All UK Veterinarians complete 5-6 years of undergraduate training before
becoming registered Members of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons
(RCVS). It takes further years of practical work to gain the experience
necessary to become a good practising Vet. In order to become a Specialist,
the qualified Veterinarian will usually gain preceding postgraduate
qualifications (such as RCVS certificates) before commencing Specialist
training. Residency programs comprise structured theoretical and practical
training for the investigation and treatment of complex cases over a minimum
period of 4 years. These intensive programs are full-time (not academic
term-time) requiring a significant amount of both practical and theoretical
time and involving case submissions, peer-reviewed publications, abstract
presentations and ultimately stringent written and practical examinations.
Currently in most programs, just over 50% of board-eligible candidates
achieve their Diploma and become Specialists.
In order to retain their status, Specialists are required to document their
ongoing full-time working status, their CPD (attended and presented),
research and publications. Specialists are re-assessed every 5 years and are
obliged to maintain up-to-date knowledge and be acquainted with current
theories, problems and developments within their subject areas.
The aims of the Specialist Colleges are advertised on their respective
websites. Broadly, their aims are:
- To improve the quality of healthcare by making specialised knowledge
and skills available for the benefit of animals;
- To protect the public against non-qualified, self-described specialist
or specialism status through the examination and authentication of
Veterinary Specialists;
- To enhance communication and interaction between first opinion Vets and
Specialists;
- To enhance contributions to veterinary knowledge and promote the
communication and dissemination of this knowledge.
In total, there are around 25,000 registered vets in the UK. Of these, less
than 300 are Specialists, with only a few Specialists in each of the
disciplines for pets (surgery, internal medicine, cardiology, ophthalmology,
oncology etc). At Pinnacle, we are fortunate to be able to offer Veterinary
Specialist services to General Practices throughout the South-East region.