End of Speciialists

Posted by Ben_C 1 year ago to Government
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WVMA CALL TO ACTION!
Ask the Senate Health Committee to VOTE NO on Legislation that Would Restrict Veterinary Titles!!
On Wednesday, October 4, the State Senate Committee on Health will vote by paper ballot on Senate Bill 143, which will prohibit board-certified veterinary surgeons, anesthesiologists, cardiologists, dermatologists, neurologists, oncologists, pathologists, radiologists, and others from clearly indicating to patients and colleagues – through use of their medical titles – that they have undergone advanced training and obtained appropriate and meaningful certifications. It appears that the medical profession wants to prevent Wisconsin board-certified Doctors of Veterinary Medicine (DVMs) from being able to accurately describe their specialties to their patients and to the public.
The WVMA has been opposing this legislation since it was introduced earlier this year. We have testified in opposition at the Senate Health Committee hearing on the bill in May AND have had multiple meetings with the Senate Health Committee Chair to express our concerns. However, no amendments to this bill have been introduced which would remove its effect on Wisconsin veterinarians. It is entirely inappropriate that the medical profession believes that it should be able to prohibit Wisconsin veterinarians from accurately describing their veterinary specialties.
WE NEED YOUR HELP! Please call each of the members of the Senate Health Committee and ask them to vote NO on SB 143!! Please call the office and speak to whoever answers the phone (see page 2 for talking points). It is also appropriate to call after hours and leave a voicemail.
• Senator Rachel Cabral-Guevara, Chair – (608) 266-0718 / Sen.Cabral-Guevara@legis.wisconsin.gov / Constituency Map (Parts of Outagamie and Winnebago counties)
• Senator Pat Testin, Vice Chair – (608) 266-3123 / Sen.Testin@legis.wisconsin.gov / Constituency Map (parts of Wood, Portage, Washara, Juneau, LaCrosse, Monroe, Jackson counties)
• Senator Mary Felzkowksi – (608) 266-2509 / Sen.Felzkowski@legis.wisconsin.gov / Constituency Map (parts of Lincoln, Oneida, Vilas, Pierce, Florence, Forest, Marinette, Oconto, Langlade counties)
• Senator Andre Jacque – (608) 266-3512 / Sen.Jacque@legis.wisconsin.gov / Constituency Map (parts of Manitowoc, Brown, Calumet, Outagamie, Kewanee and Door counties)
• Senator Diane Hesselbein – (608) 266-6670 / Sen.Hesselbein@legis.wisconsin.gov / Constituency Map (parts of Dane, Green, Iowa, Sauk & Columbia counties)
• Senator Tim Carpenter – (608) 266-8535 / Sen.Carpenter@legis.wisconsin.gov / Constituency Map (parts of Milwaukee county)


Important Information for the phone call/voicemail:
• Properly identify yourself: Cleary identify yourself as a veterinarian and “Dr. (insert name).” Identify your boarded title if you have one.
• Identify constituency: If you are a constituent of the legislator, identify where you live and that you are a constituent.
• Urge legislator to vote No on SB 143: Clearly articulate that you want the legislator (use legislator’s name) to vote no on SB 143—use the name of the bill. Say it at the beginning of your conversation and say it again at the end.
• Tell them why: Explain why it is important that veterinarians be allowed to use the titles that they have earned. Explain why it is important for clients and important for the veterinary community. Explain that there is absolutely no issues with confusion within the general public on the role of a veterinarian and what their titles mean.

