More voices, less turf war in veterinary medicine

A pair of opinion pieces published a week apart are making a similar argument: veterinary medicine needs less internal turf protection and more cross-organizational collaboration. In an April 29 episode of The Veterinary Viewfinder, Dr. Ernie Ward and Beckie Mossor, MPA, RVT, argued against “tribalism” in veterinary organizations and urged professionals to engage with more than one group rather than choosing sides. Then, on May 1, Tori Williams wrote in Animal Health News and Views that shelters and clinical veterinary medicine are “far more connected” than they often acknowledge, and should move forward together instead of operating in parallel. The broader backdrop is a profession that’s already spread across many sectors, from companion animal practice to academia, government, industry, and nonprofit work, making siloed advocacy harder to justify. (drernieward.com)

Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, this isn’t just a culture story. It touches representation, workforce policy, standards of care, and who gets heard when the profession sets priorities. Mossor has also been a visible advocate for stronger technician representation, including NAVTA’s successful push for veterinary technician representation on state boards, while shelter medicine has continued to build its own institutional voice through the Association of Shelter Veterinarians and broader coalitions that include AVMA and animal welfare groups. The throughline is that veterinary teams increasingly work across overlapping systems, so fragmented advocacy can leave clinics, shelters, technicians, and pet parents dealing with the same problems through separate channels. (navta.net)

What to watch: Expect more debate over who organized veterinary medicine represents, and whether future leadership, membership, and policy models become more inclusive across practice types, shelters, and veterinary technicians. (drernieward.com)