6-18-13

Dear Virginian Board of Veterinary Medicine,

As you may know, I am a veterinarian first and a lawyer second. As a veterinary practitioner in CA and now in PA for a total of 17 years and a speaker and author for 30 years, I am fully aware that veterinary licensees cannot practice contemporary medicine and surgery unless they own or work in a well managed, profitable and legally compliant business. That means that a knowledge of current business, marketing, information technology, practice management, pharmacy, financial and human resource  principles is essential. It is one thing to stay current with respect to the ever changing standards of care for the delivery of veterinary services; it is another to be able to generate sufficient revenue to do that. The two are totally linked, which is why most state veterinary boards accept up to a quarter or a third of mandatory CE on these subjects.

However, a contemporary knowledge of and exposure to a wide range of legal issues is equally important. These include:

1. Moral, ethical, legal decision making;

2. Ethical relationships with veterinary colleagues;

3. The legal use of veterinary drugs, biologicals and pesticides;

4. The rapidly changing precedents involving animal law;

5. The law of professional negligence including: a) the rapidly changing standards of care for the administration and monitoring of anesthesia,  the use of appropriate antibiotics and pain management drugs, effective low stress animal restraint and referrals of cases to specialists and emergency clinics, b)  risks that lead to state board and civil litigation complaints and c)  learning communication and medical competency skills that will minimize client lawsuits and state board allegations of negligence or incompetence;

6. Understanding and staying current with state board licensing regulations for veterinarians and technicians; and

7. State board requirements for properly maintained medical records and DEA rules for managing controlled drugs.

In summary, it is impossible to practice veterinary medicine in 2013 without a knowledge of far more expertise than the delivery of competent veterinary care. The Virgina Board is encouraged to join the vast majority of other Boards of Veterinary Medicine and include business and practice management as well as veterinary law and ethics as CE that meets the Commonwealth's regulatory requirements and protects its consumers of veterinary services.

Respectfully submitted,

James F. Wilson, DVM JD

Priority Veterinary Management Consultants

Yardley, PA 19067