Newsletter 10

Introduction

This is the 10th ECEIM newsletter. The goal of our newsletter is to provide Diplomates and residents with current information about the ongoing activities and plans for the College. If Diplomates want any subjects discussed in future newsletters, please let us know.

Message from the President

ECEIM is a dynamic and growing college. There are now 169 Diplomates with 12 new members welcomed after the latest examination: Barbara Broux, Phebe de Heus, Tanguy Hermange, Sigrid Hyldahl Laursen, Rachel Jago, Natascha Jocelyn, Hannah Junge, Ellen Paulussen, Pia Randleff- Rasmussen, Esther Siegers, Astrid van den Brom Spierenburg and Judit Viu Mella.
For the future, we need to think about how to promote the value of our specialist work and college to referring veterinarians and the general public. The Marketing Committee is preparing a survey for all Diplomates to collate information to assist how we address this issue.
We also need to continue to improve the college residency training programmes through initiatives like the summer school for the residents. One initiative discussed has been organising a resident supervisor session during the congress aimed to help Diplomates better prepare residents for the final examination.
Please contact the Executive Committee (EC) at any time regarding matters that you would like addressed.
I wish the best to of all of you,
Anne

Executive Committee meeting, Amsterdam

The Executive Committee (EC) held a meeting on the 15th of April 2019 in Amsterdam.
Read the Minutes here

Summer School 2019 London

The 5th ECEIM Summer School will be held at the Hawkshead Campus in London from September 2nd-6th 2019. The 2019 summer school committee, led by Nicola Menzies-Gow, also consists of resident representatives Alex Duforni, Natasha Jocelyn and Vicky Savage. Please send any questions to Nicola Menzies-Gow: nmenziesgow@rvc.ac.uk.
In order to comply with developing educational quality standards, from 2019 onward each ECEIM resident must have attended at least one summer school before being allowed to register for the certifying exam. For those who plan to sit their exam in two different years, it is advised to sit the first part after having attended the summer school.

JVIM

A meeting was held on April 10thwith JVIM editors (Ken Hinchcliff and Steve DiBartola), ECEIM (Anne Courouce), ECVIM-CA (Carmel Mooney) and ECVN (Alejandro Lujan Feliu-Pascual) representatives.

Read the Minutes here

ACVIM Congress

Anne Courouce will represent ECEIM at the 2019 ACVIM congress in Phoenix June 6th-8th and will present:
1) Highlights of ECEIM 2018 Congress;
2) Prevalence of Lower Airway Disorders in French Trotters/Association with Performance.

Message from the immediate past-President on Regulatory Matters

The ECEIM Constitution was updated in 2016, with the by-laws and P&Ps now requiring updating and approval at the November 22nd 2019 AGM.
The original text of July 2016 of the by-laws and the proposed text of September 2018 are now on the Website (www.eceim.info/constitution-eceim-2018), with all proposals for amendments to be sent to the ECEIM secretary (secretary@eceim.info) before October 22nd 2019. By-laws and P&P have been adapted to better comply with the EBVS Common Training Framework (CTF) for European Veterinary Specialists. The legal framework for recognition of professional qualifications is composed of the Directives, 2005/36/EC and 2013/55/EU, which are the basis for the CTF mechanism for recognition of EBVS-recognised specialist training across like-minded European Member States. CTF for Veterinary Specialists guarantees a common set of minimum knowledge, skills and competences necessary for the practice of veterinary specialisation across the Europe.

Changes made in the By-law and to be voted for:

Re-certification

Every 5 years, a Diplomate is required to send in a summary of his/her professional activities. The format of this summary has to be approved of by the EBVS. The summaries will be evaluated by the Re-certification Committee. In addition, Diplomates should ask two senior colleagues or authorities to send to the College a letter of reference certifying that the Diplomate in question has been active in practicing his/her specialty for the last 5 years at the specialist level (see EBVS Policies & Procedures Appendix 8). The type of the reference letter shall be according to the EBVS Policies and Procedures. Self-certification of the members of the committee responsible for re-certification must be avoided.
There is no EBVS-approved template for the letter of recommendation, but we wilI provide one soon on the ECEIM website. According to EBVS, the requirement for these letters will not become mandatory until 2020 (the final vote occurs this November 2019).

Education and 4.3 Credentials Committee

Residency programmes should strive to train specialists who have demonstrated to have the proper intellectual qualities, professional and technical skills, as these are described in Appendix 1 to these Bylaws. Moreover, residency programmes must aim at the development of a culture, which recognizes the importance of continuous professional development.

The text of P&P has been modified and includes:
A: Re-certification: the speciality of equine internal medicine includes a broad range of activities which may require the knowledge, skills and competencies of a recognised specialist. The reason for this paragraph is that ECEIM is not specifying an exhaustive or exclusive list and is asking all diplomates to explain how the work they have been doing during the re-accreditation period meets the definition of 'practising the specialty', even for those people who are employed primarily in clinical work. ECEIM is also not creating a hierarchy by implying that clinical work is superior to other activities.
Furthermore, all issues of section B and C deal with Residency Training Programs by a specified curriculum and resident progress assessment methods and exam rules.
The relevant information scattered over various pages on the web site are now embedded in the P&P, as well as a curriculum and a syllabus with more specific information.

E. STATEMENT ON ETHICS
"The European College of Equine Internal Medicine (ECEIM) seeks to practise its speciality to the highest ethical standard. This would include promoting the best welfare and health interests of the animals and respecting the autonomy and wishes of their clients.
Our practices will include advanced treatments that aim to promote and restore the health and welfare of the animals concerned; however, cases are reviewed as treatment progresses. On an ongoing basis, therefore, we aim to fully inform and advise clients of the available diagnostic and treatment options, and to obtain informed consent for any procedures that are agreed to be carried out."

The ECEIM executive committee