CVTEA Semi-Annual Report

This bulletin serves to report on the accreditation actions and other activities of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Committee on Veterinary Technician Education and Activities (CVTEA).

In this Issue

Accreditation Actions

Accreditation Statistics

Changes to the Accreditation Policies and Procedures Manual of the CVTEA and the Essential Skills List

An Alliance with NAVTA

Spring 2011 Annual and Biennial Reports

Annual Program Director Survey

CVTEA Opportunities

ACCREDITATION ACTIONS

At its November 4 - 7, 2010 meeting, the CVTEA made the following accreditation decisions after reviewing reports of evaluation of site visits:

Congratulations to the following veterinary technology programs achieving Provisional Accreditation:

• Bellingham Technical College; Bellingham, WA effective October 6, 2010
• Brown Mackie College; Boise, ID effective August 27, 2010
• Pima Medical Institute; Chula Vista, CA effective June 18, 2010

The following veterinary technology programs were granted continued full accreditation following review of reports of evaluation of accreditation site visits:

• Columbus State Community College; Columbus, OH
• Cosumnes River College; Sacramento, CA
• Fort Valley State University; Fort Valley, GA
• Des Moines Area Community College; Ankeny, IA
• Vatterott College; Omaha, NE
• National American University; Rapid City, SD
• Northern Virginia Community College-Campus Program; Sterling, VA
• Northern Virginia Community College-Online Program; Sterling, VA
• State University of New York (SUNY)-Canton; Canton, NY
• Tri-County Technical College; Pendleton, SC
• Wayne County Community College District; Detroit, MI

The Rochester Community and Technical College; Rochester, MN veterinary technology program was elevated to full accreditation following review of the report of evaluation of the accreditation site visit.

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OTHER OTHER ACCREDITATION ACTIONS

Following review of annual, biennial, and interim reports, as well as other requests, CVTEA accreditation actions are as follows: (This list includes only those programs reviewed at the November 4 - 6, 2010 CVTEA meeting.)

Elevated to Full Accreditation

• Duluth Business University; Duluth, MN
• Kent State University; Tuscarawas, OH
• Pierpont Community and Technical College; Fairmont, WV

Continued Full Accreditation

• Alfred State College; Alfred, NY
• Athens Technical College; Athens, GA
• Baker College of Cadillac; Cadillac, MI
• Baker College of Jackson; Jackson, MI
• Becker College; Leicester, MA
• Bel-Rea Institute of Animal Technology; Denver, CO
• Broadview University (formerly Utah Career College); West Jordan, UT
• California State Polytechnic University; Pomona, CA
• Camden County College; Camden, NJ
• Carrington College California; Citrus Heights, CA
• Carrington College California; Pleasant Hill, CA
• Carrington College California; Sacramento, CA
• Carrington College California; San Leandro, CA
• Cedar Valley College-Campus Program; Lancaster, TX
• Cedar Valley College-Distance Program; Lancaster, TX
• Crowder College; Neosho, MO
• Eastern Wyoming College; Torrington, WY
• Foothill College; Los Altos Hills, CA
• Front Range Community College; Ft. Collins, CO
• Great Bay Community College; Portsmouth, NH
• Hinds Community College; Raymond, MS
• Holyoke Community College; Holyoke, MA
• Jefferson College; Hillsboro, MO
• Joliet Junior College; Joliet, IL
• Lone Star College; Tomball, TX
• Macomb Community College; Macomb, MI
• Manor College; Jenkintown, PA
• Maple Woods Community College; Kansas City, MO
• Minnesota School of Business; Plymouth, MN
• Minnesota School of Business; Shakopee, MN
• Mount Ida College; Newton, MA
• Mount San Antonio College; Walnut, CA
• Murray State College; Tishomingo, OK
• Murray State University; Murray, KY
• College of Southern Nevada, Las Vegas, NV
• Northwestern Connecticut Community Technical College; Winsted, CT
• Ogeechee Technical College; Statesboro, GA
• Parkland College; Champaign, IL
• Penn Foster College Distance Education Program
• Pima Community College; Tucson, AZ
• Pima Medical Institute; Seattle, WA
• Sanford Brown Institute; Pittsburgh, PA
• SUNY-Ulster County Community College; Stone Ridge, NY
• Vet Tech Institute; Pittsburgh, PA
• Wilson College; Chambersburg, PA

