Farm Animal Practice - The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh

Organisation Background

The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies has an international reputation for its research, teaching and clinical services, and consists of the Division of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, The Roslin Institute, and the Veterinary Teaching Organisation.

The School houses world-class animal hospitals, providing specialist state-of-the-art secondary and tertiary care to external clients, referred by veterinary surgeons.

The School also has excellent large and small animal and exotics first opinion practices as well as a working dairy and sheep farm. The R(D)SVS is consistently highly ranked by The Times Higher and the Guardian newspaper.

The School is accredited by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS), the European Association of Establishments for Veterinary Education (EAEVE) and the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and participates in the Veterinary Medical Colleges Admissions Service (VMCAS).

The entire Vet School moved to the Easter Bush site in 2011, next to the existing small and large animal hospitals and practices to support top-class veterinary education and research for the 21st century. The £100 million capital development programme at Easter Bush includes a new £45 million veterinary teaching building, a £3 million Veterinary Cancer and Imaging Centre, and a £58.5 million research institute, transforming the Veterinary Field Station into the University’s Easter Bush Campus.

The Farm Animal Section includes a first opinion Farm Animal Practice, the Dairy Herd Health and Productivity Service and a Farm Animal Hospital, supporting teaching and research through income generation, development of clinical expertise and supply of clinical material. The R(D)SVS Farm Animal Practice (FAP)provides first opinion farm animal veterinary services to local farmers, mostly based in Midlothian and parts of East Lothian.

Clinical work in FAP is predominantly with beef cattle, but also includes dairy cattle, sheep, other small ruminants and pigs. The practice has a team of 5 vets and 2 residents and is internationally acknowledged for its practical expertise. FAP provides both didactic and practical teaching for BVM&S students, who routinely accompany vets on farm animal calls during their final year. The Farm Animal Hospital receives cases from both the Farm Animal Practice and external veterinary practices, primarily for the teaching of undergraduate veterinary students. We also have isolation facilities that enables us to receive referral cases.

Organisation aims & mission

At the R(D)SVS we aim to provide world class education, research and clinical service to improve the health of animals and human beings alike.

Our mission is to benefit society and the environment by educating veterinary surgeons to become members of world-wide public and professional health care teams; and to advance veterinary and comparative medicine through research into disease and disease processes, with the goal of improving the health and welfare of both animals and human beings. Using outstanding Educational, Research and Clinical Facilities, we:

• Ensure a stimulating educational environment to equip our students for the profession and life-long learning, underpinned by an excellent curriculum
• Undertake veterinary clinical and biomedical research to improve animal health and welfare
• Provide a veterinary service of the highest quality to our clients, and in doing so provide clinical opportunities for our students in a wide variety of domestic species
• Protect society through safe food production and control of emerging and zoonotic diseases.

The Farm Animal Practice aims to;

• Provide an excellent clinical service to all farm animal clients within our area and further afield via our consultancy and referral services
• Provide first-class clinical training for veterinary undergraduates to prepare them for a career in farm animal practice
• Contribute to clinical research to improve our understanding of disease and treatments and the impact on livestock enterprises
• Support the training of the farming community to ensure they have the necessary skills and knowledge for their animals and businesses.

Organisational values

Teamwork:

Our seven farm vet team work to support each other and are always prepared to offer help and advice when it is needed. There is always someone available day and night if anyone needs it

Passion:

Our farm clinicians are enthusiastic about the work we do and promoting the farming industry that we work for

Customer service:

We pride ourselves on the close relationships that we have with our clients and ensure that there is always someone available to answer any queries clients may have

Collaboration:

We work closely with our on-site specialists to offer referral-level services to farming clients and to enable clinical development for our staff

Support and training:

Through the wide range of opportunities offered through the University and external providers, any interests for development can and will be supported. Our current staff have been supported through CertAVPs, PhDs and Teaching qualifications.

We currently have two residents working towards ECBHM or ECSRHM diplomas and DVetMed professional doctorates.

The farm animal practice team is a large and diverse group of experienced clinicians who share a passion for both clinical services and teaching.

The work environment is highly supportive and the work that we do, whether clinical, teaching, or research is incredibly varied and rewarding.

The ideal employee would be someone who works well in a team, can communicate well with a range of different people (peers, farmers, students etc) and has a solid grounding in farm animal practice.