International Harmonization of Veterinary Medicine Studies Anastasia S. Tsingotjidou*, Christos A. Batzios** and George C. Papadopoulos* * Lab. of Anatomy and Histology, ** Lab. of Animal Production Economics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece

Thessaloniki, Greece

 The Bologna declaration (1999) addresses the following main themes towards globalization in education :  the recognition of degrees and degree structure  the establishment of a system of credits,  the promotion of mobility of students and  co-operation in quality assurance  the promotion of the European dimension in higher education and the attractiveness of the European Higher Education Area  lifelong learning

Veterinary Medicine Schools are participating in this process of globalization: In Europe, this has been achieved through the active involvement of and  the Federation of Veterinarians in Europe (FVE )  the European Association of Establishments for Veterinary Education (EAEVE)

EAEVE  promotes the standardization of veterinary education and  contributes to the production of knowledgeable veterinarians

REFORM OF THE CURRICULUM VETERINARY MEDICINE An effort to satisfy Bologna Declaration

Veterinary education entails diverse fields including:  The animal body  Growth and development  Animal production  Food hygiene, with its obvious direct implications for societal well-being  Function and dysfunction  Mechanisms of disease  Animal health and disease  Animals, vets and society  Clinical rotations

Curriculum for veterinary education should also offer:  Participation in research  Participation in clinical activities very early in the education process

Traditional teaching of courses, integrated teaching or problem based learning represent educational alternatives. It is necessary to look at learning outcomes, as defined according to market needs of the individual countries, while complying with European regulations Educational direction

The rapid advances and almost ubiquitous availability of information and communication technologies coupled with government-led initiatives to increase student numbers and widen participation has led many universities to rethink curriculum design Curriculum contents

Veterinary education should take into account the following events:  The importance of the agricultural/animal industries is declining in most European countries, while the demand of the owners of companion animals is increasing  Society in general, and in particular the gender profile of the profession, is changing  There is an important role for the veterinarian in relation to the new emerging diseases of animal origin with human implications, as well as aspects of the safety of food of animal origin  Concerns about the environment and natural resource development must be taken into consideration

VETERINARIANS BRANCHES OF VETERINARY MEDICINE

Veterinarians may be employed in various disciplines of private and industrial sector (e.g.: milk and meat production), academia and research institutions, civil-community areas (e.g.: agricultural ministries, food and drug administration, community veterinarians)

One should keep in mind that …. on day one after graduation, the new veterinarian cannot have all the competences and skills in all areas in which the veterinary profession is involved

Veterinary education should lead to producing “competent” professionals with expertise

Failing to act will lead to consequences like:  Omni-competence will increasingly become omni-incompetence  The veterinarian will increasingly become a veterinary technician  The level of competence in all branches of veterinary practice will fall

VETERINARY MEDICINE PROGRAMS

 In Europe there are over 30 different countries having veterinary medicine programs  The situation in Greece: - Traditional one-tier system  The situation in other European countries : - Some have adopted two-tier system

 In the United States, over 20 veterinary medical schools exist and in many cases the acceptance to these schools is as competitive as the admission to medical schools

Today, curriculum reform is an on-going process in most Veterinary Schools by:  Increasing direct self-learning periods  Reducing formal teaching  Increasing practical and extra-mural services  Introducing electives/optional oriented to animal species and future specialization areas

POSSIBILITIES FOR INTEGRATION

 A joint initiative was created consisting of 22 Veterinary Education Institutions from 20 E.U. and associated countries, EAEVE and FVE, who considered that the adaptation of curricula and educational methods should be studied and tackled on a long term basis and according to social and market needs The paradigm of VET2020

 An existing network (VET2020) ( working closely with an Italian firm (Nomisma) are collecting data, the analysis of which will identify problems and non-agreement issueswww.fmv.utl.pt/vet2020  Common general frames for curriculum development will be established

Declaration on the harmonization of Ph.D. programs in Medicine and Health Sciences ( EUROPEAN CONFERENCE ON HARMONIZATION OF Ph.D. PROGRAMS IN MEDICINE AND HEALTH SCIENCES University of Zagreb – Medical School Zagreb, Croatia, April , 2004

Accreditation (or certification) is a result of the review of an educational or an institution following certain quality standards agreed beforehand In the long run, accreditation:  Provides students with clearly defined and appropriate programs  Facilitates student mobility and the pre-recognition of degrees and  Facilitates recognition of degrees, thus facilitating graduate mobility

European Evaluation and Accreditation EAEVE initiative  Self evaluation reports of the Veterinary Schools  Visits by expert teams (interdisciplinary academicians and professionals)  Report by the expert team (suggestions and observed deficiencies)  Reply and attempted remedies are approved or disapproved by the expert team  Appearance of the School in the list of approved or non- approved Veterinary Schools  Official Accreditation of the approved School by the member states waits a major political decision

The Italian paradigm (Dr. Romagnoli):  To establish criteria to evaluate quality in academia  To write an annual report on quality in academia  To promote the adoption of techniques for evaluation of quality  To assess the quality of data coming from universities  To establish a yearly program of evaluation of quality in academia  To evaluate proposals of establishing new Universities  To assess the status of academic teaching, right to study and free access to university  To establish new criteria to distribute national resources to universities  To advise the Ministry on quality of all academic activities related to teaching, research and administration

 The integration of diverse components of veterinary training within an interdisciplinary approach counterbalances the increasing specialization of knowledge which is critical for progress  Furthermore, the aim of this effort should include the retention of the independence of academics along with the rich diversity of European education systems CONCLUSIONS-FUTURE AIMS