In this Knowledge Award audio overview, Megan Orr from Roundhouse Hospital, explains how her practice approached the introduction of a surgical safety checklist. This nurse-led initiative and audit to assess its use resulted in a 94% compliance with completing the checklists, benefitting patient safety and team communication. Megan was awarded Highly Commended in the 2024 RCVS Knowledge Awards. Read the full case example. Read the transcript.

In this Knowledge Natter podcast, Lou Northway speaks to 2024 Quality Improvement champion, Paul Stanley from White Lodge Veterinary Surgery about their award winning initiative looking at post-operative pain scoring and management in their bitch spay patients. Team training and updating pain management protocols enabled them to both improve their pain scores and reduce the number of dogs requiring rescue analgesia to just 10% of patients. Read the case example here. Read the transcript here. Additional resources Pain assessment in the dog: the Glasgow Pain Scale - Royal Canin Acute pain assessment scale for dogs - The Practice Assistance Centre (PAC) Pain assessment in cats - The Feline Grimace Scale inFOCUS Spotlight on Quality of Life assessment tools - Pain assessment for species specific tools The views and opinions expressed in our podcasts are the speakers’ own and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of RCVS Knowledge.

Sally Everitt speaks to Martin Whitehead about the "Down the drain" study, looking at how spot-on parasiticides applied to dogs can contaminate the environment, and how he takes a risk-based approach to the prevention and treatment of parasites. Read the transcript Read the paper Additional resources Down-the-drain pathways for fipronil and imidacloprid applied as spot-on parasiticides to dogs: Estimating aquatic pollution - inFOCUS Veterinary medicines and the environment - inFOCUS  Responsible use of antiparasitic medications in veterinary practice - inFOCUS  How cat and dog routine prophylaxis needs to change | BSAVA Library How can we prevent worms and still protect the environment? | BSAVA Library The views and opinions expressed in our podcasts are the speakers’ own and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of RCVS Knowledge.

In this Knowledge Natter podcast, Lou Northway speaks to 2024 Quality Improvement champion, Corinne Ackroyd from Yorkshire Vets about her nurse-led initiative to reduce the use of oxygen and volatile anaesthetic gasses. Through the initiative, the team were able to substantially reduce oxygen and isoflurane use. The carbon footprint reduction is the equivalent of driving from London to Rome, and back. Read the case study here. Read the transcript. The views and opinions expressed in our podcasts are the speakers’ own and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of RCVS Knowledge.

QI techniques can be used to review and improve administrative tasks, helping to enhance the effectiveness, efficiency and profitability of practices. This in turn helps to improve clinical outcomes and bring the whole team together with a shared purpose. In this episode, our QI Clinical Lead and Chair of the QIAB, Pam Mosedale speaks to Practice Manager Cath Grimsey from Pinkham Equine Veterinary Services about the role of management in Quality Improvement, and how she has approached implementing QI techniques in her setting. Read the transcript.

In this Research Focus podcast, small animal internal medicine specialist Scott Kilpatrick discusses his study on cobalamin supplementation in dogs with RCVS Knowledge Clinical Lead Sally Everitt. They use Scott’s study as a jumping off point to discuss all manner of topics, including the benefits and drawbacks of doing research as a practicing vet, how to bring pet owners on board with research, and how doing your own research can give you a deeper understanding of research carried out by others. You can find a transcript of this conversation here.

Dr Kit Sturgess, outgoing Editor-in-Chief of Veterinary Evidence, chatted to two of the winners of our 2023 Veterinary Evidence Student Awards - Rebecca Hearne and Rachel Garrett - about their experiences of writing Knowledge Summaries for Veterinary Evidence and how it felt to be published in a peer-reviewed journal before graduating.  Read the transcript 

Rosemullion Veterinary Practice were named Quality Improvement Champions in the 2023 Knowledge Awards for conducting an audit aimed at improving infection control and cleaning methods in clinical and non-clinical areas. In this Knowledge Natter, Lou Northway speaks to Abi Redfearn from Rosemullion Veterinary Practice about the audit.  Read the transcript   

To celebrate International Women’s Day our Clinical Leads Pam Mosedale, Sally Everitt, and Fiona Lovatt speak about their careers in the veterinary professions. Read the transcript.

For this Knowledge Natter, our Farm Vet Champions Lead Fiona Lovatt spoke to Tonia Simms from the Farm Vets at Hampden Veterinary Hospital (VetPartners). Tonia won an RCVS Knowledge Award in 2023 for her work on auditing antibiotic use in surgical calf castrates, which reduced the use of antibiotics without compromising patient welfare. Read the transcript.

The School of Veterinary Nursing at the Royal Veterinary College were named Quality Improvement Champions in the 2023 Knowledge Awards. In this Knowledge Natter, Lou Northway talks to Perdi Welsh and Niamh Clancy from the Royal Veterinary College about their winning initiative to incorporate QI within their post-registration qualifications, guiding students through a number of measures to carry out projects in practice, submit to peer-reviewed journals and present at conferences.   Read the transcript Apply for the 2024 Knowledge Awards

In this audio summary, Alexander Wallace asks, in canine patients recovering from surgery for intervertebral disc disease, do passive range of motion exercises, compared to no intervention, lead to a shorter or faster rate of recovery? Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enable vets and vet nurses to more quickly and more easily access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.

In this episode, Helen Silver-MacMahon talks to Pam Mosedale about Clinical Audit Awareness Week 2023, and how you can get involved by making a start on your own clinical audits.   Read the transcript   Learn more about Clinical Audit Awareness Week

Sally Everitt speaks with Elly Russell and Julie Gibson about the paper 'Are They Thinking Differently? The Perceptions and Differences in Medical Disputes between Veterinarians and Clients'. Read the paper Read the podcast transcript Some further resources that are referenced in the podcast are linked below: Read the paper by Russell, E. et al (2022) Read the paper by Gibson, J. et al (2022) Access VetSafe  

In this VetTeamAMR podcast, Pam Mosedale speaks with Danny Chambers about the upcoming Antibiotic Amnesty. Danny touches on his experiences working in equine and small animal practice to discuss why the Antibiotic Amnesty is important, and how you can get involved. Get involved with the Antibiotic Amnesty campaign: https://knowledge.rcvs.org.uk/amr/antibiotic-amnesty/ Disclaimer: the views expressed in this episode are that of the interviewee and are not necessarily held by RCVS Knowledge. Read the podcast transcript

Pam Mosedale speaks to 2023 Knowledge Award Antimicrobial Stewardship Champions Paul Stanley and Emily Parr from White Lodge Veterinary Surgery in Exmouth. They conducted a prospective audit to review antibiotic use in cat bite abscesses and successfully treated 86% of their patients without antibiotics without compromising patient welfare.  Read the podcast transcript Read Paul and Emily's case example  The 2024 RCVS Knowledge Awards are open for applications now, learn more at rcvsknowledge.org/knowledgeawards  

In this Audio Summary, Anne-Claude asks, in cats with psychogenic alopecia, is overgrooming reduced by the use of clomipramine compared to untreated cats? Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enable vets and vet nurses to more quickly and more easily access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.

In this Audio Summary, Bonnie looks at whether lokivetmab is more effective than oclacitinib in reducing the Canine Atopic Dermatitis Lesion Index score (or some other recognised scoring system), in dogs with atopic skin disease. Read the full Knowledge Summary here.  Audio Summaries are a free resource that enable vets and vet nurses to more quickly and more easily access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.

Sally Everitt speaks with Alex German, Professor of Small Animal Medicine at the University of Liverpool about the implications of his research into weight gain after neutering reported in the research paper entitled 'Comparison of growth in neutered Domestic Shorthair kittens with growth in sexually-intact Cats'. Read the paper Read the podcast transcript Read our inFOCUS Spotlight summary on the benefits and risks of neutering pets – what is the evidence WALTHAM™ Kitten Growth Charts | WALTHAM Puppy Growth Charts | WALTHAM Petcare Science Institute

In this Audio Summary, Anna looks at whether dogs that are brachycephalic have an increased risk for developing heat-related illness compared to dogs that are not brachycephalics. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier. A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.

In this Audio Summary, Kristy looks at whether surgical treatment more effective than nonsurgical therapy in reducing lumbosacral pain and neurological dysfunction in dogs suffering from degenerative lumbosacral stenosis (DLSS). Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier. A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.

