13 Oct 2021
Sophie Mahendran discusses the career opportunities such programmes can offer – namely specialist status and the benefits this brings.
Sophie Mahendran
Job Title
Image © Production Perig / Adobe Stock
Are you a production animal vet who loves clinical work, but wants to spend more time analysing data for your farmers? Have you got interests in epidemiological data and herd health management? Would you love to combine your clinical work with applied research and present your findings in front of peers? If the answer is yes, a production animal residency programme could be for you.
After graduating as a veterinary surgeon, the possible career paths are wide and varied, with those involved in the production animal sector being no exception.
First opinion practice provides fantastic opportunities to work outdoors in the countryside, alongside farmers who care deeply for their animals. However, the rapidly changing landscape within the modern agricultural sector demands more specialist and in-depth veterinary clinical knowledge, with involvement in applied research, the field application of research outcomes, consultancy on herd or flock-level problems and advice on farm-specific improvement strategies.
The increasing number of veterinary schools within the UK provides further opportunities for specialist production animal work through the delivery of high-quality veterinary education and clinical research that will meet the needs of livestock farmers.
Specialists in the UK are individuals recognised by the RCVS as having completed postgraduate education equivalent to the RCVS diploma in a field of their interest. They are acknowledged by their peers as being specialists in their areas and are active practitioners within this area, providing referral services where appropriate. A list of specialists can be found at bit.ly/3ιQhGyb
The main pathway to gain the further qualifications needed to become a recognised veterinary specialist in the UK and worldwide involves the undertaking of a residency programme – defined as “a period of postgraduate education and training that is designed to provide an in-depth education in the science and state of the art of the discipline in question”.
Residency programmes are usually conducted full time over a three or four-year period in conjunction with a university that employs diplomates, but are also available via an alternative pathway.
The residency programme will be run under membership of one of the 27 colleges that are members of the European Board of Veterinary Specialists. These colleges cover all production animal species, with the most common programmes in the UK being conducted under the European College of Bovine Health Management (ECBHM) or the European College of Small Ruminant Health Management.
On completing the residency programme, candidates will have to pass the diploma examinations run by the specific college, then allowing vets to become eligible to be a recognised as an RCVS specialist.
The aim of a residency programme is to train vets in their preferred species in both clinical and research-based advanced skill sets. This two-pronged approach equips vets to meet the needs of progressive farmers, and helps to produce well-rounded specialists that are capable of working in multiple disciplines such as referral and consultancy work, academic teaching and applied research.
The clinical component of a residency programme goes beyond responsive first opinion work to include exposure to related disciplines such as exposure to internal medicine and surgery, epidemiology and many more, to encourage the first principle application of a range of skills to address livestock species-specific challenges. This is further enhanced by work at the herd/flock level, learning to work with different production systems and to target the management of populations.
During a production animal residency programme, a requirement also exists for time to be spent with specialist pathology services, building on both gross pathology recognition and diagnosis, as well as laboratory clinical pathology knowledge and interpretation. This provides an exciting opportunity to work alongside and learn from extremely knowledgeable and experienced groups such as the APHA.
Production animal residency programmes allow vets to gain skills in conducting clinical research, which in the face of unknown changing climatic and management factors are becoming essential on a daily basis when dealing with production animal veterinary challenges that cannot be solved using taught knowledge alone.
The European colleges encourage learning about research through the experience of carrying it out under the guidance of experienced supervisors, and have residency requirements to carry out a research project and to produce scientific publications. Regular seminars and workshops are available for residents to attend, along with a requirement to undertake externships at other training institutes, providing opportunities to visit other countries and experience different diseases or procedures.
In this way, residency programmes are a great way to make national and international connections with like-minded colleagues from a range of backgrounds and with differing experiences, thereby establishing lifelong friendships and professional collaborations. It also helps to open up knowledge and ideas about diseases, considered from different national perspectives, and sharing treatment ideas or research findings that might otherwise not cross language or national boundaries.
Alternative residency programmes are available that can be conducted while working in practice or in conjunction with industry, but these have to include undertaking predetermined specialist training modules provided by external institutions, and still require the supervision of a diplomate.
These additional requirements, often done around normal clinical duties when working in practice, can make the alternative residency programmes longer to complete than a standard residency programme, but do offer a pathway for those less able to commit to moving to a university institution.
Most production animal vets work in general practice, where distinct business advantages can exist to being able to offer the referral level or consultancy options that having a specialist working for them can provide.
Managing director of Synergy Farm Health Andrew Davies commented that “employing production animal specialists as part of our team helps raise the bar for both colleagues and clients. It generates positivity, and a certain respect and reputation that elevates the profile of our business, as well as boosting our own standards and aspirations all at the same time”.
In addition, some veterinary schools provide referral services in conjunction with teaching and research providing varied roles that allow specialists to pursue their interests while helping to broaden the understanding and knowledge that livestock producers now require.
Having specialist status affords greater job flexibility as a farm animal practitioner, and can also open doors to other career options in academia and research. This provides the opportunity to contribute to the wider sector, with more stable routines that may contribute to enhanced work-life balances. These posts utilise many of the skill sets developed during residency programmes and provide opportunities to contribute to the wider agricultural sector, allow specialists to pursue research in areas of interest that can help broaden our scientific understanding and knowledge.
