At the end of the module, candidates should be able to: 

• Thoroughly understand the anatomical, physiological, immunological and pathological processes involved in specific surgical diseases, including the relationships between the condition, surgical technique and the overall health status of the patient.
• Show thorough familiarity with the clinical presentation of the common surgical conditions affecting dogs, cats and other small mammals 
• Understand and promote the diagnostic processes necessary prior to embarking on a surgical procedure 
• Review and constructively criticise current literature on the soft tissue surgery, to enable them to determine its relevance to their current practice
• Utilise their understanding of Evidence Based Medicine and Decision Analysis to develop practical diagnostic and treatment protocols for their patients
• Use available resources and communicate with owners in such a way as to achieve optimum results in their practice circumstances in relation to surgical cases
• Review the outcomes of at least part of their clinical work, using the process of clinical audit to improve performance
• Recognise when a case is truly unusual, and become familiar with the information resources available to enable them to deal with such cases
• Recognise when a case is beyond their personal or practice capabilities, and provide an effective channel of referral

Please download the Module Outline, found in the Key Information box