In this Knowledge Natter, Lou Northway speaks with David Charles, who was named a Knowledge Champion in the 2023 RCVS Knowledge Awards. David conducted an audit across multiple UK practices to gather data on ovine lambings and caesareans, and implemented training and recommendations related to the use of analgesia, antibiotics, and adjunctive medications. The practices saw a reduction in prophylactic antibiotic use and an improvement in the provision of analgesia. Read more about David's work Read the podcast transcript

In this Knowledge Natter, Lou Northway speaks Leanne McLeod from Earlswood Veterinary Hospital, who was named a Knowledge Champion in the 2023 RCVS Knowledge Awards. Leanne introduced a hypothermia audit that focused on pre-warming patients before general anaesthesia. By implementing new warming protocols, her team reduced the incidence of hypothermia from 100% to 16%. Read the podcast transcript The 2024 RCVS Knowledge Awards are open for applications now, learn more at rcvsknowledge.org/knowledgeawards

Pam Mosedale speaks to VetTeamAMR Clinical Leads Angie Rayner and David Singleton about how the new initiative will provide companion animal veterinary teams with knowledge, resources and tools to make positive changes in their antimicrobial prescribing. VetTeamAMR for companion animal teams will launch at a free event on Tuesday 20 June. Sign up here: rcvsknowledge.org/VetTeamAMRcompanion Read more about VetTeamAMR Listen to the podcast transcript

In this podcast, Quality Improvement Clinical Lead Pam Mosedale talks to John Innes, honorary professor at Liverpool University, about new research that used data from RCVS Knowledge’s Canine Cruciate Registry (CCR) to determine its findings. The research provides estimates on the minimal clinically-important differences (MCIDs) for the two validated outcomes measures that are used by the CCR. Read the transcript

Pam Mosedale speaks to VetTeamAMR Equine Clinical Lead Tim Mair about how the new initiative will provide equine veterinary teams with knowledge, resources and tools to make positive changes in their antimicrobial prescribing. VetTeamAMR for equine teams will launch at a free event on Tuesday 6 June. Sign up here: rcvsknowledge.org/VetTeamAMRequine Read more about VetTeamAMR Listen to the podcast transcript

Sally Everitt speaks with Barbara Glanemann and Karen Humm from the Royal Veterinary College about their involvement in the research into the clinical features and causes of the outbreak of cases of pancytopenia in cats that occurred in the UK in Spring 2021. Read the transcript  Read the paper

In this Knowledge Natter, Lou Northway speaks to Eloise Collins, Head Veterinary Nurse at Beech House Veterinary Centre, who used checklists, auditing, benchmarking, team meetings and journal clubs to help improve patient care and outcomes and to improve practice culture. Eloise helped to create psychological safety amongst the team through her open and honest approach. Eloise became Knowledge Award Quality Improvement Champion for her work in 2022.  Read Eloise's case example Read the podcast transcript

In this Audio Summary, Amelia looks at whether environmental modification is superior to medical management in the treatment of feline idiopathic cystitis. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier. A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.

In this Knowledge Natter, Lou Northway, Clinical Lead RVN, talks to vets Sophie Gilbert and Lucy Leicester from Vets Now about their award-winning project using audit and guidelines for the management of dystocia cases. Knowledge Natters are friendly, informal discussions with our Knowledge Award Champions and those who are empowered by Quality Improvement in their work. (Recorded March 2023) You can read the transcript here. You can read the Vets Now Ltd case example here.

Listen to our two Clinical Leads, Tim Nuttall and Tim Mair, introduce this education platform and explain how you can get the most out of it! Read the transcript. VetTeamAMR - Companion Animal and Equine will be available to all users of the Learn platform soon.  Sign up for our newsletter to be the first to hear about its launch date.

In this episode of For the Record, we hear a discussion between Lacey Pitcher, Emily Craven, Daniel Denness and Kirstie Pickles. Together they discuss what neurodiversity means, the similarities and differences in their experiences, and how they would like to see understanding and awareness of neurodiversity change in the future. Read the transcript here

Listen to Farm Vet Champions Clinical Lead, Fiona Lovatt, talk to NOAH's Senior Technical Policy Manager, Lucy Coyne, about how farm vets can use the our SMART goals tool and the Livestock Vaccine Guideline to build confidence in their vaccine protocols and support those vet-farmer conversations. Both of these free resources support the Farm Vet Champions mantra: Plan, Prevent, Protect. To start seeing positive changes in your herd and flock health, set and track your SMART goals here: Dashboard (rcvsknowledge.org) To sign the NOAH pledge or access the Livestock Vaccine Guideline, visit: https://www.noahlvg.co.uk/ Read the podcast transcript

Dr Kit Sturgess, Editor-in-Chief of Veterinary Evidence spoke with the winners of our 2022 Veterinary Evidence Student Awards - Sarah Daphne Foo, Maxim Bembinov and Narakhanti Soenardi about their experiences of writing Knowledge Summaries for Veterinary Evidence and how it felt to be published in a peer reviewed journal before graduating.  Read the transcript here .

Sally Everitt speaks with Matthew Rendle about how we can improve the care of rabbits in veterinary practice, make best use of the evidence that we have, and develop further evidence for the future. Read the paper Read the podcast transcript 

This session was recorded during the SPVS VMG Congress on the 13th May 2022. In addition to traversing the terrain of chronic staffing resource shortages and withstanding the onslaught of the pandemic, the veterinary professions in the UK were then hit with a tidal wave of new pets. Caseload increases of 50% faced diminished and fatigued teams. Fortunately, veterinary teams are problem-solvers and solution-finders. We innovate, we improve, we learn and we share. What we have learnt are new ways of working, born out of necessity, to address the caseload: staffing imbalance. In this session we discuss how system and process changes can significantly reduce the time it takes to perform our roles, how we can implement and measure these changes, making sure we can get to the other side of the caseload peak successfully. View the transcript here.   Speaker: Dr Laura Playforth BVM&S MSc Adv HCP (Open) MRCVS, Vice-Chair of QIAB Laura qualified from the University of Edinburgh in 1999. After working in a variety of small animal practices in Yorkshire for eight years, she moved into Emergency and Critical Care as a Senior Veterinary Surgeon at Vets Now. In the early part of her career at Vets Now, Laura successfully led three different out-of-hours emergency clinics, before being promoted to the role of District Vet and then on to the Head of Veterinary Standards role. Today, she is Vets Now’s Professional Standards Director and is responsible for driving clinical and professional standards. She has extensive experience in utilising clinical benchmarking, governance and guidelines in order to embed best practice across the company's network. More recent developments Laura and her team have led have focused on patient safety, the use of checklists and significant event review reporting. Laura also works closely with the Vets Now marketing department on a wide variety of digital content, media and PR work. Laura has an MSc in advancing healthcare practice with the Open University, which aims to develop skills in evidence-based practice, policy development and innovation to facilitate sustainable improvements in care quality. She hopes to bring a fresh and open mind to the QIAB, drawing on more than a decade of experience of clinical leadership in a nationwide provider of first-opinion emergency and critical care.

Amanda Boag, Chair of the RCVS Knowledge Board of Trustees in conversation with Professor Herman Barkema, our 2022 Plowright Prize winner.  The biennial Plowright Prize recognises an individual who has made significant contributions to the field of infectious diseases in animals.  Learn more at rcvsknowledge.org/plowright Read the transcript here

Alison Pyatt, Training Centre Lead VMD, and Pam Mosedale, QI Clinical Lead RCVS Knowledge, introduce the Managing Veterinary Medicines: Staying Legal and Promoting Safety course. The course is freely available to everyone in the veterinary profession and provides information on veterinary medicine regulations and the safe and responsible use of veterinary medicines.  Access the course at rcvsknowledge.org/managing-veterinary-medicines/   Read the transcript

Pam Mosedale speaks with Fergus Allerton about the upcoming Antibiotic Amnesty. Learn more about the amnesty and how you can get involved at rcvsknowledge.org/amnesty  Read the transcript

VetTeamAMR Project Manager Lucy Coyne speaks to Farm Vet Champion Lucy Coyne about Rose Willis about how she inspired her practice team and clients to engage with the Medicine Hub and how SMART goals can be used to motivate the team. Read the transcript

In the fourth episode of ‘For the Record’, we hear from vets working as Official Veterinarians within the public health sector, some of whom trained in other European nations before moving to the UK. This episode was recorded in two parts. The first part was recorded in December 2020, before the confirmation of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, and all three participants are employed by Eville & Jones. The second part was recorded in September 2022, 15 months after the Trade Agreement came into effect. All three of these participants work for Food Standards Scotland.   This episode features: Juan Avila Sara Basto Andrei Ungureanu Evangelos Katsoulis Jose Rodrigues Robles Arabella White 'For The Record' is a series featuring conversations between current and former members of the veterinary professions, highlighting voices and experiences usually absent from our official archive.  You can read the transcript on our website. If you would like to get involved in future episodes, please contact the RCVS Knowledge archives team by email at [email protected]   Music is 'Jindupe' by Lauren Duski.

In this podcast, Pam Mosedale chats with Mel McPherson about how farm practices can get started with Quality Improvement (QI).  This podcast was recorded for the QI Boxset- Series 1: Episode 2: Getting started with Quality Improvement. Read the transcript.