Continued Provisional Accreditation

• Anthem College; Phoenix, AZ
• Arkansas State University; Beebe, AR
• Bergen Community College; Paramus, NJ
• Broadview University; Layton, UT
• Brown Mackie College; Cincinnati, OH
• Brown Mackie College; Findlay, OH
• Brown Mackie College; South Bend, IN
• Carrington College California; Stockton, CA
• Globe University; Eau Claire, WI
• Globe University; Sioux Falls, SD
• Harrison College; Indianapolis, IN
• Hillsborough Community College; Plant City, FL
• Minnesota School of Business; Blaine, MN
• Minnesota School of Business; Moorhead, MN
• Minnesota School of Business; Rochester, MN
• Moraine Park Technical College Distance Education Program; Fond du Lac, WI
• Pima Medical Institute; Colorado Springs, CO
• Rockford Career College; Rockford, IL
• Sanford Brown College; St. Peters, MO
• Vet Tech Institute at Bradford School; Columbus, OH
• Vet Tech Institute at Fox College; Tinley Park, IL
• Vet Tech Institute at Hickey College; St. Louis, MO
• Vet Tech Institute at International Business College; Fort Wayne, IN
• Vet Tech Institute of Houston; Houston, TX

Continued Probationary Accreditation

• Essex Campus of the Community College of Baltimore County; Baltimore, MD
• Kaplan College; Phoenix, AZ
• Minnesota School of Business; St. Cloud, MN
• Sanford Brown College; Fenton, MO
• Sul Ross State University; Alpine, TX
• University of Puerto Rico; San Juan, PR

Continued Terminal Accreditation

• Hartnell College; Salinas, CA
• Quinnipiac University; Hamden, CT

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ACCREDITATION STATISTICS

There are 172 AVMA CVTEA-accredited programs in veterinary technology including 9 distance learning programs. Twenty-one programs offer baccalaureate degrees (ten offer bachelor degrees only and eleven offer both associate and bachelor degrees). There are 117 programs assigned full accreditation, 42 assigned provisional accreditation, 11 assigned probationary accreditation, and 2 on terminal accreditation. A total of 35 site visits were conducted in 2010 and a total of 7 new programs achieved accreditation in 2010. A total of 53 site visits are scheduled in 2011; of that amount, 20 are from new programs.

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CHANGES TO THE ACCREDITATION POLICIES AND PROCEDUCRES OF THE AVMA CVTEA (P&P)

The next update to the CVTEA Accreditation Policies and Procedures Manual will be released in July 2011. A detailed description of the changes made will be sent to each AVMA CVTEA accredited program and posted on the AVMA CVTEA Accreditation website at www.avma.org.

Proposed Changes to the Standards of Accreditation
Standard X - Curriculum
A recommendation to amend Standard X-Curriculum is pending approval by the AVMA Executive Board. The recommendation includes adding a category of "Communication/Interaction Skills with Clients and Colleagues" under specific course material. Programs do not need to have a specific course on the topic but must incorporate the subject matter within the curriculum. The Committee believes that these integral skills must continue to be augmented due to the vital and increasing role veterinary technicians have with clients.

The Committee is recommending that Programs should include a practical experience for a minimum cumulative 240 contact hours in the curriculum. Contact hours may not include laboratory time or any extra-curricular time. Eligible contact hours must be those designated within a course number in the curriculum. This change was added to the Standard to encourage programs to require at least 240 hours of opportunity for students to hone their hands-on skills. The term "should" is defined by the CVTEA as "Indicates the recommended and highly desirable manner in which to attain the Standard. Compliance is expected unless there are extraordinary and justifiable circumstances that preclude full compliance." The number of contact hours was determined based on review of survey data collected annually from AVMA CVTEA accredited programs in veterinary technology.

Standard XI-Outcomes Assessment
A recommendation to amend Standard XI-Outcomes Assessment is pending approval by the AVMA Executive Board. The proposed changes are primarily grammatical for clarification. The Committee changed the verbiage from "shall" to "must" to read "programs must develop program-specific outcomes assessment instruments." The Committee added also that programs in states that do not utilize the Veterinary Technician National Exam (VTNE) must develop other objective methods to assess student competency; for example, a capstone course exam.

Changes to the AVMA CVTEA Accreditation Policies and Procedures Manual
The Committee made changes to the following sections in the AVMA CVTEA Accreditation Policies and Procedures Manual:

Appendix A - Statement on Safety

• Added a requirement that a process shall be in place to monitor student injuries/safety on externships/preceptorships to the section on Personal Safety.

