Do you want to increase your skills in examining blood smears and fine needle aspirates to expand the clinical service you can provide to your patients? Are you in a practice where financial limitations don’t allow sending out bloods and cytologies to external labs? Would you like get more from your in-house analysers and avoid their errors? 

The ever-widening availability of in-house haematology analysers have brought about a gap in knowledge of blood smear examination, which is essential for the reliable and safe use of these machines in the veterinary practice. The first three weeks of the course (haematology) helps practitioners to develop the necessary skills to prepare high quality blood smears, to perform optimal staining, to best setup the microscope for blood smear examination, and to carry out a systematic, highly efficient (3-5 min) blood smear examination in order to validate in-house analysis results and detect abnormalities that the machines can’t. Strengths and weaknesses of such analysers will be discussed.

The second half of the course focuses on common fine needle aspirate samples (skin lumps, lymph nodes, organs etc.) with the aim to provide a systematic approach to the assessment. Top tips will be shared to improve aspiration technique to provide more diagnostic samples, to achieve the best staining, and for microscopic skill development which will help with efficiency to utilise time on the microscope best.  

The course is developed on a case-based teaching approach, with the addition of videos and other materials provided to achieve the above goals. An active tutor-moderated discussion forum is also used to discuss any questions regarding technique, the study cases, specific topics in haematology and cytology, and even cases participants see during the course in their practice.

Why do this course?
You will improve your skills and efficiency in preparing and assessing high quality blood smears and cytological samples.