas quizzes made feedback easily accessible for the students and grading easy for the instructor. This same case format will be used in fall semester 2023 for required cases in the Comparative Theriogenology course.

Why did we do this project?

We are three undergraduate students and one graduate student taking the course GCC 3016: Avoiding the Antibiotic Resistance Apocalypse. The course addresses the grand challenge of antimicrobial resistance through a semester-long group project. Our group is passionate about small animal veterinary medicine, and are all pursuing a career in the veterinary field. When creating our project, we discovered that inappropriate antimicrobial use is rampant in the industry. The CDC estimates that around 50% of outpatient antimicrobial prescriptions given to human patients are inappropriate. The AVMA estimates that figure to be similar in companion animals.. The goal of our project is to explore the systematic issues producing this level of inappropriate use and the steps veterinary professionals can take to address the antibiotic resistance crisis. We created a website and podcast that aim to educate veterinary professionals on the magnitude of the problem and how to communicate with clients about better antimicrobial use, which should in turn result in better prescribing practices and decrease the spread of AMR.

Primary findings 

We found that inappropriate antibiotic prescribing is attributed to owner expectations, a lack of understanding of the risks of antibiotic use, dissonance between client expectations and what doctors know to be best practice, and a general lack of resources, including the ability to perform proper diagnostics, as well as a lack of research. After an interview with Dr. Jennifer Granick DVM, we realized that many of these issues can be reduced by improving client communication in numerous areas within the clinic. If clients are able to understand why their pet does not need an antibiotic, and that it is a positive thing, we can improve prescribing practices and reduce the level of inappropriate use. The first steps in making this change are educating veterinary professionals about AMR and providing better tools for communicating this issue with clients. 

Conclusions

With changes in how veterinary professionals are educated about antimicrobial resistance and how the issue is communicated, we can improve prescribing practices and client communication, develop antimicrobial stewardship programs, and decrease the spread of AMR, which will lead to a better world for both people and animals. 

• We developed a course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) that gives students an opportunity to practice the process of science in a context that intersects with their everyday lives: purchasing grocery store chicken.  CUREs promote equity by engaging all students in high-impact practices like original research.  They also provide student learning gains that exceed the traditional laboratory curriculum, rivaling those seen for an individual research internship or mentored research experience.  In our course, students learn to graph and interpret large datasets, comparing class results with those in the literature.  They also use whole-genome sequence data from their E. coli isolates to evaluate antibiotic resistance and pathogenic potential using known virulence genes.

• We measured learning gains through individual pre- and post-assessment multiple choice questions, individual bioinformatics worksheets, and group lab report worksheets, which included essay questions, graphing assignments and bioinformatics exercises that mapped to the learning objectives.  The majority of individuals and groups scored well on assignments (75-100%) and made gains on post-assessment questions.  Students indicated a high level of interest in the project and recommended keeping it in the curriculum.  They also reported gains in interest and confidence for graphing and bioinformatics.

• This activity meets many requirements of an authentic CURE: 1) it is relevant to community stakeholders and provides suggestions for students to take action, 2) it has unknown outcomes with potentially novel findings, 3) generates “messy” data that requires critical thinking skills for interpretation, 4) requires student collaboration and 5) engages students in diverse research practices.

• Rural Veterinary Practice Class was proposed and accepted into SDSU PPVM curriculum for 2023-2024 calendar year to address needs of developing skillsets for rural practitioners.

• Strong interest and excitement for the course exists among students and faculty to address topics that might not otherwise be found within the curriculum.

•  Assessment of course outcomes will be performed and subsequent findings will be presented in the future.

Why did we do this project?

In 2022, we were faced with the unanticipated and abrupt decommissioning of a primary learning resource (website) utilized in the Radiographic Anatomy portion of the Anatomy Course.  After searching for an alternative resource, we determined that we could create an educational tool for the students at the College of Veterinary Medicine that improved upon the previous learning resource and aided students in mastering the learning objectives of the course.

Our objectives for the educational tool:

• Easy to use

• Interactive 

• Accessible

• Display two views simultaneously

• Ability to select anatomic structure from key or image

Primary findings:

We asked the students utilizing the tool in the Anatomy Course to complete an information gathering survey.  Results show that the V-RAT helps students to learn the radiographic anatomy, achieve the course learning objectives, make efficient use of study time, and study for the quizzes and exams.  Students also found the V-RAT easy to navigate. 

Conclusions:

We were able to successfully develop an educational tool using a team of individuals from multiple departments who provided differing but necessary skill sets.  The educational tool is a foundational primary learning resource to learn radiographic anatomy in the CVM Anatomy I & II courses.