This session was recorded during the SPVS VMG Congress on the 13th May 2022. *Please note, there is a short pause in the presentation at 15:24 while the sound technician fixes some feedback and Mark Moreton's microphone level* With more demanding priorities to deliver the best possible care whilst dealing with the consequences of COVID-19 and Brexit, it's no wonder that veterinary professionals are concerned with stress and burnout within the profession. Human healthcare has seen similar challenges and various teams around the world have been using the 'Joy in work' framework to battle burnout and stay fulfilled professionally. Angie and her team have been trialling this framework in veterinary settings, learning which steps help connect veterinary teams in meaning and purpose, with the aim of improving satisfaction and even feeling a buzz from their work. They have seen that it is not only possible, it can be a fundamental step to ensuring continued excellence in patient care and client experiences, even in these challenging times. Download the 'What matters to you - Conversation guide for leaders'   Download the transcript    Featuring:- - Angela Rayner, BVM&S PgDipPSHCF MRCVS, Director of Quality Improvement for CVS Group and a small animal GP vet. She won an RCVS Knowledge QI Award for improvements made in controlled drugs auditing and is Co-clinical Lead for their Antibiotic Stewardship Audit. - Mark Moreton, BVetMED MRCVS, Small Animal GP Vet and a Hub Clinical Lead for CVS.

In this podcast, Lesley Moore RVN, Principle Nurse Manager at Vets Now Macclesfield speaks with Pam Mosedale about an audit that improved general anaesthetic monitoring in an emergency setting.  The nursing team won a Knowledge Award for their work.  Read their case example here. Read the transcript.

Happy Birthday to the Canine Cruciate Registry!   One year since its launch, and since their last podcast together, Pam Mosedale and Mark Morton chat about the Registry's progress and the benefits of signing up.   Read the transcript.    Access the Canine Cruciate Registry.

In our podcast series 'Research Focus', Sally Everitt, our inFOCUS Clinical Lead, will be chatting all about veterinary clinical research with a range of excellent guests. In this episode, Dan O'Neill talked to Sally about new research on dog life expectancy and mortality, using VetCompass data, broken down by age, sex and breed. The research gives a novel insight into the varied life trajectory across dogs, while identifying potential impacts and applications on canine health and welfare, as well as owner and veterinary professionals' understanding.  Read the paper. Download the life tables infographic. Read more VetCompass publications. Read the podcast transcript. Reference: Teng, K.T.Y., Brodbelt, D.C., Pegram, C., Church, D.B. and O’Neill, D.G., 2022. Life tables of annual life expectancy and mortality for companion dogs in the United Kingdom. Scientific reports, 12(1), pp.1-11. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-10341-6   

Farm Vet Champions Clinical Lead, Fiona Lovatt speaks with Farm Vet Champion and Veterinary Surgeon, Emily Gascoigne about responsible antimicrobial use at lambing time.  Read the transcript here.

Listen to Pam Mosedale, QI Clinical Lead, chat to Jo Civil about her role as a veterinary receptionist and Quality Improvement officer within practice.  This podcast was recorded for the QI Boxset- Series 1: Episode 2: Getting started with Quality Improvement. Read the transcript.

In this Audio Summary, Katy compares the evidence for two well-known treatments for cystic ovarian disease. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier. A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions. Read the transcript.

Recorded for the QI Boxset series, Establishing a Quality Improvement Structure in Practice, Pam Mosedale chats to Sian Tranter MRCVS, member of the British Veterinary Locum Association (BVLA) working group, on how locums can fulfil clinical governance requirements.  Read the transcript here   Access the QI Boxset now. 

In this episode of the QI Boxset, VetTeamAMR Project Manager Lucy Coyne introduces a new initiative that champions the responsible use of antimicrobials within companion animal, farm animal, and equine veterinary teams. Read the transcript

RVNs Carla Husband, Abbie McMillan and Lauren Sweeney were the winners of the Veterinary Evidence Student Awards 2020. We invited them for a chat to discuss how they found the transition from university to practice, the impact evidence has on their practice and their messages to their younger selves.    Read the transcript. Find out more about the Veterinary Evidence Student Awards, which are open to all undergraduate students studying for any veterinary-related degree. 

In this episode, Pam Mosedale chats to Fiona Lovatt who is Clinical Lead for our Farm Vet Champions project. Read the transcript

In this episode from QI Boxset series one, Pam Mosedale, our QI Clinical Lead, chats with Anne Lawson, PSS Assessor, about how clinical governance and Quality Improvement fit into the RCVS Practice Standards Scheme.   Read the transcript.    Access this podcast as a webinar, and explore the rest of the QI Boxset on RCVS Knowledge's Learn platform. 

Thanks for listening to this episode of Knowledge Natter - our series featuring friendly and informal discussions with Knowledge Champions, and those who are empowered by Quality Improvement (QI) in their work.    Today's episode features Marnie Brennan, Kate White, Emma Drinkall, and Julie Gibson, from the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Nottingham, who became Knowledge Award winners for integrating QI and EBVM into the curriculum for both undergraduate and postgraduate students. They do this in a novel way, informed by a research-led agenda, focusing on the application of QI and EBVM into clinical practice. Our QI Clinical Lead Pam Mosedale chatted to the team about the importance of teaching QI to students.   Read their case example. Read the transcript.

In this Audio Summary Veterinary Evidence author Natashia Weir shares the finding of her and co-author Jo Ireland’s study, examining whether  IDEXX Angio Detect™ can accurately detect canine Angiostrongylosis. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enable vets and vet nurses to more quickly and more easily access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions. Access transcript 

VetTeamAMR Project Manager, Lucy Coyne. speaks with Dr Henrietta Kodilinye-Sims about Farm Vet Champions and the responsible use of antimicrobials in poultry medicine. Read the transcript Learn more about VetTeamAMR

In this episode, Pam Mosedale chats to Ross Allan about his experience of using the Canine Cruciate Registry. Read the transcript. Access the Canine Cruciate Registry.

In our podcast series 'Research Focus', Sally Everitt, our inFOCUS Clinical Lead, will be chatting all about veterinary clinical research with a range of excellent guests.   In this episode, Fergus Allerton talked to Sally about the SAMSoc 'STOP on Sunday (SOS) Urinary Tract Infection Trial', which is recruiting first opinion practice vets. Find out more about the study. Access our In the Spotlight feature on Practice-based research.  Access our AMR Hub, for freely accessible, evidence-based knowledge and resources about responsible antimicrobial use. Reference: Allerton, F., Pouwels, K.B., Bazelle, J., Caddy, S., Cauvin, A., De Risio, L., Swann, J., Warland, J. and Kent, A., 2021. Prospective trial of different antimicrobial treatment durations for presumptive canine urinary tract infections. BMC veterinary research, 17(1), pp.112. doi.org/10.1186/s12917-021-02974-y       

Kit Sturgess, the Editor-in-Chief of Veterinary Evidence, chatted to Alexandra Bartlett, Erina Leask, and Eleanor Best - the 2021 Veterinary Evidence Student Award first, second, and third place winners.  They chatted about their motivation to enter the competition, how they found the process, what they learnt from the experience, and why other students should apply for next year's competition.  The 2023 Veterinary Evidence Student Awards are open until 13th January 2023. Apply now.   Read the transcript.  

Lou Northway, QI Clinical Lead at RCVS Knowledge chats to Elizabeth McLennan-Green, Hub Clinical Lead at CVS about her team's audit on the optimisation of the use of ear cytology in veterinary primary care. The team were awarded as Knowledge Champions in 2021 for their work. Read the award-winning case example here.  Read the transcript here.

In our new podcast series 'Research Focus', Sally Everitt, our inFOCUS Clinical Lead, will be chatting all about veterinary clinical research with a range of excellent guests.   This week, Alex Davies, who works in a first opinion practice in South Wales and is BVA's Young Vet of the Year for his work with Vet Mentor, talked about his experiences and passion for practice-based research as a primary care vet.  Read the transcript.   Access our In the Spotlight resource on practice-based research.  Access Knowledge Summaries from our journal Veterinary Evidence.  

In the third episode of ‘For the Record’, we hear from four male registered veterinary nurses, working in the UK today. Together they discuss their route into veterinary nursing as a career, their experiences as men in a predominantly female profession, and their personal aspirations and goals.   This episode features: Chris Hann  Ryan Hunt Ryan Mariner Matthew Rendle 'For The Record' is a series featuring conversations between current and former members of the veterinary professions, highlighting voices and experiences usually absent from our official archive. This episode was recorded in June 2021.    The transcript can be read here.    If you would like to get involved in future episodes, please contact the RCVS Knowledge archives team by email at [email protected]   Music is 'Jindupe' by Lauren Duski.

Thanks for listening to this episode of Knowledge Natter - our new series featuring friendly and informal discussions with Knowledge Champions, and those who are empowered by Quality Improvement (QI)  in their work.    Today's episode features Samantha Fontaine, who became a Knowledge Champion for implementing a new course that teaches QI to veterinary nurses, including those in practice and education, at the University of Glasgow.  Our RVN QI Clinical Lead Lou Northway, chatted to Sam and three of her students, Sarah, Molly, and Megan, about the course, taking the leap to implementing QI and their future QI plans.   Read Samantha's award-winning case example 'Teaching QI to veterinary nurses'.    Read the transcript.

