The British Veterinary Association (BVA) is the national body for

veterinary surgeon Veterinary surgery is surgery performed on non-human animals by veterinarians, whereby the procedures fall into three broad categories: orthopaedics (bones, joints, muscles), soft tissue surgery (skin, body cavities, cardiovascular system, GI/u ...

s in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, and is a

not-for-profit organisation A not-for-profit or non-for-profit organization (NFPO) is a legal entity that does not distribute surplus funds to its members and is formed to fulfill specific objectives. While not-for-profit organizations and non-profit organizations (NPO ...

. Its purpose is that of knowledge dissemination, which is important in the veterinary profession to prevent a knowledge divide; and not professional validation or academic competence.

History

National Veterinary Association

A preceding organisation started out as the National Veterinary Association in 1882, after the first ever British National Veterinary Congress in July, 1881. A vet, George Banham, had suggested the idea of a national veterinary association. George Fleming, the principal vet to the Armed Forces, was the first elected president. The association was open to any vet, no matter which country they were from, on the payment of half a guinea. Other previous veterinary associations still co-existed though. It had an informal organisation and meetings across the country were arranged on an ''

ad hoc ''Ad hoc'' is a List of Latin phrases, Latin phrase meaning literally for this. In English language, English, it typically signifies a solution designed for a specific purpose, problem, or task rather than a Generalization, generalized solution ...

'' basis. This style of organisation did not suit many vets, because they wanted an organisation, where they could discuss matters which did not or could not be discussed by the RCVS. In 1909, at a meeting of the Scottish Metropolitan Veterinary Association, Professor

Orlando Charnock Bradley Orlando Charnock Bradley FRSE (8 May 1871 – 21 November 1937) was a British veterinarian and first President of the National Veterinary Medical Association. He is described as one of the foremost veterinarians of the 20th century. Life He was ...

of the Edinburgh Veterinary College, called for a 'one single British veterinary association.' The idea was generally accepted, but the First World War proved to be a hindrance.

National Veterinary Medical Association

At a meeting on 31 October, 1919, the National Veterinary Medical Association was formed.

became this association's first president. The co-existent veterinary associations no longer continued. The NVMA became a coherent regulated organisation and started to achieve things for vets, the country, and at large, the world. It has profoundly helped animal welfare and food production. In 1952, it became the BVA. In 1984, it founded the BVA Animal Welfare Foundation.

Activities

The organisation issues advice and the consensus of professional opinion to members and to the general public about veterinary issues as they arise in current events or trends, such as

Avian flu Avian influenza, also known as avian flu or bird flu, is a disease caused by the influenza A virus, which primarily affects birds but can sometimes affect mammals including humans. Wild aquatic birds are the primary host of the influenza A vir ...

foot and mouth Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) or hoof-and-mouth disease (HMD) is an infectious disease, infectious and sometimes fatal virus (biology), viral disease that primarily affects even-toed ungulates, including domestic and wild Bovidae, bovids. The vir ...

, and Brexit. The organisation has over 19,000 members.

Structure

The current president is Elizabeth Mullineaux. The current senior vice president is Anna Judson and the current junior vice president is Rob Williams. The association's headquarters is situated on Mansfield Street, Marylebone, London.

Publications

British Veterinary Association works with contractor Wiley to publish the BVA's journals, the ''

Veterinary Record ''Veterinary Record'', branded as ''Vet Record'', is a semi-monthly peer-reviewed medical journal covering the field of veterinary medicine. It is published by Wiley on behalf of the British Veterinary Association and is distributed to its membe ...

'' and '' In Practice''. The latter dates back to 1979 and is published ten times a year. The Veterinary Record has been in publication since 1888 with members able to search within its voluminous archives dating back to 1996. BMJ also publis
Veterinary Record Open
an
Veterinary Record Case Reports
for BVA.

References

External links

British Veterinary Association

BVA weekly journal Vet Record

BVA monthly journal In Practice

BVA online journal Vet Record Open

BVA online journal Vet Record Case Reports

British Veterinary Nursing Association

BVA Animal Welfare Foundation

Association of Veterinary Students

International Veterinary Students Association

Video clips

Vets.TV
{{authority control Animal welfare organisations based in the United Kingdom Trade associations based in the United Kingdom Medical associations based in the United Kingdom Organisations based in the City of Westminster Organizations established in 1919 Veterinary medicine in the United Kingdom Veterinary medicine-related professional associations 1919 establishments in the United Kingdom