May 11 , 2011

Volume VIII, No. 16

ISVMA Task Force Updates CVT Roles & Repsonsibilities Grid

The ISVMA CVT Roles & Responsibilities Task Force has been working for over a year to develop draft recommendations for review by ISVMA members. The Task Force has developed a second draft of a grid with a list of procedures and the proposed supervision requirement for both CVT and unlicensed practice personnel.

There are many changes to draft #2 of the Roles & Responsibilities grid. The Task Force is hoping to receive feedback from ISVMA members to assist in refining their recommendations so that a final draft can be developed for consideration by the ISVMA Board of Directors. Upon approval from the ISVMA Board, the ISVMA will seek regulatory changes to implement a schedule of procedures and supervision for CVT and unlicensed practice personnel.

The goal of the Task Force is not to reduce the current procedures that can be performed by unlicensed practice personnel. Rather, the goal is to expand the legal role of CVTs in practice based upon what they are taught and trained to do and what they can do under the appropriate level of supervision.

Please take some time to review the draft recommendations from the ISVMA CVT Roles & Responsibilities Task Force and send any comments or suggestions to peter@isvma.org. Your feedback will guide the next draft of the Task Force report which will then be reviewed by a joint task force with the ISVMA Legislative Committee and then forwarded to the ISVMA Board of Directors for approval.

This is a bold step forward for Certified Veterinary Technicians and the veterinary profession as a whole. Your membership in the ISVMA gives you the chance to participate in policy changes like these which benefit the Illinois veterinary profession.

Thank you for your support and participation of this important project and the ISVMA.

ISVMA Offers New Report from the Capitol

The ISVMA is fortunate to have outstanding legislative representation every day in the State Capitol. One of our lobbyists, former State Representative Terry Steczo, is also a tremendous writer. He can write about the legislature in a way that everyone can understand and relate. Please see the first of his monthly reports that we will share with ISVMA members. Get updates on the general activities of the legislature and on bills of interest to ISVMA.

Congratulations to the New ISVMA 2014 Class Representative Stacey Dehlinger

The Class of 2014 at the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Illinois recently elected Stacey Dehlinger to serve as their ISVMA Class Representative. Stacey will serve on the ISVMA Education Planning Committee as a second year student and as a voting member of the ISVMA Board of Directors as a third year student.

In addition to gaining important leadership experience in organized veterinary medicine, the ISVMA Class Representatives also receive a $4000 scholarship ($1000/year) from the ISVMA.

Stacey joins Scott Michels (Class of 2013), Andrew Hennenfent (Class of 2012) and Charlie Deutsch (Class of 2011) as their respective ISVMA Class Representatives.

New Graduates and DVM Licensure

Every year, ISVMA receives many phone calls from practices wondering when is the earliest a recent graduate can expect to begin practicing as a doctor of veterinary medicine?

Although the question never changes, there is a new law that was introduced by the ISVMA in 2010 that has changed the answer to this commonly asked question.

In the past, recent graduates in Illinois would have to wait for an indefinite amount of time from the time they graduated until they received their license and were unable to practice veterinary medicine while they waited for their license to be processed. In the not too distant past, this delay in getting recent graduates to work as veterinarians could take months. The Practice Act specified that without a license to practice, newly graduated veterinarians could not diagnose patients, perform surgery or make prescriptions – even under the direct supervision of a licensed veterinarian.

Since July 27, 2010, when the ISVMA proposed changes to the Veterinary Medicine and Surgery Practice Act were signed into law, graduates of AVMA accredited colleges of veterinary medicine may now work while waiting for license approval from the State of Illinois. In the statute it provides that a veterinarian applicant can work UNDER DIRECTOIN SUPERVISION of a supervising veterinarian who is licensed in Illinois until receiving their license:

(225 ILCS 115/11) (from Ch. 111, par. 7011)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2014)

Sec. 11. Practice pending licensure. A person holding the degree of Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, or its equivalent, from an accredited college of veterinary medicine, and who has applied in writing to the Department for a license to practice veterinary medicine and surgery in any of its branches, and who has fulfilled the requirements of Section 8 of this Act, with the exception of receipt of notification of his or her examination results, may practice under the direct supervision of a veterinarian who is licensed in this State, until: (1) the applicant has been notified of his or her failure to pass the examination authorized by the Department; (2) the applicant has withdrawn his or her application; (3) the applicant has received a license from the Department after successfully passing the examination authorized by the Department; or (4) the applicant has been notified by the Department to cease and desist from practicing.

The applicant shall perform only those acts that may be prescribed by and incidental to his or her employment and those acts shall be performed under the direction of a supervising veterinarian who is licensed in this State. The applicant shall not be entitled to otherwise engage in the practice of veterinary medicine until fully licensed in this State.

The Department shall immediately notify, by certified mail, the supervising veterinarian employing the applicant and the applicant that the applicant shall immediately cease and desist from practicing if the applicant (1) practices outside his or her employment under a licensed veterinarian; (2) violates any provision of this Act; or (3) becomes ineligible for licensure under this Act.

(Source: P.A. 96‑571, eff. 8‑18‑09; 96‑638, eff. 8‑24‑09; 96‑1000, eff. 7‑2‑10.)

Now Accepting Nominations for Outstanding Veterinarian Awards

Nominate a colleague or classmate for the 2011 Outstanding Veterinarian Awards (The ISVMA Veterinary Service Award and Dr. Erwin Small First Decade Award). Nominations close August 31, 2011. Complete the form and forward nomination materials by fax (217/546-5633), email (info@isvma.org) or postage mail to Outstanding Veterinarian Awards, 1121 Chatham Road, Springfield IL 62704.

ISVMA Membership Renewal Process Begins Soon

The Illinois State Veterinary Medical Association (ISVMA) is reminding its members that the current membership year expires on June 31, 2011.

Dues renewal forms will be in the mail the third week of May. Please renew your membership before the expiration date of June 31, 2011 to avoid a disruption of services and to continue receiving discounted pricing to ISVMA events.

Are You Following ISVMA on Facebook?

The ISVMA recently launched a new Facebook Fan Page. This new page will allow for more dynamic and interactive content for anyone that chooses to "Like" the page. Follow news about Illinois veterinary medicine, veterinary professionals in the news, USDA and other regulatory alerts, legal updates and more!

If you have a Facebook page, go to http://www.facebook.com/ISVMA and choose to "Like" the new ISVMA Fan Page!

The new ISVMA Facebook Fan Page has links to many current articles and topics of interest to veterinarians. This E-SOURCE Newsletter will be cut short to encourage ISVMA members to become a fan of the new Facebook page and get regular updates from ISVMA, AVMA and other organizations that bring you news and information you want and need!

About the Photo

Warblers, with their brilliantly colored feathers, are the tiny jewels of Illinois' bird families. They are very active -- constantly flittering around. Most are very colorful in shades of blue, yellow, green, black, red and white. Their plumage varies considerably from spring to fall, juvenile to adult, and male to female. The tail is square, often with white markings. Warblers feed almost entirely on insects gleaned from leaves and twigs with their slender bills. Members of this family abound in any Illinois woodland or brushy area during the spring and fall migration seasons. In spring their buzzlike songs (not warbling) fill the air with a delightful chorus.

The Northern Parula is our smallest warbler. It is blue above, with a yellow-green patch on its back. The throat and breast are yellow and the belly is white. Males have orange-brown chest bands.

Peak numbers occur in hemlock gorges, but it also nests in mature streamside forests of other types. Parulas deliver a loud, ascending buzzy trill that ends with an abrupt zap! They are most common in the southern part of Illinois, but migrants are fairly common statewide.

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