Care bundles are a group of evidence-based practices that relate to a disease or a set of symptoms, that result in better outcomes when executed altogether than if implemented individually. In this podcast, Helen Ballantyne, who is a dual-qualified medical and veterinary nurse, draws upon her experience in human nursing to explain to Pam Mosedale why veterinary teams should be implementing care bundles to save time, promote teamwork, and improve patient outcomes.    Read the transcript here.    Access all the content from the first series of the QI Boxset here. 

Most veterinary surgeons and nurses working with small animals will have experience in treating canine cruciate ligament ruptures. However, there is not a strong evidence base to know which surgical techniques have the best outcome.  The new Canine Cruciate Registry (CCR) is RCVS Knowledge’s answer to this knowledge gap in veterinary care. In this podcast, hear Mark Morton, Canine Cruciate Registry Clinical Lead, talk to Pam Mosedale about the registry, why it's important, and why we need as many vets as possible to get involved.  Find out more on our website: caninecruciateregistry.org Read the transcript.  

Evidence suggests that incivility can increase errors and have a knock-on domino effect that impacts the whole team.   In this podcast, Professional Standards Director at Vets Now Laura Playforth discusses how incivility can impact patient care and outcomes.   Access the transcript here.

In this Audio Summary Veterinary Evidence author Amy Leather shares the finding of her and co-author Sarah Smith’s study, examining whether inhaled immunotherapy is more effective than environmental management when treating equine asthma. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enable vets and vet nurses to more quickly and more easily access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.   Access the transcript here.

The most joyful, productive, engaged staff feel both physically and psychologically safe, appreciate the meaning and purpose of their work, have some choice and control over their time, experience camaraderie with others at work, and perceive their work-life to be fair and equitable. In this podcast, in a first for the veterinary profession in the UK, we will hear from Jesse McCall, who co-leads the Joy in Work Results-Oriented Learning Network at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, as he discusses the factors that diminish joy in work, and practical steps that teams can take to work together to nurture their workforce and address the issues that drive burnout and sap joy in work.   Recorded at SPVS-VMG Virtual Congress in May 2021.   Access the transcript here.

In this Audio Summary Veterinary Evidence author Lesca Monica Sofyan reviews the evidence as to whether meloxicam is superior to carprofen for reducing patient discomfort in dogs diagnosed with osteoarthritis. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enable vets and vet nurses to more quickly and more easily access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.   Access the transcript here. 

In this Audio Summary Veterinary Evidence authors Tom Ling and Lucy Hocking share the findings of their study, co-written with Ashley Doorly and Chris Gush, and conducted to explore quality improvement in the veterinary sector. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enable vets and vet nurses to more quickly and more easily access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.   Access the transcript here

In this Audio Summary, Veterinary Evidence author Thomas Towers compares the evidence around the use of epidural with local anaesthetic and buprenorphine versus epidural with local anaesthetic and morphine in dogs undergoing hindlimb orthopaedic surgery. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enable vets and vet nurses to more quickly and more easily access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.

We have kindly been given permission to repost this episode of the BCVA's Cattlecast, which features Fiona Lovatt, our Farm Vet Champions Clinical Lead.  Fiona Lovatt is an RCVS-recognised Specialist in sheep health and a Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Nottingham. She talked to Kat Hart about her role as the Farm Vet Champions Clinical Lead – and how farm vet practices can participate in the initiative in order to advance responsible antibiotic use in cattle practice.     Visit our website for more information on Farm Vet Champions and register your interest.    Read the transcript.    Listen to BCVA's Cattlecast.

In this episode of the QI Boxset series, Melissa Donald, Chair of RCVS Standards Committee and RCVS Junior Vice-President, explains why Clinical Governance is a Code of Conduct requirement for vets and nurses, in a chat with Pam Mosedale.   The new QI Boxset series aims to provide practices and practitioners with guidance on establishing a quality improvement structure in practice. The entire series will be made available on our new e-learning platform this Spring. Read the press release.    Read the transcript.   

In this episode of the QI Boxset series, Rachael Bacon RVN, explains the benefits of group chat journal clubs.   The new QI Boxset series aims to provide practices and practitioners with guidance on establishing a quality improvement structure in practice. The entire series will be made available on our new e-learning platform this Spring. Read the press release.    Read the transcript.   

In this episode of the QI Boxset series, Lizzy Whiting, Highly Commended in the 2020 Knowledge Awards, chats to Pam Mosedale, our QI Clinical Lead, about her experiences of setting up QI in practice.    The new QI Boxset series aims to provide practices and practitioners with guidance on establishing a quality improvement structure in practice. The entire series will be made available on our new e-learning platform this Spring. Read the press release.    Read the transcript. 

In this episode of the QI Boxset series, Pam Mosedale, our QI Clinical Lead, chats to Caroline Freedman, the representative for pet owners on the RCVS’ Practice Standards group, about whether clients care if practices are participating in QI activities.   The new QI Boxset series aims to provide practices and practitioners with guidance on establishing a quality improvement structure in practice. The entire series will be made available on our new e-learning platform this Spring. Read the press release.    Read the transcript. 

In this episode of the QI Boxset series, Pam Mosedale, our QI Clinical Lead, chats to Professor John Williams, National Surgical Lead at Vets Now, about systems and meetings to aid communication in practice.    The new QI Boxset series aims to provide practices and practitioners with guidance on establishing a quality improvement structure in practice. The entire series will be made available on our new e-learning platform this Spring. Read the press release.    Read the transcript. 

In this episode of the QI Boxset series, Pam Mosedale, our QI Clinical Lead, chats to Angela Rayner, Director of QI at CVS, about why QI is so important in practice.   The new QI Boxset series aims to provide practices and practitioners with guidance on establishing a quality improvement structure in practice. The entire series will be made available on our new e-learning platform this Spring. Read the press release.    Read the transcript. 

In this Audio Summary, Ellie discusses the promotion of EBVM via the new online resource EBVM Learning. Read the full article here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.   Access the transcript here. 

In this Audio Summary, Louisa discusses the evidence around the use of honey as a topical treatment for wound healing in dogs. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.   Access the transcript.

Author Lori Teller and Heather Moberly review whether the literature supports the use of veterinary telemedicine for teleconsultations. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.   Access the transcript.

Author Maria Norell Candetoft looks at the incidence of postoperative uterine pathology in ovariectomised bitches compared to ovariohysterectomised bitches. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions. Access the transcript.

Author Tighearnan Mooney looks at the evidence around pheromonotherapy and whether it reduces stress in dogs in shelter environments. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions. Access the transcript. 

Author Katie Smithers reviews whether, in cats with traumatic coxofemoral injury, total hip replacement (THR) offers an improved outcome when compared with femoral head and neck excision (FHNE) arthroplasty. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions. Access the transcript. 

Molly Varga Smith, RCVS Recognised Specialist in Zoo and Wildlife Medicine, discusses how to handle ferrets in the veterinary environment during the COVID-19 pandemic.   RCVS Knowledge's COVID-19 Mythbusting series offers quick and concise answers to common questions regarding COVID-19 and the veterinary profession, helping you to manage enquiries, patients and your team: https://knowledge.rcvs.org.uk/covid-19/covid-19-mythbusting/    Read the transcript here. 

Bill Lucas, Director of the Centre for Real-World Learning and Professor of Learning at the University of Winchester, shares the habits of mind that can help to develop a culture of continuous improvement in health, education and other sectors - and how you can help cultivate those in yourself and your team. Download the presentation slides and the transcript from the RCVS Knowledge website. This is a recording of a presentation sponsored by RCVS Knowledge at the SPVS-VMG Focus on Leadership and Management Virtual Summit on 1 December 2020.   

Getting the whole team on board is often harder than it seems. Amelia Poole, RVN and QI Project Officer at RCVS Knowledge, chats to QI Champions Helen Silver-MacMahon, RVN, and Kelly Tillett, EVN, about how to introduce new concepts and changes to your team in a way that will encourage uptake, and what to do if others in your team don’t share the same passion for change.   This podcast is taken from a session for BVNA's This Is Us online event, in October 2020. For more free quality improvement resources visit: rcvsknowledge.org/quality-improvement Download the transcript. Watch the webinar.

Nathalie Dowgray, MRCVS and Head of the International Society of Feline Medicine, talks about how can we offer a cat-friendly environment while adhering to cleaning protocols during COVID-19.   Offering quick and concise answers to common questions regarding COVID-19 and the veterinary profession, helping you to manage enquiries, patients and your team: https://knowledge.rcvs.org.uk/covid-19   Read the transcript here.

Richard Killen, former Director of Clinical Services at CVS and Angela Rayner, Clinical Services Manager at CVS and current RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Advisor, discuss how to embed ‘systems thinking’ into a practice team, and what CVS have been doing to improve quality and safety.    Read the full transcript here.   This session was recorded at SPVS VMG Congress, Newport in January 2020, as part of the Quality Improvement stream.  