Residency programmes are training positions that demand dedicated time for vets to build on their skills and knowledge – they are not just a cheap form of labour. This is reflected in the level of pay received by vets undertaking them, which may be off-putting to some people, but consideration must be given to the lifelong benefits of the high level of training that is received within these posts.
Being able to attend CPD in all of the key areas that residency programmes provide training in (while being paid) would actually cost a considerable amount. In addition, many production animal residency programmes are combined with other courses such as postgraduate certificates, diplomas or master’s, which would otherwise have to be financed, either privately or by your practice.
A less tangible, but arguably more important, benefit from carrying out a residency programme is the exposure to other colleagues and experts in the field, which provide extremely useful links to like-minded individual and institutions around the world. This can lead to job opportunities internationally, or the ability to develop research ideas and collaborations with other people in specific fields that you might not otherwise have met.
So, if you want to improve your clinical approach, foray into veterinary research or explore different veterinary-related careers, a residency might well be a great first step.
Due to the realities of providing all of the specialist training and support required for a residency programme to run, the number of available placements each year in the UK is fairly small. Many of the veterinary schools offer both the standard and alternative residency pathways, and these are generally advertised on the respective European colleges and university websites.
For people who are interested, making contact with these institutions to ask specific questions can be invaluable, and I would encourage anyone considering a residency programme to do so. A wealth of information is also available on the different European college websites, including testimonials from vets undertaking different formats of residencies.
Carrying out a residency programme can quite literally be life changing, providing an unparalleled range of opportunities and experiences that can really enhance your career as a production animal vet, and providing you with a host of transferable skills as well as the opportunity to build networks with professionals around the world.
This article was written with contributions from JP Crilly (RVC), John Fishwick (RVC), Nicola Gladden (University of Glasgow), Rheinallt Jones (University of Glasgow), John Remnant (University of Nottingham), Neil Sargison (University of Edinburgh), Ginny Sherwin (University of Nottingham), Steven Van Winden (RVC), Lorenzo Viora (University of Glasgow) and Paul Wood (University of Edinburgh).
Specialist collegeEuropean College of Small Ruminant Health Management.
Emily graduated from the University of Cambridge in 2012 and began an internship with Synergy Farm Health in association with the RVC. With an enthusiasm for sheep medicine and production improvement, she began an alternative residency in 2015, remaining full time in practice under the supervision of Fiona Lovatt. Emily completed her residency by examination in 2018. Her publications for submission include investigating neonatal health on commercial flocks and the split upper eyelid disorder in multi-horned sheep.
Emily is a specialist sheep vet working with Synergy Farm Health, providing a specialist sheep service across the south-west, working in a team of seven other vets with an interest in sheep medicine. She is an honorary lecturer with the RVC and involved with farmer training at the practice.
“Continuing to work with and develop services for my clients alongside further learning. In particular focusing my research interests on areas that have subsequently advanced the services and training delivered to my clients. Being involved in developing our evidence base through participation in research. The opportunity to collaborate (and travel) across Europe – in particular a study tour across Spain, Norway and Greece.”
“Continued collaborative opportunities within and across European colleges, and friends made across Europe.”
Specialist collegeEuropean College of Bovine Health Management.
Martin worked in farm animal practice in the south of England before undertaking a farm animal residency at The University of Edinburgh Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies. Following this he became a clinician at the University of Glasgow.
Inspector for the Animals in Science Research Unit, the Home Office.
“The time to deal with clients and cases you wouldn’t normally have been exposed to. I made plenty of bad choices along the way, but was guided to explore the added-value skills vets can acquire to make them better professionals. This doesn’t just include clinical, surgical or diagnostic skills. My decision-making, communication, analytical and people skills were all “exposed”, and further training in these areas helped me realise the residency programme isn’t just about making you a specialist in your chosen field, but allows you to better apply the skills we often undervalue.”
“No one can know it all and most of what we presume as fact in the veterinary profession probably isn’t (well statistically, anyway), but problem-solving with the best tools available is still a great challenge. The skills vets can apply across so many different fields is underestimated, and specialist training has probably helped open a few doors along the way.”
Specialist collegeEuropean College of Small Ruminant Health Management.
JP graduated from the University of Cambridge in 2010, and spent some time in charity work and in mixed practice in the Highlands. He enjoyed teaching students seeing practice, so decided to do a three-year residency in farm animal health and production at Edinburgh, focusing on sheep, receiving his diploma in 2016. He followed his residency by working in farm animal practice, but giving some lectures at the vet schools in Cambridge and Tartu, Estonia. In September 2020 he took up a part-time role at the RVC as lecturer in small ruminant health and flock management, while continuing to work in private practice.
He spends 2.5 days a week working at the RVC as a lecturer (lectures, practical teaching, research) and 2.5 days a week (and 1 weekend on-call a month) in first opinion practice with Larkmead Veterinary Group, where I run the practice’s flock health club, sheep-specific newsletter, and other sheep and goat-related services.
“The time spent on externships abroad. The way sheep and goats are kept varies a huge amount across Europe, and being able to see these different systems first-hand, as well as meet other small ruminant enthusiasts, was just a brilliant opportunity.”
“The network you become part of is hugely valuable and enjoyable. Also, it opens up more career paths to you, while enhancing what you can offer your employers and clients in first-opinion practice, too.”
