I couldn't get through a daily blogging challenge without my inner cat lady coming out. My twentieth Advent Policy Brief argues that veterinary colleges should create a designation for limited-species practice.
It's weird to compare veterinary and human medicine. Human medicine studies one species and veterinary medicine studies all the rest. Human health issues don't always need a doctor. Many medical interventions can be performed by a pharmacist or nurse practitioner.
So I ask: why does the veterinarian my cat sees need to have a base knowledge about turtles and chickens? I don't think my cat's primary care provider needs full DVM. A shorter specialized set of limited-species practice streams can be granted as Master's of Veterinary Medicine, analogous to Master's of Nursing degrees.
A lot of "animal people" have blatant favorites. Many of us rule out veterinary careers because of disinterest in broad-based veterinary education. If grade 12 me could have studied to be a veterinarian for only cats, I would have. Getting veterinary practice credentials without dealing with dogs or farm animals sounds like a swell plan. And if you're really into birds or horses, you should be able to study and work with just birds or horses!
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| Cedar & Helix |