Molly Varga Smith, RCVS Recognised Specialist in Zoo and Wildlife Medicine, discusses what advice to give owners of ferrets during the COVID-19 pandemic. RCVS Knowledge webinar on COVID-19 Mythbusting.   Offering quick and concise answers to common questions regarding COVID-19 and the veterinary profession, helping you to manage enquiries, patients and your team: https://knowledge.rcvs.org.uk/covid-19/covid-19-mythbusting/    Read the transcript here. 

Molly Varga Smith, RCVS Recognised Specialist in Zoo and Wildlife Medicine, discusses the SARS-CoV-2 mutation in minks in Denmark. RCVS Knowledge webinar on COVID-19 Mythbusting. Offering quick and concise answers to common questions regarding COVID-19 and the veterinary profession, helping you to manage enquiries, patients and your team: https://knowledge.rcvs.org.uk/covid-19   Read the transcript here.

Molly Varga Smith, RCVS Recognised Specialist in Zoo and Wildlife Medicine, discusses whether ferrets and other mustelids pose a zoonotic risk for COVID-19.   RCVS Knowledge webinar on COVID-19 Mythbusting. Offering quick and concise answers to common questions regarding COVID-19 and the veterinary profession, helping you to manage enquiries, patients and your team: https://knowledge.rcvs.org.uk/covid-19/covid-19-mythbusting/   Read the transcript here.

Amelia Poole, RVN and RCVS Knowledge Project Officer, chats to Meghan Conroy about her aural cytology audit, including the original idea, trials and successes, and how her audit has changed the way they practise. The transcript of this discussion can be read here and the aural cytology audit can be read here. Please visit the RCVS Knowledge website for more free Quality Improvement resources. 

Meghan Conroy, RVN discussed her case example, which looks at the prevalence of ear cytology performed before and after antibiotic treatment across her practices. This case example was highly commended in the Knowledge Awards 2020. The written case example can be read here and the transcript can be accessed here. Please visit the RCVS Knowledge website for more free Quality Improvement resources. 

In this Audio Summary, Kristina discusses the evidence behind the recommendation to reduce fluid therapy rates of cats and dogs. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.   Acess transcript here. 

David Singleton BVSc MSc PhD MRCVS, Epidemiologist University of Liverpool, discusses the evidence behind the use of face coverings. This is the audio from a webinar, which can be viewed at: https://youtu.be/0syiYDtW22g   Download the transcript here.   You can find more COVID-19 mythbusting videos and resources on our website: http://www.rcvsknowledge.org/covid-19   UK Government's guidance on COVID-19: https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus  Face coverings link: http://bit.ly/3igaw29 PPE link: http://bit.ly/2SldNmi 

David Singleton BVSc MSc PhD MRCVS, Epidemiologist University of Liverpool, discusses the evidence behind the use of face coverings. This is the audio from a webinar, which can be viewed at: https://youtu.be/ai5PzPNTIsM    Download the transcript here.   You can find more COVID-19 mythbusting videos and resources on our website: http://www.rcvsknowledge.org/covid-19   Government guidance on coronavirus can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus 

David Singleton BVSc MSc PhD MRCVS, Epidemiologist University of Liverpool, discusses how face coverings work.   Download the transcript here.   You can find more COVID-19 mythbusting videos and resources on our website: http://www.rcvsknowledge.org/covid-19  

In this Audio Summary, Laura discusses the evidence on whether mesenchymal stem cell therapy are more effective at managing lameness than intra-articular corticosteroids in horses with OA. This is the second place Knowledge Summary of the Veterinary Evidence Student Awards 2020. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions. Access the transcript here. 

Samantha Thompson, RVN and Post-Registration Programme Manager for the Linnaeus Group, discusses her post-operative hypothermia audit and how the team used the results to make changes within practice.    The case example was awarded Highly Commended in the Knowledge Awards 2020. The written case example can be read here, and the transcript can be read here.    Visit the RCVS Knowledge website for more free quality improvement resources.  If you would like to contact Sam about her audit, her Facebook page can be found at facebook.com/evolutionVNdevelopment/

Dr Sarah Caddy VetMB PhD DipACVM MRCVS, Virologist at University of Cambridge, discusses when we should test an animal for COVID-19. Download the transcript and the presentation from the RCVS Knowledge website. For more COVID-19 mythbusting resources, visit the RCVS Knowledge website.

In this Audio Summary, Carla discusses the evidence on educational interventions for hand hygiene. This is the winning Knowledge Summary of the Veterinary Evidence Student Awards 2020. Read the full Knowledge Summary here.   Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.   Access transcript here.   

Dr Liam Brierley, MRC Skills Development Fellow, University of Liverpool, discusses whether good weather will decrease the infection rates of COVID 19.    Download the transcript.   For more free COVID-19 resources for veterinary professionals, visit: rcvsknowledge.org/covid-19    

Alan Radford, Professor in Veterinary Health Informatics at the University of Liverpool and RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Advisor, discusses whether ultraviolet light can actually kill COVID-19.   Download the presentation and transcript.   For more free COVID-19 resources for veterinary professionals, visit: rcvsknowledge.org/covid-19

Pam Mosedale, BVetMed, MRCVS and Chair of the Quality Improvement Advisory Board, discusses what patients can be cleaned with, and whether this could kill COVID-19.  Download the presentation and transcript. For more free COVID-19 resources for veterinary professionals, visit: rcvsknowledge.org/covid-19

Getting started with quality improvement in practice can be daunting if you don't know where to start, and continuous quality improvement can often seem overwhelming. In this webinar produced for BSAVA 2020, Louise Northway, RVN, discusses why quality improvement is a staple in practice, how to get started with clinical audit and what your results might indicate for patient care.     Based on practical examples, including Lou's award-winning small animal neutering audit, find out how to use evidence to improve standards of care, and how QI can help promote a just culture.   - Louise Northway VNCertECC NCert(Anaesth) RVN   Download the transcript and presentation from the RCVS Knowledge website. Visit the RCVS Knowledge website for more free quality improvement resources.     

Alan Radford, Professor in Veterinary Health Informatics at the University of Liverpool and RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Advisor, discusses the difference between Feline Coronavirus and SARS-CoV-2. Download the presentation and transcript. For more free COVID-19 resources for veterinary professionals, visit: rcvsknowledge.org/covid-19

How can we express evidence in a way that means people will engage with it and understand it? How do team dynamics and individual context influence whether evidence is used appropriately and fully? What can we learn from the experience in human medicine? These questions and more are explored in this roundtable discussion featuring: Trish Greenhalgh, Professor of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford Dr Zoe Belshaw, internal medicine specialist, Centre for Evidence-Based Veterinary Medicine at the University of Nottingham/PDSA Dr Louise Buckley, RVN and Lecturer, University of Edinburgh/Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies Laura Playforth, Veterinary Surgeon, Vice-Chair of RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Advisory Board and Professional Standards Director at Vets Now Adewole Adekola and Imogen Schofield: Veterinary Surgeons and PhD students at the Royal Veterinary College Download the transcript from the RCVS Knowledge website. The Knowledge Sessions bring together specialists from across the industry to examine the landscape, propose potential approaches to complex problems, and provide practical advice on a range of subjects.

Dr Sarah Caddy VetMB PhD DipACVM MRCVS: Virologist at University of Cambridge provides the latest evidence and advice regarding the potential for cats to transfer COVID-19 to other animals, and the risk of zoonosis. Download the transcript. For more free COVID-19 resources for veterinary professionals, visit rcvsknowledge.org/covid-19.

Dr Sarah Caddy VetMB PhD DipACVM MRCVS: Virologist at University of Cambridge provides the latest evidence and advice regarding the use of kennel cough vaccine in relation to humans that may be immunosuppressed due to COVID-19 infection. Download the transcript. For more free COVID-19 resources for veterinary professionals, visit rcvsknowledge.org/covid-19.

In this Audio Summary, Mike discusses whether calves separated at birth vs. suckled with the mother, has any behavioural and performance effects on both cow and/or calf. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.   Access the transcript here

A presentation on the management of feline chronic kidney disease produced by RCVS Knowledge for BSAVA Congress 2020 by: Sarah Caney BVSc PhD DSAM(Feline) MRCVS, RCVS specialist in feline medicine, and Paul Pollard MVB CertAVP(VC) PG Dip Vet Ed FHEA MRCVS, First opinion practitioner, responsible for student learning on first opinion rotation at the Royal Veterinary College in Camden. Download the transcript and presentation from the RCVS Knowledge website. Visit the RCVS Knowledge website for more free quality improvement resources. 

