Page 3 - Clinical Connections - Spring 2021

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
Inertia and Progress in the Resilient Veterinary World
The word ‘inertia’ often has negative connotations, such as “a tendency to do nothing or stay unchanged”, which is the
first definition listed on Google today. That doesn’t tell the whole story – as anyone
who has spun an uncooked egg, stopped
it spinning and then taken their finger off
and watched it spin again would know. After three lockdowns, veterinary practitioners and educators alike (along with much of society) could be compared to the fluid core that continues moving the egg, despite the outer shell being stopped from “on high”.
Like all our veterinary colleagues in the
wider community, we have done whatever
we could to keep moving forwards, amid the
external pressure exerted by the disease and the government’s various responses to it.
Despite the pandemic’s impact on practically every part of our lives it is really pleasing to report that our ambitious plans for re-developing our research facilities as well as our student and teaching spaces has continued throughout the majority of 2020. We are aiming to create a campus that meets the needs of all our stakeholders as we continue our journey deeper into the 21st Century, despite the thorns of COVID-19 tearing at us. This will be familiar to all veterinary practices out there, who, having worked so diligently to remain at the cutting-edge in terms of equipment and CPD, had this pandemic to contend with.
We are very proud that despite the challenges of the pandemic we have been able to continue to provide the full range of clinical services allowable by government regulations as well as delivering the “on the clinic floor teaching” for our students that will allow them to graduate as fully qualified veterinarians and veterinary nurses on time in July. The commitment and dedication of both our staff and the students has been incredibly impressive and I feel honoured to be part of it all.
One thing we would have all shared, along with veterinary students, is concern about how EMS requirements would be met. Immediately after each government announcement we reflected and recalibrated, along with the RCVS, and like the yolk turning the egg, the core of what we are kept things going as best we could.
Necessity is the mother of invention and our students found new ways to build on their knowledge. The first two pages of this issueofClinicalConnectionswerewrittenbyfinalyearBVetMed student Sean Sum, who spent a week with our Marketing
and Communications team as the first ever participant in our clinical journalism placement. Having been rapidly been taught the basics, Sean interviewed members of the Ophthalmology
Service by Microsoft Teams, transcribed it, and filed an article that would have pleased any editor.
On page four, dermatology specialist Anette Loeffler and Siân-Marie Frosini, Lecturer
in Veterinary Clinical Microbiology, discuss new technologies for our microbiology lab, which will help not only referred animals but those under the care of vets up and down the country.
Page five has an article featuring the perspectives of some of our Residents who joined last summer, who illustrate the value of adaptability and resilience to our profession, even in the context of great frustrations.
The centre two pages feature a fascinating article by Rowena Packer, covering contributions of RVC
research to the care of pets with epilepsy. The article includes a timeline of milestones, which serves as an impressive reminder of how far our profession has come in recent years.
For our equine article, on page eight, Nicola Lynch and Justin Perkins share new insights into the pathogenesis of naturally occurring intermittent dorsal displacement of the soft palate. Page nine features an article by Ruth Gostelow and PhD student Amrita Mohanty, in which they discuss a new clinical trial that offers new options to diabetic cats. The article on page ten, about research led by Michelangelo Campanella that could hold the key to new treatments for cancer and neurodegeneration, includes a response by Irina Gramer, Head of our Oncology Service.
Finally, it is with great sadness that I need to let you of the death of Graham Milligan, our former Vice Principal for Clinical Affairs and previous editor of Clinical Connections. One of the many significant contributions Graham made was to reshape the business model of clinical service provision and progress better integration of our clinical centres’ services to all our stakeholders, including both our students and our referring veterinary community. He was an active member of the College’s community but never too busy to take time to help staff expand their horizons. Graham retired for health reasons three years ago and while he was able to, he invested huge efforts in raising significant funds for a number of charities. We will miss him greatly.
The following site includes tributes to Graham.
• https://drobinson.donateinmemory.net/profiles/9884
Professor David Church, Deputy Principal and Acting Vice Principal (Clinical Affairs)
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