Integrative veterinary medical education and consensus guidelines for an integrative veterinary medicine curriculum within veterinary colleges
Journal Title: Open Veterinary Journal - Year 2016, Vol 5, Issue 2
Abstract
Integrative veterinary medicine (IVM) describes the combination of complementary and alternative therapies with conventional care and is guided by the best available evidence. Veterinarians frequently encounter questions about complementary and alternative veterinary medicine (CAVM) in practice, and the general public has demonstrated increased interest in these areas for both human and animal health. Consequently, veterinary students should receive adequate exposure to the principles, theories, and current knowledge supporting or refuting such techniques. A proposed curriculum guideline would broadly introduce students to the objective evaluation of new veterinary treatments while increasing their preparation for responding to questions about IVM in clinical practice. Such a course should be evidence-based, unbiased, and unaffiliated with any particular CAVM advocacy or training group. All IVM courses require routine updating as new information becomes available. Controversies regarding IVM and CAVM must be addressed within the course and throughout the entire curriculum. Instructional honesty regarding the uncertainties in this emerging field is critical. Increased training of future veterinary professionals in IVM may produce an openness to new ideas that characterizes the scientific method and a willingness to pursue and incorporate evidence-basedmedicine in clinical practice with all therapies, including those presently regarded as integrative, complementary, or alternative.
Authors and Affiliations
M. A. Memon| Department of Clinical Science, College of Veterinary Medicine, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, USA, J. Shmalberg| Departments of Small Animal Clinical Sciences (Shmalberg, Chrisman, Johnson, Sleeper), Large Animal Clinical Sciences (Morton), and Biomedical Sciences (Ramirez), College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA, H. S. Adair III| Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences (Egger) and Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences (Adair), College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA, S. Allweiler| Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA, J. N. Bryan| Department of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA, S. Cantwell| Medicine Wheel Veterinary Services, Ocala, FL, USA, E. Carr| Departments of Small Animal Clinical Sciences (Shmalberg, Chrisman, Johnson, Sleeper), Large Animal Clinical Sciences (Morton), and Biomedical Sciences (Ramirez), College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA, C. Chrisman| Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences (Egger) and Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences (Adair), College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA, C. M. Egger| Department of Clinical Science, College of Veterinary Medicine, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, USA, S. Greene| Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA, K. K. Haussler| Integrative Veterinary Oncology, Phoenix, AZ, USA, B. Hershey| Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, Center for Veterinary Health Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA, G. R. Holyoak| Departments of Small Animal Clinical Sciences (Shmalberg, Chrisman, Johnson, Sleeper), Large Animal Clinical Sciences (Morton), and Biomedical Sciences (Ramirez), College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA, M. Johnson| Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital (Peyton) and Department of Surgical and Radiological Sciences (Le Jeune), School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA, USA, S. Le Jeune| IVG Hospitals, Woburn, MA, USA, A. Looney| IVG Hospitals, Woburn, MA, USA, R. S. McConnico| Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, USA, C. Medina| Coral Springs Animal Hospital, Coral Springs, FL, USA, A. J. Morton| Departments of Small Animal Clinical Sciences (Shmalberg, Chrisman, Johnson, Sleeper), Large Animal Clinical Sciences (Morton), and Biomedical Sciences (Ramirez), College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA, A. Munsterman| Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama, USA, G. J. Nie| Angel Animal Hospital, Springfield, MO, USA, N. Park| Integrative Ophthalmology for Pets, Los Angeles, CA, USA, M. Parsons-Doherty| North Houston Veterinary Specialists, Spring, TX, USA, J. A. Perdrizet| The Sanctuary Animal Clinic, Holyoke, MA, USA, J. L. Peyton| Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital (Peyton) and Department of Surgical and Radiological Sciences (Le Jeune), School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA, USA, D. Raditic| Independent, USA, H. P. Ramirez| Departments of Small Animal Clinical Sciences (Shmalberg, Chrisman, Johnson, Sleeper), Large Animal Clinical Sciences (Morton), and Biomedical Sciences (Ramirez), College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA, J. Saik| Winterville Animal Clinic, Winterville, GA, USA, S. Robertson| Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences (Robertson) and Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences (Carr), College of Veterinary Medicine, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA, M. Sleeper| Departments of Small Animal Clinical Sciences (Shmalberg, Chrisman, Johnson, Sleeper), Large Animal Clinical Sciences (Morton), and Biomedical Sciences (Ramirez), College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA, J. Van Dyke| Canine Rehabilitation Institute, Wellington, FL, USA, J. Wakshlag| Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
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