Part 5 in our infection control series focuses on the use of audits in veterinary practice, and the role of auditing in benchmarking and monitoring infections and progress. It is delivered by: - Pam Mosedale: Chair of the RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Advisory Board, Lead Practice Standards Scheme Assessor (RCVS) and Bella Moss Clinical Advisor - Dr Tim Nuttall: Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh; RCVS Knowledge Infection Control Advisor and Bella Moss Clinical Advisor Download the accompanying presentation and transcript from the RCVS Knowledge website. CPD: 1 hour

This guide to disinfectant types for veterinary professionals is Part 4 in our infection control series. - Sairéad Wild BSc (Hons), PgDip, RVN. RCVS Knowledge Infection Control Working Party; Course Director: University College West Anglia, Access to Veterinary Science; Lecturer: Veterinary Nursing (Higher Education) - Pam Mosedale: Chair of the RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Advisory Board, Lead Practice Standards Scheme Assessor (RCVS) and Bella Moss Clinical Advisor Download the accompanying presentation and transcript from the RCVS Knowledge website. CPD: 25 mins

Part 3 in our series on infection control: infection prevention, and control policies and procedures in routine practice by: Liz Branscombe DipAVN(Surgical) RVN: RCVS Knowledge Trustee and Training Manager, Davies Veterinary Specialists Pam Mosedale: Chair of the RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Advisory Board, Lead Practice Standards Scheme Assessor (RCVS) and Bella Moss Clinical Advisor Download the accompanying presentation and transcript from the RCVS Knowledge website. CPD: 1 hour 15 mins

Lizzie Lockett, CEO of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, provides a personal take on quality improvement, why it's important for all people working in a practice to be alive to change, and RCVS initiatives that support the adoption of quality improvement. Download the transcript and find free quality improvement resources on the RCVS Knowledge website. The Knowledge Sessions is a series that brings together specialists from across the veterinary industry to examine the landscape, propose potential approaches to complex problems, and provide practical advice on a range of subjects. CPD: 30 mins

Part 2 in our series on infection control: organisms of concern and modes of transmission by: Dr Tim Nuttall: RCVS Knowledge Infection Control Advisor; Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh; and Bella Moss Clinical Advisor Pam Mosedale: Chair of the RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Advisory Board, Lead Practice Standards Scheme Assessor (RCVS) and Bella Moss Clinical Advisor Download the accompanying presentation and transcript from the RCVS Knowledge website. Listen to Part 1: Infection control and biosecurity during COVID-19. CPD: 1 hour

Pam Mosedale (Chair of RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Advisory Board and Acting Lead Assessor and Veterinary Advisor for the Practice Standards Group) and Charlotte Hartley (RVN and Practice Standards Advisor for North West) advise on getting started with clinical audit in practice, discussing topics, benefits and barriers. This presentation was recorded at Ashbrook Equine Hospital during the RCVS Knowledge Equine Roadshow, kindly sponsored by the Horserace Betting Levy Board and accredited by the British Equine Veterinary Association. Download the full transcript and presentation from the RCVS Knowledge website. CPD: 35 mins

Tim Mair, President of the British Equine Veterinary Association and Equine Veterinary Director of CVS, looks at the challenges and benefits of introducing clinical guidelines into equine practice. Real-life examples demonstrate how to create your own guidelines and monitor their effect in practice. This session was recorded at Ashbrook Equine Hospital as part of the RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Equine Roadshow, kindly sponsored by the Horserace Betting Levy Board and accredited by the British Equine Veterinary Association. Download the transcript and the presentation from the RCVS Knowledge website. CPD: 35 mins

Audio version of an RCVS Knowledge webinar providing an introduction to the evidence base on COVID-19 and the patient/client journey, featuring: Pam Mosedale: Chair of the RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Advisory Board, Lead Practice Standards Scheme Assessor (RCVS) and Bella Moss Clinical Advisor Alan Radford: RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Advisor and Professor in Veterinary Health Informatics at the University of Liverpool Dr Tim Nuttall: RCVS Knowledge Infection Control Advisor and Bella Moss Clinical Advisor; Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh Download the transcript from the RCVS Knowledge website. For more COVID-19 guidance, visit the RCVS Knowledge COVID-19 resources hub.  CPD: 1 hour

In this Audio Summary, Mike discusses the age at first calving in order to maximise milk yield, minimize risk of non-voluntary culling and optimize fertility. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.   Access the transcript here. 

Rachel Dean of VetPartners and Ulrika Gronlund of AniCura share views and experiences of the clinical benefits of corporatisation - capturing and sharing data and knowledge at scale, quality improvement approaches, benefits for the animal owner, and more. Download the transcript from the RCVS Knowledge website. This podcast is part of the Knowledge Sessions, a resource that brings together specialists from across the veterinary industry to examine the landscape, propose potential approaches to complex problems, and provide practical advice on a range of subjects. CPD: 45 mins

Chaired by Dan Tipney, VetLed, the panel featuring Louise Northway, Wendover Heights Veterinary Centre; Alison Thomas, Blue Cross; Pam Mosedale, RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Advisory Board; and Richard Byrne, West Bar Hospital, discuss their experience of quality improvement in practice. Areas of discussion include topics to start with, how to record, tips to engage your team, as well as the benefits and barriers they have experienced. Download the full transcript from the RCVS Knowledge website. This session was recorded at SPVS VMG Congress, Newport in January 2020, as part of the Quality Improvement stream.  CPD: 75 minutes

What can we learn from the NHS's approach to patient safety over the past 20 years? Suzette Woodward, a paediatric intensive care nurse who is now a Professor in patient safety, discusses the latest safety concepts and science that are sweeping the NHS - as well as what we could do differently. Download the full transcript from the RCVS Knowledge website. This session was recorded at SPVS VMG Congress, Newport in January 2020, as part of the quality improvement stream. CPD: 40 mins

Shobhan Thakore, Clinical Lead for the Scottish Quality and Safety Fellowship Programme, gives an approachable and personal perspective on how to get your team on board to deliver quality improvement. Shobhan discusses recent NHS initiatives to help manage expectations, engage and work with the team to respond to change, and deal with fear of blame.  Download the full transcript from the RCVS Knowledge website. This presentation was an Adapt, Improve, Achieve session by RCVS Knowledge recorded at SPVS-VMG Congress 2020 in Newport as part of the Quality Improvement stream. CPD: 40 mins  

Pam Mosedale, Chair of RCVS Knowledge Quality Improvement Advisory Board, shares valuable lessons about how checklists have reduced errors in human healthcare and other industries, and how checklists can be applied successfully in a veterinary setting. This presentation was recorded at Ashbrook Equine Hospital during the RCVS Knowledge Equine Roadshow, kindly sponsored by the Horserace Betting Levy Board and accredited by the British Equine Veterinary Association. Download the full transcript and accompanying presentation from the RCVS Knowledge website. CPD: 38 mins

In this Audio Summary, Hannah discuses the evidence around whether bisphosphonates are a more effective treatment than intra-articular steroids in horses with OA. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.   Access the transcript here. 

Alice Bird, Senior Clinician in Anaesthesia at the Animal Health Trust, talks through the significant event audit of a postoperative complication that occurred in equine practice, including how a blame culture was avoided, lessons learned and resultant processes put in place. The session formed part of the RCVS Knowledge Equine Roadshow recorded at Ashbrook Equine Hospital in 2019, sponsored by the Horserace Betting Levy Board and accredited by the British Equine Veterinary Association. Download the accompanying presentation and full transcript from the RCVS Knowledge website. CPD: 40 mins

Checklists have been used in aviation and human medicine for decades, given their proven power to reduce avoidable errors and significant events. Amanda Boag (Clinical Director at Vets Now, RCVS Knowledge Trustee and Vice-President of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons) discusses the state of play with checklists in the veterinary industry, why checklists are liberating rather than constraining, and how a simple piece of paper can save lives. Download the full transcript, the accompanying presentation and RCVS Knowledge's new Surgical Safety Checklist Manual from the RCVS Knowledge website. This podcast is part of the Knowledge Sessions, a resource that brings together specialists from across the veterinary industry to examine the landscape, propose potential approaches to complex problems, and provide practical advice on a range of subjects.

Doing research as a veterinary practitioner is easier and more rewarding than you think. But what kind of research can you do? What are the benefits of doing research in practice, and what skills and resources do you need? Where do you get started, and what kind of impact can you make? Dr Marnie Brennan, Dr Zoe Belshaw and Hannah Doit from the University of Nottingham’s Centre for Evidence-Based Veterinary Medicine provide an approachable step-by-step guide, with tips on making research in practice useful and fulfilling, and some inspiring examples. Download the full transcript and the references from the RCVS Knowledge website. This podcast is part of the Knowledge Sessions, a resource that brings together specialists from across the veterinary industry to examine the landscape, propose potential approaches to complex problems, and provide practical advice on a range of subjects.

This roundtable discussion looks at the controversial area of patient values and ethics in evidence-based veterinary medicine. What are patient values and do they matter? How does animal sentience affect the notion of informed consent? Who should have the final say in potential treatment? Peter Cockcroft, Editor-in-chief of Veterinary Evidence, chairs this fascinating and wide-ranging podcast recorded last year featuring experts in the field: Carol Gray, David Mills, Siobhan Mullan, Francoise Wemelsfelder and James Yeates. Download the full transcript. This podcast is part of the Knowledge Sessions, a resource that brings together specialists from across the veterinary industry to examine the landscape, propose potential approaches to complex problems, and provide practical advice on a range of subjects.