Additional Background Information
What is a board certified veterinary specialist? A board-certified veterinary specialist is a veterinarian who has completed additional training in a specific area of veterinary medicine and has passed an examination that evaluates their knowledge and skills in that specialty area. Currently, there are 22 American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA)-Recognized Veterinary Specialty Organizations comprising 46 distinct AVMA-Recognized Veterinary Specialties. More than 16,500 veterinarians across the United States have been awarded Diplomate status in one or more of these specialty organizations after completing rigorous postgraduate training, education, and examination requirements.
Give me an example of a veterinary specialist? There are many specific examples, but one is veterinary anesthesiology. The appropriate term for a DVM who has gone through a residency training program and has passed the American College of Veterinary Anesthesia and Analgesia (ACVAA) board exam under the guidance of the American Board of Veterinary Specialties (ABVS) is "Veterinary Anesthesiologist". These veterinarians specifically describe themselves as, “Diplomate - American College of Veterinary Anesthesia and Analgesia or DACVAA.” No private DVM practitioner or other veterinarian in the United States can use this term without this certification. It is meaningful and must be preserved.
Why is proper titling of veterinary specialists critical to our profession and animal health? Board-certified veterinary specialists serve animals and the public through collaboration and teamwork with primary care veterinarians, human medical professionals, research scientists, and public health officials. Their titles serve as evidence of their additional education, training, and expertise.


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  • Posted by $ CBJ 1 year ago
    Here's the fundamental moral issue: Occupational licensing has no place in a free market. Anyone who favors government-mandated occupational licensing cannot effectively oppose legislative power-grabs such as this one.
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    • Posted by 1 year ago
      It is a double edge sword. The issue is self proclaimed "doctors" who are great sales persons. That's capitalism - yes. Of course the problem is their mortality rate. How many dead people will it take before the public realizes the "doctor" has little if any expertise. Rather than the government writing the medical exams it would be a much more relevant policy to self regulate. In my field I can quickly realize the incompetent. The process to remove that person is insanely cumbersome - at least in Michigan.
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      • Posted by $ CBJ 1 year ago
        Your argument could be used to justify any government regulation whose supposed purpose it's to “protect” the public from unscrupulous actors in the marketplace. Should we put everyone who offers goods and services under politicians “who are great salespeople”? If we do, what will be left of the free market? If the public is so stupid that it will trust any self-proclaimed doctor, without regard to that doctor's credentials or reputation, how can government regulation protect them from their own bad decisions? The recent COVID vaccine fiasco is proof that politicians have no business interfering with our health care choices.
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        • Posted by 1 year ago
          My argument is self regulation - NOT government regulation. Yes, there should be some measure of protection for the public - some level of confidence that the "professional" knows what they are doing. A dog professional who provides the services on a daily basis have much better clue on what is valid and what is not valid.
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          • Posted by $ CBJ 1 year ago
            Individuals can self-regulate, groups cannot. There is no “group self”. If a group issues regulations, those regulations can only apply to members of the group. If the group is voluntary, it is subject to the same biases and cognitive limitations as the individuals comprising that group. If the group is sanctioned and its decrees enforced by governmental edict, then it is nothing more than a coercive arm of the state and it is not in any sense an instrument of self-regulation. Government-approved credentials cannot provide any “measure of protection for the public - some level of confidence that the ‘professional’ knows what they are doing.” They may even confer a false sense of confidence. Dr. Fauci is proof of that.
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  • Posted by $ Markus_Katabri 1 year ago
    So, I suppose next I can no longer classify myself as holding a state issued “Master Electrician” license. Which was earned by thousands of documented hours on the job (experience), working under another Master Electrician(tribal knowledge), classroom time in electrical theory(education) and a practical test administered by the state(verification). Because somebody who didn’t jump through the hoops will be all butthurt due to racisms and patriarchies and stuff.
    Hmmm that’ll be interesting.
    I think I’ll frame my Last License…stop paying the fees and just point to it when questioned on experience. The accumulated knowledge doesn’t just get sucked out of a guy’s head because there’s no piece of paper. Or, they can go with the currently “State Approved” guy and risk an electrical fire.
    So be it….let it burn.

