The power of leadership: trends – issues – strategies
By
Dr. Suzana Tkalčić
[abstract for the International Congress on Veterinary Science and Profession Zagreb, Croatia 2011]
USA 2006: The growing trend in the USA is veterinary service within public office, and the American Veterinary Medical Association in 2005 responded by creating a new position —assistant director of state legislation and regulatory affairs. In recent years there are 23 veterinarians serving in public office: 20 in 17 state legislatures, 2 U.S. senators and 1 governor (Georgia). Since the government has a huge impact on veterinary practice, animal and public health regulations, any regulatory animal or animal health/veterinary related issues have to be addressed by the right and competent people. Therefore, veterinarians need to be at the table when these rules are being written-for the benefit of the profession and the society at large.
And this is only one example where power of leadership within the profession is not only based on medical competence, but relies greatly on non-technical competencies. These also become a priority for an economic success of a veterinary practice itself, as in other non-practice veterinary careers, where communication skills, business and managerial/people skills, teamwork and leadership skills, compassion and empathy are taking over the medical knowledge itself. These competencies pose a challenge for the veterinary education. Focusing on not only on an efficient transfer of biomedical knowledge to the “generation X”, but also on a student development, life-long learning practices and approaches, human-animal bond and veterinary regulatory medicine, and growing ethical/political issues and trends, a small private and non-profit veterinary college at WesternU is leading the way. Problem-based learning, case-based delivery strategies, and Interprofessional education practice are setting a stage for a market-ready veterinarians ready to take on and contribute to global health.
Modification in education practices are therefore warranted to enable the profession to capitalize on growing markets (public health, government/regulatory medicine, global heath, biomedical research, industry). On the other hand, future directions in veterinary medicine within research, education and practice as recognized by the “Pew report” recommend change of focus in veterinary medicine from animal disease to animal health, and a professional shift from “universal vet” concept to specialized areas of medicine (species/discipline oriented).
Influenced by significant societal and economic challenges, and technical advances in the new millennium, with power of leadership as a goal, we as educators can and should develop strategies to ensure the future of veterinary profession as productive, responsive and economically successful. The traditional academia in that sense needs to give rise to modern approaches and train (and allow) motivated and skilled young faculty to take the leadership within.