Appendix I - Essential and Recommended Skills List

• Added the verbiage "including each observable step necessary for completion of skill" to the last sentence in the third paragraph for clarity.
• Under Section 3 NURSING; allowed collect and crossmatch blood for transfusion* as a GROUP activity.
• Under Section 5-SURGICAL NURSING; changed the word "maintain" to "demonstrate" under Provide Surgical Assistance and kept the word "demonstrate" under Procedural Management to clarify that the CVTEA expects the skill to be taught in theory as well as a hands-on skill
• Under Section 9-AVIAN, EXOTIC, SMALL MAMMALS & FISH PROCEDURES; removed "rabbits" from "Recognize, understand, and perform restraint techniques of birds*, reptiles, amphibians, and ferrets". This change was made because rabbits are already included in Section 8.

The following changes were made to Section 8-LABORATORY ANIMAL PROCEDURES

• Amended the verbiage in Tasks to clarify that the skills listed in italics in this section must be performed on mice, rats, and rabbits unless otherwise indicated.
• Removed "administer drugs or medicaments using appropriate sites and routes" This was removed from this area because it overlaps and is less specific than "perform methods of injection" and "perform oral dosing" subsequently listed.
• Added "rabbits" after Perform Methods of Injection intramuscular and intradermal. This means that these recommended skills need only be performed on rabbits. The skill is not required.
• Moved "retro-orbital (mice, rats) [GROUP]" to under Collect Blood Samples. The skill remains recommended.
• Added "intravenous (rats*, rabbits*)" under Collect Blood Samples. The skill is required.

Section VI Standard Operating Procedures, Steps for Initial Accreditation
The Committee added verbiage to clarify the intent of when faculty are expected to be in place and when a site visit date will be confirmed.

Feedback regarding changes to the AVMA CVTEA Accreditation Policies and Procedures Manual
The Committee appreciates the feedback received regarding the recent decision to keep manual radiology equipment as required; however, the Committee believes that the majority of the nation still uses manual radiographic equipment and reaffirmed its decision.

The Committee also discussed feedback disagreeing with the decisions to designate "Collect and crossmatch blood for transfusion" as a required skill, reticulocyte count as a recommended skill, and the removal of the requirement to utilize a hemacytometer. The Committee believes that it is a program's prerogative to require use of a hemacytometer in their curriculum and reaffirmed its decision to keep hemacytometer as a recommended piece of equipment.

The Committee reaffirmed its decision to classify perform reticulocyte count as a recommended skill. At its previous meeting, the CVTEA removed the psychomotor skill "perform a reticulocyte count" as a required skill because the Committee believes that reticulocyte count is now a common part of the automated complete blood count in most veterinary facilities across the country. While the CVTEA encourages programs to continue to teach technicians the ability to evaluate a blood smear for reticulocytes and accurately report findings, the reticulocyte count is no longer a required skill. In addition, published reviews by a number of leading veterinary hematologists suggest that accurate manual reticulocyte counts are difficult especially in the feline patient.

The Committee reaffirmed its decision to designate "Collect and crossmatch blood for transfusion" as a required skill because the Committee believes this task is contemporary and common in everyday practice and that entry level technicians should be educated on this area. The task may be completed as a group activity.

AVMA/NAVTA ALLIANCE
The National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America (NAVTA) and the AVMA are excited to report that a project has been initiated to develop an alliance between the two organizations. A framework and a memorandum of understanding have been developed. It is anticipated that an agreement can be reached that will allow for an AVMA membership category to be created for veterinary technicians who are members of NAVTA. Both entities are working together to draft the agreement and outline the operational aspects of the agreement. Additional information about this endeavor will be coming in the future.

SPRING 2011 ANNUAL AND BIENNIAL REPORTS
Reminders to programs scheduled to submit an annual or biennial report in spring 2011 will go out after the first of the year. All reports must be submitted by email only using the appropriate naming convention.

All programs are reminded to use the new naming convention for submitting any and all material to the AVMA. All files must begin with your assigned program acronym followed by either the type of report abbreviation or other description and the current date.

Examples of report abbreviations are:
AR=Annual report
BR=Biennial report
IR=Interim report
TR=Terminal Report
SSR=Self Study Report
SCF=Substantive Change Form

If you need your program's naming acronym re-sent to you, email Julie Horvath.

