Birds and reptiles online

This six week online course will cover avian and reptile medicine for the practitioner and will also address the latest anaesthesia, analgesia and critical care medicine for these species. The emphasis will be upon common conditions and their latest therapies although the discussion groups may allow discussion of more advanced cases.

The course consists of a mixture of notes, specific case presentations and assessments, self assessment activities and online discussions. The majority of discussion board activities will be case based. Participants can earn up to 36 CPD hours if the course is fully completed.

Key areas:

• Common diseases affecting cage birds and pet reptiles and their latest medical treatments 
• Safe anaesthetics protocols for a variety of different procedures in cage birds and reptiles 
• Common surgical procedures and analgesia for cage birds and reptiles 
• Critical and emergency care therapy in cage birds and reptiles

Programme

Week One

• Introductory week  where delegates introduce themselves. 
• An idea about how to maximise the number of cage bird and reptile clients visiting your practice and ways to make your practice bird and reptile friendly. 
• An overview of resources available to clinicians that deal with cage birds and reptiles in practice including journals, societies, e-mail discussion groups, textbooks, client information handouts etc.

Week Two

• Digestive tract and associated organs (e.g. liver), diseases of cage birds and reptiles including current therapies

Week Three

• Respiratory, cardiovascular and urogenital tract diseases of cage birds and reptiles including current therapies

Week Four

• Neurological and musculoskeletal system diseases of cage birds and reptiles including current therapies

Week Five

• Anaesthesia and analgesia and common surgical procedures of cage birds and reptiles

Week Six

• Critical and emergency care therapy of cage birds and reptiles

About e-CPD

e-CPD courses at the RVC allow veterinarians from around the world to participate in interactive and in depth online learning. The courses are moderated by expert clinical staff. Depending on the course topic, they consist of a mixture of case presentations and assessment, radiographs, downloadable reference sources (notes, text book references and relevant journal articles), quizzes, weblinks and online asynchronous discussions. There is no need to log on at any particular time of the day or night so the courses can be completed in your own time. However, you do need to be able to spend at least six hours each week on the course and log on several times throughout each week to get maximum benefit. There are tasks to complete each week and usually deadlines to meet midweek and at the end of the week.

The courses are internet based so no special software or computer skills are required – you don’t have to be a computer geek to enjoy and participate fully! The unique feature of the RVC e-CPD courses is that they are much more than just an online information delivery mechanism. Interactive activities occur throughout the course, tutor input is extensive and integral to the participants’ learning, and veterinarians can share their clinical experiences with, and learn from, a diverse group of colleagues. For further information go to Online CPD.