Dr. Alessandra Ramseyer, Prof. Vince Gerber and Prof. Warwick Bayly presented lectures and hands-on practical sessions for equine veterinarians in a three-day event in Windhoek, Namibia.
The CPD event was organized together with the Veterinary Association of Namibia (VAN). The VAN executive committee, led by Lyndsay Scott and supported by Andrea Klingelhoeffer, Andrea Grunewald and Beate Voigts (VAN Chairperson), did an exceptional job with organizing the meeting including lectures, wet-labs and social program. Twenty-nine Namibian veterinarians attended, as well as two veterinarians from South Africa and two Namibian final year veterinary students.
The attending veterinarians are all involved in mixed practice work with a special interest for work with horses. Their equine work has a heavy emphasis on endurance racing which is very popular in Namibia.
The wet-labs were performed at the Gymkhana Riding Club in Windhoek which was able to provide eleven horses for the practical demonstrations. The wet labs were organized into groups of 5-6 people per session, which meant that every person received a chance to participate hands-on; a great benefit to all participants.
The Presentations
Dr. Alessandra Ramseyer spoke on “Lameness Examination-Special Focus on the Hoof”, “Nutritional Management of the Endurance Horse”, “Causes and Management of Tendon Injuries in Horses”, “Gastric Ulcers in the Equine Athlete”, “Management of Endometritis in the Mare”, and presented a wet lab on “Nerve and Joint Blocks”.
Prof. Warwick Bayly discussed “Haematology and Plasma Biochemistry in Equine Athletes”, “Fluids and electrolytes in Endurance Racing”, “Neurological Examination”, “Equine Renal Disease”, “Non-respiratory causes of poor performance” and a hands-on demonstration of the neurological exam.
Prof. Vince Gerber talked about “Basic Thoracic and Abdominal Ultrasound”, “Causes for dermatological crusts in the horse, and news on culicoides hypersensitity”, “Respiratory Causes of Poor Performance”, “Medical Emergencies” and lead the wet-lab on thoracic and abdominal ultrasound.
Acknowledgments of support
WEVA thanks its educational partners, AAEP and Boehringer-Ingelheim for their generous support, which makes these intermediate meetings possible with travel grants for the WEVA lecturers!
Feedback from Participants
Participants were asked to fill out a questionnaire to provide their comments about the event. The responses were very positive:
“Excellent content and speakers. Very practical approach relevant to private practice. Wet Lab was excellent.”
“Very Informative, very practical, MUST return!”
“The practical part was very good and helpful”
“Was very applicable to our situation.”
“Very good speakers! Topics were relevant for Namibian conditions, especially endurance aspect and nutrition.”
“It is extremely important to have exposure to international speakers and get an insight into new ideas regarding treatments/diagnostics. To get this type of exposure is difficult for such small organisations as VAN and therefore great appreciation has to be expressed to WEVA for the support.”
“Pros: Small practical groups, approachable speakers, variety in topics and practical knowledge. Cons: None”
“This was a once in a lifetime opportunity for us to learn from the best. As we don’t have a lot of mentors and equine specific centres, I have mostly relied on self-learning like online CPDs. I benefited a lot from this congress. Thank you for the opportunity.”
“Fantastic, very practical orientated lectures by world-class lecturers- Follow up CPD is highly recommendable and supported.”
Namibian style dinner on Friday evening with participants and speakers
Conclusions
The WEVA Intermediate Meeting was a success and of great benefit to the small community of equine veterinarians in Southern Africa. The Veterinary Association of Namibia is truly grateful to WEVA and its sponsors for assisting VAN in organising this event. VAN would be delighted if they could host WEVA for a similar event in the future.
VAN Executive Committee and Vince Gerber, Prof. Dr., PhD, DACVIM, DECEIM, WEVA President