ANNUAL PROGRAM DIRECTOR SURVEY
The next online Annual AVMA CVTEA Program Director Survey will be launched February 2011. All AVMA CVTEA accredited programs are required to complete the survey for accreditation reporting requirements.

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CVTEA OPPORTUNITIES

CVTEA CALL FOR NOMINATIONS
In 2011, the CVTEA will have two openings; one seat representing Faculties of Colleges of Veterinary Medicine and one seat representing Veterinary Technicians. As such, nominations are sought for these positions for the term July 2011 - July 2017.

The AVMA Office of the Executive Vice President (OEVP) has issued the call for nominations. A list of all the committee and trust vacancies, committee/trust nomination forms, and the Protocol for Appointments by the Executive Board are available on the AVMA website at http://www.avma.org/about_avma/governance/volunteering/committees/comm_trust_vacancies.asp and http://www.avma.org/about_avma/governance/volunteering/vacancies.asp.

The AVMA Executive Board will select the new CVTEA members at its April 2011 meeting. Nominations must be submitted to the Office of the Executive Vice President by March 7, 2011. Please also note that all committee nominations should include the nomination form and a 1-2 page resume.

A CVTEA "job description" is available that outlines the expectations of volunteers by contacting Julie Horvath.

FUTURE CVTEA MEETINGS
April 15 - 17, 2011
November 3 - 6, 2011

The CVTEA meets biannually at the AVMA headquarters in Schaumburg, IL.

OTHER IMPORTANT DATES
AVMA Annual Convention; St. Louis, MO July 16 - 19, 2011
AVTE Biennial Symposium; Cincinnati, OH July 26 - 29, 2011

CVTEA ROSTER AND TERMS
Dr. Jacob Casper, representing regulatory veterinary medicine (2007-2013)
Dr. Mel Chambliss, representing veterinary technician educators (filling unexpired term 2004-2010; 2007-2010; 2010 - 2016)
Mr. Josh Clark, RVT, representing veterinary technicians (2005-2011) Vice-Chair
Ms. Debbie Danforth, LVT, representing veterinary technicians-non-program affiliated (2006-2012; extended to 2013*)
Ms. Catherine Fitch, representing the public (2008-2014)
Dr. Anne Hale, representing At-Large (2006-2012)
Dr. Geoffrey Gardner, representing private small animal practice (2008-2014)
Ms. Peggy Gaynor, representing the public (filling unexpired term 2008-2013; 2009-2013)
Dr. Glen Jackson, representing Canadian Veterinary Medical Association (2007-2011)
Dr. John Lawrence, representing veterinary state boards (2009-2015)
Ms. Julie Legred, CVT, representing veterinary technicians-non-program affiliated (2005-2011; extended to 2012*)
Dr. Helene Pazak, representing faculties of colleges of veterinary medicine (2005-2011)
Ms. C. Lynn Reece, RVT, representing veterinary technicians-non-program affiliated (2006-2012; extended to 2015*)
Ms. Niki Riggleman, LVT, representing veterinary technicians (2008-2014; extended to 2016*)
Dr. James Stepusin, representing industrial veterinary medicine (2010-2016)
Ms. Rachel Valentine, RVT, representing veterinary technicians (2005-2011; extended to 2014*) Chair
Dr. Sarah Wagner, representing clinical veterinary medicine, large animal (2007-2013)
Vacant, representing the AVMA Council on Education
Dr. Craig Wardrip, representing laboratory animal medicine (2006-2012)

* CVTEA recommended and the AVMA Executive Board approved a recommendation to extend the terms of a limited number of CVTEA members to maintain consistency in the level of experience on the CVTEA. This was recommended due to the rapid expansion of veterinary technology programs, combined with an upcoming high rate of turnover on the CVTEA in the next two years as a result of the expansion of the committee six years ago.

AVMA CVTEA Staff
Dr. Karen Martens Brandt, Assistant Director, Education & Research Division
Dr. Kenneth A. Clever, Assistant Director, Education & Research Division
Ms. Julie Horvath, CVTEA Coordinator, Education & Research Division

American Veterinary Medical Association
Center for Veterinary Medical Education Accreditation
1931 N Meacham rd., ste. 100
Schaumburg, IL 60173
www.avma.org
800-248-2862