For World Antibiotic Awareness Week, UK Chief Vet Christine Middlemiss chairs a roundtable discussion on challenges presented by antimicrobial resistance and ways to tackle it, with guests Ian Battersby (Davies Veterinary Specialists/Mission Rabies), Steve Howard (PDSA), Kristen Reyher (Bristol Veterinary School) and David Singleton (Small Animal Veterinary Surveillance Network). This podcast is the first of 'The Knowledge Sessions', a series of discussions with leading experts on hot topics in evidence-based veterinary medicine. Download the full transcript from the RCVS Knowledge website.  

Margaret Mary Devaney, Assistant Director for Quality and Risk at East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust, and Anita Malana, Team Leader for Trauma, Orthopaedics and Private Theatres at the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, draw on personal experiences to give a thought-provoking overview of quality improvement, approaches to safety and a learning culture in the NHS. This emotive presentation was made at RCVS Knowledge’s National Summit for Supporting Quality Improvement in Veterinary Care 2019.  Follow the visual presentation while you listen

The use of antibiotics in veterinary medicine and a resulting development of antimicrobial resistance is a topic of major concern. Especially for primary care, evidence is needed to guarantee the efficacy of antibiotic drugs in future. For this, the correct dosage is an essential measure to prevent antibiotic resistance. Because veterinarians used practice differs from the manufacturer’s recommendations, data is needed to describe evidence-based defined daily doses for animals (DDDA). Read more here.  LK - Evidenced Based Approach for a Definition of Defined Daily Dosages of Antibiotics Used in German Pig Production Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Dr Bill Taylor gives a captivating plenary on ‘Quality Improvement and the NHS’, outlining some of the basics of quality improvement and its history.    Follow Bill's visual presentation while you listen.

Matt McMillan, Principal Clinical Anaesthetist and Critical Care Co-ordinator at Queen’s Veterinary School Hospital, delivers his talk on checklists, revealing the underlying reason why they are necessary and delving into their war-time history.

Lizzie Lockett, the newly appointed CEO of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, presents a plenary session about the importance of adopting a learning culture. 

Dr Bradley Viner, Chair of our Quality Improvement Advisory Board, discusses the importance of embedding quality improvement in the profession, and introduces our Quality Improvement Project.

In this Audio Summary Alex discusses whether hypertonic saline is effective in reducing intracranial pressure after a traumatic brain injury in dogs. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.

Q&A from Mike's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 2nd, 2016. Read more and listen to Mike's talk here.    

Evidence Aid is an international initiative to improve access to reliable evidence that will help people and organisations make well-informed decisions about interventions, actions and strategies in the disaster setting. It focuses on systematic reviews as the most reliable source of research evidence, maximising the power of existing research, avoiding undue emphasis on single studies and reducing the waste associated with research that is ignored or not accessible to decision makers. Evidence Aid is knowledge champion for influencers of the humanitarian sector, including funders, policy makers, NGOs, and humanitarian professionals. Evidence Aid was established by members of the Cochrane Collaboration after the Indian Ocean tsunami of December 2004. It provides access to information relevant to disaster risk reduction, planning, response, recovery, resilience and rehabilitation. This presentation will discuss the need for Evidence Aid, and describes its activities. Read more and listen to the Q&As here. MC - Evidence Aid: Using Systematic Reviews to Improve Access to Evidence for Humanitarian Emergencies Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

In this Audio Summary Cherry discusses whether there are advantages to performing laparoscopic ovariectomy over open ovariectomy. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.

Q&A from Mariska's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 2nd, 2016. Read more and listen to Mariska's talk here.

While textbooks on evidence-based medicine still mainly focus on accuracy studies as most appropriate level of evidence for diagnostic questions, the guideline developers have moved forward to patient important outcomes. In other words, a perfect test may still be useless if it does not change clinical decisionsand outcomes for patients. What is the current state of evidence-based diagnostics and how can this be translated to different veterinary situations? Read more and listen to the Q&As here.  ML - Evidence Synthesis of Diagnostics: GRADE and How It Can Be Used for Veterinary Evidence Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Gastroprotectants are commonly prescribed in patients receiving immunosuppressive therapy with glucocorticoids. Presently, there is limited evidence to support such use of gastroprotectants. The objective of this study was to establish if the prophylactic use of gastroprotectants was associated with a reduced incidence of gastrointestinal signs in dogs receiving immunosuppressive doses of glucocorticoids, compared to not receiving prophylactic gastroprotectants. Read more and listen to the Q&As here. Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Q&A from Adam's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 1st, 2016. Read more and listen to Adam's talk here.

In this Audio Summary Erik shares the evidence around whether the use of lidocaine in dogs and cats reduces post-operative tracheitis. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.

Q&A from David's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 2nd, 2016. Read more here.

Therapy and prognosis are entailed by the diagnosis: the holistic success of the EBVM approach therefore firmly and critically rests on diagnostic accuracy. Unfortunately, medical professionals do not appear to be very accurate with diagnoses. In human medicine, there is 30-50% discordance reported between doctors’ ante- (presumptive) and post-mortem (definitive) diagnoses, with no significant change in the last 100 years (Goldberg et al 2002). Veterinary surgeons do not perform much better, although it is a chronically under-researched area. This talk looks at how vets and vet nurses can maximise their impact on clinical performance. Read more here.  DM - Diagnostic Accuracy: The Wellspring of EBVM Success, and How We Can Improve It   Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

In this Audio Summary Nieky shares the evidence around whether feeding dogs a raw meat diet reduces periodontal disease. Read the full Knowledge Summary here. Audio Summaries are a free resource that enables vets and vet nurses to access and digest relevant and up-to-date evidence quicker and easier! A time-saving way to make better and faster evidence-based decisions.

Acute puerperal metritis (APM) is a potentially life threatening, painful disease and is often treated with third-generation cephalosporins. Due to increasing antibiotic resistance, Alina discusses the need to evaluate alternative therapies to antibiotics. Read more, view the slides and listen to the Q&A here.     AP - Efficacy of Nonsteroidal Antiinflammatory Drugs for the Treatment of Acute Puerperal Metritis in Dairy Cow  Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Q&A from Alina's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 1st, 2016. Read more, view the slides and listen to the full talk here.

Q&A from Katie's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 2nd, 2016. Read more here.

Clinical audit can play an important part in improving the services offered by farm animal veterinary practices. Its current use however is very varied. Understanding experiences, considering concerns and taking into account the thoughts of veterinary surgeons is vital when creating guidance for the profession. Read more here or listen to this session's Q&A.  KW - Clinical Audit Experiences of Veterinary Surgeons Undertaking Farm Animal Work in the UK Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Q&A from Mary's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 2nd, 2016. Read more here.

In this talk, from the Veterinary Evidence Today conference 2016, Mary Fraser discusses the variety of different medications that can be used in the treatment of Malassezia otitis externa and the need for a greater number of robust clinical trials. Read more here.   Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

In this talk, from the Veterinary Evidence Today conference 2016, Mike Clarke gives an introduction to systematic reviews.  MC - Introduction to Systematic Reviews Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016  

Blood lactate levels are a simple and inexpensive parameter that is increasingly available to practitioners in both emergency medicine and general practice. But what does it really tell us? But does the data support that? In this session we will briefly review lactate physiology and then focus on the small animal veterinary evidence base – how has it evolved, what do we now know and where are the gaps in knowledge and potential misinterpretations that could affect our use of this clinical tool.   Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016  

Q&A from Amanda's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 1st, 2016.

Abbie Latham, an MA History student from Kings College London discusses the Boer War correspondence of Army veterinarian Frederick Smith. Abbie transcribed the letters held by Knowledge, and in her podcast explores aspects of the letters relating to technological developments in war reporting in the nineteenth century. Abbie’s fascinating essay brings a fresh perspective and historical insight into the letters, which will be of interest to all audiences.

There is very little good-quality veterinary evidence for most of the veterinary procedures carried out every day across the world. Very few, if any, individuals have all the necessary qualities to be able to systematically produce good-quality, and relevant, clinical research on their own, in a timely manner. The Association for Veterinary Soft Tissue Surgery (AVSTS) www.avsts.org.uk is an affiliate group with the British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA), and functions as a clinical network of like-minded individuals. In 2013 AVSTS sought to create a role for itself in facilitating the production (by its members) of multi-centre clinical research of relevance to its members. Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016  

Q&A from Heather's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 3rd, 2016.

A 2015 survey of veterinary educators at AVMA accredited veterinary colleges indicated use of a wide variety of teaching modalities and a broad disparity among colleges about the amount of EBVM skills taught and their place in the curriculum. Evidence in learning theory suggests that teaching the skills of EBVM requires consideration of ways to optimise the transfer of skills from the didactic or pre-clinical to the clinical setting. This talk discusses how we partnered to successfully integrate asking a clinical question, searching the literature, appraising the literature, and applying evidence to the clinical question to make a clinical recommendation.  HM - Integrating Veterinary Subject Expertise With Information Literacy Expertise to Teach and Assess the Student Skills in Evidence-based Veterinary Medicine   Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Q&A from David's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 2nd, 2016.

