AVMA reaches across border

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Building on the promising meeting with Mexican veterinary leaders this past March, the AVMA is taking steps to strengthen ties with "our neighbors to the south."

The Executive Board has authorized funding for a member of the Council on Education to attend a site visit conducted by the accrediting body for Mexican veterinary schools/colleges, the Consejo Nacional de Educación de la Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia (CONEVET).

Also approved was a meeting of AVMA representatives with Mexican and Canadian veterinary leaders next spring for further discussions related to common professional interest. The summit is intended to strengthen dialogue among the three North American countries.

The recommendations are a result of the recent talks between the AVMA and Mexican veterinary leaders in Mexico. The Mexican officials offered several suggestions regarding actions they believed would further the exchange of information on the accreditation process (see JAVMA, May 1, 2001, page 1399).

They requested a copy of the Council on Education's training video, a standards comparison, permission for a Mexican CONEVET official to attend a council meeting and observe a veterinary school/college site visit, and arrangement for a council member to attend a CONEVET site visit.

In a joint recommendation, the council, AVMA President James E. Nave, and President-elect James H. Brandt—both men met with the Mexican veterinary officials—noted the benefits of the arrangement. "Exchange of site visit observers would assist both accrediting bodies in understanding the similarities and differences in their accreditation processes," stated the recommendation. "We need to continue to learn more about our neighbors to the south," Dr. Nave said during board deliberations.

To cover travel expenses for the Council on Education site visit to Mexico, the board approved $1,500. The date of the site visit has not been determined, however. The council extended an invitation to the CONEVET to observe a site visit and attend a council meeting.