    It’s kinda like movies and Ivy League diplomas. Anything POST 2000 is questionable. Anything POST 2010 is basically garbage.
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  • Posted by $ 25n56il4 1 year ago
    Oh, quit it! I'll tell you how to recognize if your vet is a 'specialist' or not. I took Fred to 6 stupid young vets that practice in a clinic in my town. They all agreed 'amputate his paw'....'tumor'. My next stop was an old vet (as old as me 86...said, 'Hell no, Fred's had that paw for 13 years, he can keep it. If that ???? ruptures put a tournaqeit on it and bring him to me...I'm five minutes from your home. My son, who graduated from the University of Houston always loved snakes and spiders...he said, 'That's a spider bite...a Tarantula bit him and they have a lot of nasty bacteria but their bite isn't fatal. I'm giving Fred Amoxicillin (antibiotic) soaking his paw in Epsom Salt (warm) and administering and anti inflammatory CBD. I am more bothered about his paw than he is. He eats well, his bowel movements are great, he jumps up on my bed (very high jump) and he takes two walks for 8 blocks each day! Nothing more interesting to report.N
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  • Posted by 1 year ago
    I am a board certified veterinary specialist in oral surgery and dentistry. I am a charter member of the board which was formed in the eighties. This is the first time in fifty four years of practice that I have witnessed the government try to cripple our profession. The end of meritocracy if the bill passes.
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    • Posted by $ Thoritsu 1 year ago
      I absolutely DO NOT understand the purpose or value of this legislation.

      We have lots of dogs. I have been through some wide and serious medical issues, and a good vet is key. We take one 2 hrs to Maine now, because they have the best canine neuro group.
      Our local vet is 0.5 miles away, but is an idiot. We just use her because she is convenient, but don't let her do anything hard. She did a career in defense contracting, and then went to vet school. She is ~55-60, but only <10 yrs as a vet. She is a dingbat. My wife is a nurse, and I am a technically uninhibited engineer. Between the two of us, we ensure she doesn't hose anything up.

      The best was a dog (now past) who was diabetic. My wife is a type 1. We were trying to regulate the dog's insulin, and she kept asking us to bring him in for blood sugar testing. Screw that! We just started testing ourselves, and adjusting his insulin. We got him nailed down in three doses. She got all would up that we did it ourselves (you can kill him, blah blah blah), but I told her, that the day will never come where she understands this better than my wife after 50 years of regulating her own. She backed off.
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      • Posted by CaptainKirk 1 year ago
        +1,000
        Doctors forget that we go to them to get their Advice. We get the OPTION of following it.

        And your wife's experience is far more important.
        Once you learn how to do the "ear prick" (usually, instead of the paw, right?). You are home free.

        Here's one for you. I have a glucose device. I can be sued if I Prick my wives finger to draw her blood... Because THAT requires a license. If she uses the device herself... it's fine.

        It's all fouled up... But that's the plan!
        Kudos to you guys.

        Have you heard of Dr. Bernstein... 80+ Year old Type 1 diabetic. Uses Low-Carb, and small doses of insulin. Outliving his doctors! He figured this out... But the medical field ignores him (they will sell fewer drugs)...
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        • Posted by $ Thoritsu 1 year ago
          Right, I have said that “Dr’s make recommendations. I make decisions”. Medical people don’t like that much.

          I will look into Dr Bernstein. Wife has a pump, which is a bunch of little injections.

          Best thing about having a diabetic wife is getting to stab your wife now and then. Very therapeutic!!!
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    • Posted by $ Abaco 1 year ago
      They cripple professions, one-by-one, one after another. That's what they do. My profession (mechanical engineer) has been mangled by "sustainability" for the past 20 years, and it's getting worse still.
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  • Posted by 1 year ago
    Just posted on our discussion group:

    For those paying attention to this, I have been trying to look up all morning how the vote went yesterday.
    From my niece, who used to work in the state capital. She texted a friend of hers to find out how the voting went yesterday:
    It failed 2-4. That doesn’t mean it won’t be taken up on the floor or in the assembly committee, but it means you and everyone else who called got to them, and they’re feeling the pressure about voting for a bad bill.
    The vote split was also bipartisan, which is good. If Dems and republicans both dislike it, there’s not much of a chance that it’ll pass
    The fight may not be entirely over, but at least there is hope this bill will die a dusty death!
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  • Posted by $ blarman 1 year ago
    Wasn't it legislators that said about 100 years ago that this little piece of paper (AMA certification) was critical to the profession of medicine? And the result was fewer doctors overall and a huge spike in the prices of medicine and medical treatment... Hmmm....
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