BackgroundAntimicrobial resistance has emerged in recent years as a significant public health threat, which requires both an ethical and a scientific approach. In a recent Policy Delphi study, on-farm use of antimicrobials was a key concern identified by veterinary professionals in Ireland. In this case study (the second in a series of three resulting from a research workshop exploring the challenges facing the veterinary profession in Ireland; the other two case studies investigate clinical veterinary services and emergency/casualty slaughter certification) we aim to provide a value-based reflection on the constraints and possible opportunities for responsible use of veterinary antimicrobials in Ireland.ResultsUsing a qualitative focus group approach, this study gathered evidence from relevant stakeholders, namely veterinarians working in public and private organisations, a representative from the veterinary regulatory body, a dairy farmer and a general medical practitioner. Three overarching constraints to prudent on-farm use of veterinary antimicrobials emerged from the thematic analysis: ‘Defective regulations’, ‘Lack of knowledge and values’ regarding farmers and vets and ‘Farm-centred concerns’, including economic and husbandry concerns. Conversely, three main themes which reflect possible opportunities to the barriers were identified: ‘Improved regulations’, ‘Education’ and ‘Herd health management’.ConclusionsFive main recommendations arose from this study based on the perspectives of the study participants including: a) the potential for regulatory change to facilitate an increase in the number of yearly visits of veterinarians to farms and to implement electronic prescribing and shorter validity of prescriptions; b) a ‘One Health’ education plan; c) improved professional guidance on responsible use of veterinary antimicrobials; d) improved on-farm herd health management practices; and e) the promotion of a ‘One Farm-One Vet’ policy. These findings may assist Veterinary Council of Ireland and other competent authorities when revising recommendations concerning the prudent use of veterinary antimicrobials in farmed animals.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s13620-017-0106-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Ethics is key to the integrity of the veterinary profession. Despite its importance, there is a lack of applied research on the range of ethical challenges faced by veterinarians. A three round Policy Delphi with vignette methodology was used to record the diversity of views on ethical challenges faced by veterinary professionals in Ireland. Forty experts, comprising veterinary practitioners, inspectors and nurses, accepted to participate. In round 1, twenty vignettes describing a variety of ethically challenging veterinary scenarios were ranked in terms of ethical acceptability, reputational risk and perceived standards of practice. Round 2 aimed at characterising challenges where future policy development or professional guidance was deemed to be needed. In round 3, possible solutions to key challenges were explored. Results suggest that current rules and regulations are insufficient to ensure best veterinary practices and that a collective approach is needed to harness workable solutions for the identified ethical challenges. Challenges pertaining mostly to the food chain seem to require enforcement measures whereas softer measures that promote professional discretion were preferred to address challenges dealing with veterinary clinical services. These findings can support veterinary representative bodies, advisory committees and regulatory authorities in their decision making, policy and regulation.

Veterinary ethics is recognised as a relevant topic in the undergraduate veterinary curriculum. However, there appears to be no widely agreed view on which contents are best suited for veterinary ethics teaching and there is limited information on the teaching approaches adopted by veterinary schools. This paper provides an inside perspective on the diversity of veterinary ethics teaching topics, based on an in-depth analysis of three European veterinary schools: Copenhagen, Lisbon and Nottingham. The case study approach integrated information from the analysis of syllabi contents and interviews with educators (curricular year 2010-2011). These results show that the curriculum of veterinary ethics is multidimensional and can combine a wide range of scientific, regulatory, professional and philosophical subjects, some of which may not be explicitly set out in the course descriptors. A conceptual model for veterinary ethics teaching is proposed comprising prominent topics included within four overarching concepts: animal welfare science, laws/regulations, professionalism, and theories/concepts. It is intended that this work should inform future curriculum development of veterinary ethics in European schools and assist ethical deliberation in veterinary practice.

Although it is widely agreed that veterinary students need to be introduced to ethics, there is limited empirical research investigating the reasons why veterinary ethics is being taught. This study presents the first extensive investigation into the reasons for teaching veterinary ethics and reports data collected in semi-structured interviews with educators involved in teaching undergraduate veterinary ethics at three European schools: the University of Copenhagen, the University of Nottingham, and the Technical University of Lisbon (curricular year 2010-2011). The content of the interview transcripts were analyzed using Toulmin's argumentative model. Ten objectives in teaching veterinary ethics were identified, which can be grouped into four overarching themes: ethical awareness, ethical knowledge, ethical skills, and individual and professional qualities. These objectives include recognizing values and ethical viewpoints, identifying norms and regulations, developing skills of communication and decision making, and contributing to a professional identity. Whereas many of the objectives complement each other, there is tension between the view that ethics teaching should promote knowledge of professional rules and the view that ethics teaching should emphasize critical reasoning skills. The wide range of objectives and the possible tensions between them highlight the challenges faced by educators as they attempt to prioritize among these goals of ethics teaching within a crowded veterinary curriculum.