Key Findings
Since 2010, the Worldwide Veterinary Service (WVS) has offered a 12-day practical, surgical training course in India to improve humane dog population management.
Researchers evaluated the course’s impact on veterinary participants’ knowledge and confidence in surgical principles, anesthesia, antibiotic use, and wound management. They found that the course significantly improved participants’ knowledge and confidence in surgical principles, anesthesia, antibiotic use, and wound management.
This initiative demonstrates the potential to significantly enhance veterinary expertise worldwide.
Summary
Veterinarians in India are pivotal in managing the country’s vast free-roaming dog population, with effective dog population management and rabies control through vaccination being key priorities. Recognizing the need for specialized training in dog population management, organizations like the Food and Agriculture Organization and NGOs have partnered to offer training initiatives. The UK-based Worldwide Veterinary Service (WVS) provides 12-day surgical training courses in India, Malawi, and Thailand to improve humane dog population control practices.
This study, “Assessing the effect of a canine surgical-neutering educational program on the knowledge and confidence of Indian veterinary participants,” seeks to evaluate the impact of WVS’s training program on participants’ knowledge and confidence in performing surgical neutering, a crucial method for dog population management.
Training Programme and Questionnaire
The educational training program took place at two International Training Centers (ITCs) in Tamil Nadu and Goa, established by the Worldwide Veterinary Service (WVS) in 2010 and 2016, respectively. These centers offer 12-day practical, surgical training courses in humane dog population management for national and international veterinary professionals and students.
The course structure was consistent at both sites, with participants performing spay-neuter surgeries under direct supervision of experienced Indian veterinary staff. Participants worked in pairs, taking turns to perform surgeries or monitor anesthesia, and received continuous supervision tailored to their skill level. By the end of the program, each participant had operated on at least one animal per day. In addition to practical training, daily lectures covered key topics like asepsis, anesthesia, antibiotics, and rabies, supplemented by case-based learning and demonstrations.
The study used pre- and post-training questionnaires to assess participants’ knowledge and confidence levels. These questionnaires, aligned with the learning objectives, covered surgical principles, anesthesia, antibiotic use, and wound management. Participants also rated their confidence in performing specific tasks.
Data were collected from 44 training programs between August 2020 and December 2021, with an average of 5 participants per course in Goa and 12 in Tamil Nadu. Participants completed the questionnaires at the beginning and end of the program.
Results
Between August 2020 and December 2021, a total of 296 participants completed the questionnaire; out of these, 228 matched the inclusion criteria and were included in the study. Over 70% of all participants had graduated from their most recent qualification within the last 5 years.
Knowledge
The study found a significant increase in participants’ knowledge after attending the surgical training program. The overall mean score rose from 18.94 to 28.11, with statistically significant improvements across all subject areas. Female participants consistently outperformed males, and participants aged 25–34 years scored lower than younger or older age groups. Those with postgraduate qualifications also saw greater improvements.
The findings highlighted gender differences in performance, with female participants achieving higher scores—a trend observed in veterinary and broader academic settings. Additionally, younger participants, with more recent academic exposure, appeared to utilize the training more efficiently. This underscores the need for inclusive training that caters to diverse demographics, ensuring equal opportunities for participants at different career stages.
Confidence
Upon completing the training program, participants reported a significant increase in confidence across all five surgical procedures. Prior to the program, depending on the procedure, a range of 8 to 48% of participants classified themselves as confident, but after training, this number rose to 77 to 97%. The greatest improvement in confidence was seen in performing a bitch spay (82%), followed by castration (74%), handling an anaesthetic emergency (70%), addressing a haemorrhaging pedicle (68%), and placing an IV cannula (49%).
The program aimed to address the common issue of low confidence in surgical skills among veterinary graduates, ensuring participants had ample opportunities to enhance their practical experience. This lack of confidence is not unique to India — studies from Australia and the UK report similar findings. In Australia, only 75% of veterinary students had performed a canine ovariohysterectomy (OHE) before graduation, despite 95% being required to perform the procedure soon after graduation, often without supervision. In the UK, 80.4% of final-year students expressed concerns about performing OHE correctly, and new graduates reported a complication rate of 56.8% for the procedure. These issues highlight the global challenge of providing adequate surgical experience during veterinary training, a concern also noted in India, where ‘hands-on’ experience has been identified as a weakness in the veterinary curriculum.
By showing that even a short, focused training course can lead to substantial gains in both knowledge and confidence, particularly in a low-resource setting, this initiative highlights an important opportunity to strengthen veterinary expertise in India. Additionally, it offers a model for similar global veterinary training efforts.
Miscellaneous
Data From Study:
Dog Population Management / Strengthening Capacity
Year of Publication:
2023
External Link:
Rayner EL, Airikkala-Otter I, Mellanby RJ, Gibson AD, Susheelan A, Gamble L and Mazeri S (2023) Assessing the effect of a canine surgical-neutering educational programme on the knowledge and confidence of Indian veterinary participants. Front. Vet. Sci. 10:942890.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2023.942890