Training Bovine Health Professionals for the Future

Abstract

Livestock production systems have changed dramatically in the last several decades and continue to evolve. This has led to a much greater diversity in the potential demands for animal health care delivery, assurance of production animal well-being, and delivery of safe food products to the consuming public. One response to these changes is the current discussion about the potential need for more food animal veterinarians. It seems highly desirable to improve the supply of well-trained and highly skilled food animal professionals. Looking at the analogous problem of the need to provide primary health care and rural health systems in human medicine, maybe we need to rethink the nature of the challenge. Perhaps the salient question is how to provide for appropriate livestock health and well-being in a changing agricultural production environment. The veterinary profession needs to consider not just how to improve the supply of veterinarians but also how to incorporate animal health paraprofessionals into a more diversified health care delivery system.