Many faces, one profession

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More than 400 positions exist on AVMA councils, committees, and task forces. To showcase the diverse backgrounds and expertise of the volunteers who serve on them and to inspire even more AVMA members to participate, JAVMA News will feature a few entities each month. To be a candidate for one of 78 current vacancies, go here, or contact officeevpatavma [dot] org (officeevp[at]avma[dot]org).

Food Safety Advisory Committee
Front row: Drs. Tracy DuVernoy and Martha Ewing Back row: Drs. James McKean, Christine Navarre, Charles Pixley, Elizabeth Wagstrom, David Smith, and Lanny Pace

Food Safety Advisory Committee

Charge/mission: The committee is to advise the Council on Public Health and Regulatory Veterinary Medicine on food safety and security issues.

Members:

Dr. Christine Navarre (LSU '90), chair, Louisiana State University Department of Veterinary Science; representing small ruminant practitioners
Dr. Tracy DuVernoy (FL '88), Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, Md.; representing Council on Public Health and Regulatory Veterinary Medicine
Dr. Lanny Pace (MIS '82), Mississippi Veterinary Research and Diagnostic Laboratory; representing Council on Public Health and Regulatory Veterinary Medicine
Dr. Martha Ewing (GA '87), Ellisville, Miss., representing avian pathologists
Dr. Kathleen Hartman (VMR '99), USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service/Veterinary Services, Tropical Aquaculture Lab, Ruskin, Fla.; representing aquatic animal medicine
Dr. James McKean (IL '70), Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine; representing extension veterinarians
Dr. Charles Pixley (MSU '77), USDA Agricultural Research Service, Athens, Ga.; representing food hygiene veterinarians
Dr. David Smith (OSU '83), University of Nebraska, Veterinary Basic Sciences; representing bovine practitioners
Dr. Elizabeth Wagstrom (ISU '99), National Pork Board; representing swine veterinarians

What current project(s) are you most excited about?

Dr. Christine Hoang, an assistant director of the Scientific Activities Division, said the CPHRVM and FSAC are working with government agencies such as the USDA Food Safety Inspection Service and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to improve internships, fellowships and residencies, and student training programs to address the profession's workforce shortage concerns; enhance public health and food safety focus; and provide opportunities for veterinarians in public health that have previously been available only for physicians.

A recent meaningful accomplishment:

The committee recently took the lead in drafting AVMA's position to be presented at the Joint Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization /World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) Stakeholders Meeting on Critically Important Antimicrobials, Dr. Hoang said. As a result of their dedication and hard work, in conjunction with CPHRVM's efforts, the AVMA was allowed to provide its perspective through the World Veterinary Association as one of only five stakeholders selected to present at that meeting.

How is your entity addressing the profession's pressing issues?

Food safety has received a lot of media attention recently, Dr. Hoang said. FSAC makes an effort to be actively involved in reviewing scientific data, regulations, and legislation related to food safety and antimicrobial resistance, she added.

How is the entity addressing the strategic or operational goals of the AVMA?

Chair Christine Navarre said the committee recently reviewed policies relevant to food safety with the goal of making them more relevant and accessible to AVMA members and the public. Such issues as the shortage of food animal veterinarians, antimicrobial resistance, and animal welfare have components that are pertinent to food safety, she said, and are continually discussed by the committee.

Council on Public Health and Regulatory Veterinary Medicine
Front row: Drs. Donald Hoenig, Bonnie Buntain, Tracy DuVernoy, and Marianne Ash Back row: Drs. Billy Clay, Alicia Anderson, Lanny Pace, Keith Friendshuh, and Paul Garbe

Council on Public Health and Regulatory Veterinary Medicine

Charge/mission: The council's charge includes studying problems of production, processing, and distribution of foods of animal origin as they relate to the assurance of an adequate supply of safe, wholesome food.

Members:

Dr. Paul Garbe (IL '77), chair, National Center for Environmental Health, Atlanta; representing public health agencies or the armed forces
Dr. Alicia Anderson (MIS '93), Atlanta; representing public health agencies or the armed forces
Dr. Bhushan Jayarao (BOM '00), Pennsylvania State University Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, representing public health agencies or the armed forces
Dr. Tracy DuVernoy (FL '88), Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, Md.; representing public health agencies or the armed forces
Dr. Marianne Ash (PUR '77), Lafayette, Ind.; representing agricultural agencies
Dr. Bonnie Buntain (COL '77), Calgary, Alberta, Canada; representative at-large
Dr. Billy Clay (OKL '70), Stillwater, Okla.; representative at-large
Dr. Keith Friendshuh (MIN '70), Stillwater, Minn.; representing agricultural agencies
Dr. Donald Hoenig (UP '78), Belfast, Maine; representing agricultural agencies
Dr. Lanny Pace (MIS '82), Mississippi Veterinary Research and Diagnostic Laboratory; representing agricultural agencies

What current project(s) are you most excited about?

The council is working on establishing a more formal relationship with the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians in which the NASPHV will send an invited representative to each of the council's meetings, according to Dr. Christine Hoang, an assistant director of the AVMA Scientific Activities Division. This relationship, she explained, will connect the council to more state and local issues and allow the NASPHV to be a resource to aid in the council's work.

A recent meaningful accomplishment:

Among the recommendations the council had for the Executive Board, was the approval for support of AVMA's participation in the Healthiest Nation Alliance, Dr. Hoang said. Participation in the alliance will afford the AVMA a prominent role in improving the country's health as well as emphasize the importance of veterinarians in the promotion of public health, Dr. Hoang said.

How is your entity addressing the profession's pressing issues?

The council focuses on regulatory issues impacting animal health and issues that impact human health, Dr. Hoang explained. The council routinely provides input for AVMA positions on legislative items and works diligently to ensure that regulatory items related to animal health and public health are thoughtfully and thoroughly reviewed, she said.

How is the entity addressing the strategic or operational goals of the AVMA?

The CPHRVM uses the AVMA strategic goals to guide its work in reviewing and recommending policies related to public health and food safety, explained Chair Paul Garbe. "We work to ensure AVMA policies related to population-level animal and human health protection are based on sound science," Dr. Garbe said. "The council also relies on the AVMA One Health Initiative in focusing our discussions on how animal health and human health agencies can best work together."