This talk will argue that patient values should be the central, primary and overriding consideration in both its practice and research if EBVM is to be an ethically acceptable pursuit.  DM - Putting the Horse Before the Cart: the Ethical Case for Animal Patient Values in EBVM Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016  

Q&A from hannah's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 3, 2016.

Including current published evidence is vital as part of evidence-based decision making in veterinary practice. Sometimes there is no published evidence which is relevant or applicable to the clinical situation. This can be either because it refers to patients with experimentally induced conditions, from a referral population or who lack the co-morbities often seen outside of the experimental context. The Veterinary Clinical Trials Network is unique. It is a rapidly expanding network of veterinary practices, with whom we are working to establish methods for running prospective, pragmatic, practical clinical trials in veterinary practice.   Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Q&A from Emma's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 2, 2016.

Educational research has realigned away from the delivery of information towards the enhancement of learning and construction of knowledge (Edmondson, 2001). The availability of information is no longer the limiting factor; the ability to process and rationalise the vast amount of information available is now far more important. As suggested by Alvin Toffler, “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and re-learn.” Hence, it is important to consider ways to equip students with the skills for critical appraisal and life-long learning. Teaching strategies that engender a deep approach to learning by promoting active student engagement are key to these aims.  EO'N - The Use of an Evidence Based Practice Approach to Promote Active Student Engagement and Life - Long Learning in an Online Graduate Certificate   Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

No evidence-based treatment guidelines exist for any ophthalmic conditions of dogs and there is limited published evidence supporting treatments of feline herpes viral keratitis (FHVK). The aim of this study was to document current treatment patterns of canine prolapsed nictitans (PN) and FHVK through the use of a vignette-based survey administered to general practitioner (GP) and ophthalmic specialist (SP) veterinarians.  CW - Clinical Decision Maiking and Treatment Patterns in Canine Prolapsed Nictitans and Feline Herpetic Keratitis Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Q&A from Claire's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 1, 2016.

It is widely believed that laminitis poses a threat to the health and welfare of all Equidae; however, there is a paucity of evidence-based research on fundamental aspects of the disease, including how commonly it occurs, its clinical presentation and those animals at greatest risk. Following generous funding from World Horse Welfare, we have produced a programme of work over the last eight years to improve the evidence base regarding the epidemiology of laminitis. This talk will outline the methods we used to gather evidence-based data in the equine field, highlight the challenges and lessons we have learnt, and emphasise the crucial role the veterinary practitioner can play in both providing and using such evidence-based data.  CW - Collaboration as a Key Feature of Equine Evidence-Based Research: A Laminitis Case Study Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Q&A from Kristen's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 2, 2016.

To help make EBVM accessible to the veterinary profession worldwide, we assembled an extensive international team (the EBVM Learning Consortium) with a collective passion for delivering high-quality teaching of EBVM and developed an open access, online resource: ebvmlearning.org. It is hoped that the development of this resource will increase awareness of EBVM in the veterinary profession and allow practitioners the opportunity to develop the skills needed to utilise EBVM in everyday clinical practice.   Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016  

Q&A from Dan's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 2, 2016.

When a piece of ‘evidence’ is generated in the research environment and almost nobody hears about it, then can we really still call it a piece of ‘evidence’? Does evidence only become evidence once it is used; and until then, is it just a piece of insignificant information? As we inexorably travel through the EBVM era, we must increasingly prioritise effective dissemination of evidence. This paper will use the VetCompass Programme at the Royal Veterinary College as a case study to explore a strategic dissemination plan and examine routes for effective dissemination.  Dan O'Neill - Effective Dissemination - Building an Evidence to Impact Strategy Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

The evidence pyramid for assessing the efficacy of interventions under real world conditions has been used in various forms for many years, and to a lesser extent the pyramid has been used for assessing evidence for disease risk factors. While acknowledging minor differences, many pyramids list the following information sources for interventions in decreasing order of “validity”: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised control trials, randomised controlled trials, cohort studies, case control studies, case series and case reports. In this presentation Annette discusses the validity of the evidence pyramid on the interpretation of evidence from primary research. She proposes a new way to think about evidence from primary studies using the framework for classifying epidemiologic studies proposed by Pearce (2012) based on incident and prevalent cases. This would also result in a rethinking of the current evidence pyramid.   Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

This podcast discusses how a significant event can lead to the practice examining what happened, looking at the evidence base, revising protocols & auditing implementation of the new protocols. A significant event is an event thought by anyone in the team to be significant in the care of patients or the conduct of the practice.   Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Embracing EBVM as a concept is an important first step, but is of little value unless it is translated into an improvement in patient care. This session will discuss how EBVM can be incorporated into clinical guidelines at a practice level, using a team-based approach to maximise concordance.  BV - Embedding EBVM into Practice  Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Always wondered why research papers often present rather complicated statistical analyses? Or wondered how to properly analyse the results of a pragmatic trial from your own practice? This talk will give an overview of basic statistical principles and focus on the why of statistics, rather than on the how.     MN - Introduction to Statistics  Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Q&A from Sue and Andrea's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 1, 2016.

The evolution of veterinary nursing over the past fifty years combined with the introduction of the RCVS Register and Code of Conduct means that RVN's are now accountable for their actions and as a result must develop the ability to critically appraise, both their own practice and the protocols of the organisation in which they work, as part of clinical governance. It is therefore important that they develop the tools which enable them to confidently question all aspects of their clinical practice, but especially patient care and welfare, where necessary.  Don't Be Afraid to Ask the Question: A Simple Guide for Veterinary Nurses to Conducting Evidence-Based Research in Clinical Practice   Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Q&A from Louise's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 1, 2016. 

This talk will look at difficulties for RVNs working in private practice gaining access to sufficient papers and studies in order to provide the evidence we need, and also looking at the selection of appropriate topics. We will look at sources of information such as the RCVS Knowledge library in order to collect evidence, and also how to select appropriate, relevant topics for research which will be useful to other RVNs working in practice, and will help in the creation of nursing protocols and nursing care bundles, which will advance nursing and patient care.    Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Q&A from Richard's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 3, 2016. 

Research is essential to provide the evidence-base for veterinary science in order to improve the health and welfare of animals and to improve public health. In this session, Dr Mellanby will discuss the valuable contribution that practice-based veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses can make to the future of veterinary knowledge.    Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016  

Q&A from Ava and Ian's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 2, 2016.

Whilst there is a small body of research that investigates the development of EBVM skills in veterinary undergraduates there is a paucity of research that aims to understand the development of EBVM skills in practice-based post-graduate veterinary surgeons. This talk on a paper is a small step in remedying that shortfall. In particular, the paper provides a progress report on an RCVS Knowledge funded study that is evaluating a practice-based EBVM development program.  AF & IR - Preliminary Evaluation of a Practice-Based EBVM Skills Development Program Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Q&A from Steve and David's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 1, 2016.

Practice-based research should be performed in all practice settings if the results are to be applied to all practice settings. While the previous statement seems intuitive, that is to have practice-based evidence strengthen evidence-based medicine. The development of such a system of data collection and dissemination has not developed very rapidly.  This lecture will describe how the VetCompass Programme has grown and evolved to now provide a world-leading platform for unbiased, invisible data collection...  SB and DC - Can Practice Based Evidence Complement and Promote EBVM? Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016  

To be able to practice evidence-based veterinary medicine, clinicians need high quality relevant evidence to integrate with their clinical decision making. Rachel's talk explores how relevance is possibly more important than quality as even the best evidence cannot be used if it can't be applied to veterinary practice.   RD - Irrelevant, Irrelevant, Irrelevant! Time to change our approach to research? Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Q&A from Emma's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 3, 2016.

Emma Place gives a talk on how it can be common to get zero or low numbers of hits for a veterinary PICO search in bibliographic databases, particularly if results are screened for clinical trials...  EP - Literature Searching for Evidence-Based Veterinary Medicine: Coping with Zero Hits Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016

Q&A from Gillian's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 3, 2016.

This talk will illustrate the highs and lows of using evidence in the healthcare setting, drawing on experience from the National Institue for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) relevant to veterinary medicine...  GL - Using Evidence: Pitfalls, Practicalities and Positive Benefits Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016  

Q&A from Mark Turner's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 2, 2016.

In human medicine, the management of care to ensure safety for the service-user constitutes an important element of the patient ‘journey.’ The name given to this discipline is patient safety. It is founded upon those elements of good medical practice which help avoid or mitigate human error...   MT - Mistakes, errors and foul-ups:... Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016      

Q&A from Elizabeth's and Sarah's talk at the Veterinary Evidence Today conference, Edinburgh November 2, 2016.

The clinical benefits of EBVM are clear however the business case for EBVM requires development. We aim to expand the adoption of EBVM amongst UK veterinary practices by identifying its improvement to practice performance...   EJ&SH - Building a business case for EBVM Veterinary Evidence Today Edinburgh, 1-3 November 2016