AVMA News Veterinary
Midlevel Position (MLP)
Te past few years have been extremely difficult for the veterinary profession. Hiring challenges are real, but some of the numbers being circulated about the future workforce appear to overestimate demand and underestimate supply. Tese numbers, which are being used to support claims of a future shortage of companion animal veterinarians, are also being used to drive proposed long-term changes—like the MLP— that will negatively reverberate across the profession; fail to effectively target solutions that are unique for each segment where shortages are evident (e.g., food animal, equine, academia, emergency practices, specialties, public health); and pose threats to animal health and welfare, food safety, and public health.
Te AVMA opposes legislative initiatives that would authorize a midlevel position or other nonveterinarian to diagnose, prognose, develop treatment plans, prescribe, and/or perform surgery, due to the threat from such legislation to patient health and safety, the safety of animal products, and public health, as described below.
Not needed
Descriptions of a veterinary MLP overlap the training and responsibilities of veterinarians, veterinary technicians, veterinary technologists, and veterinary technician specialists—there is no gap to be filled. Diagnosis, prognosis, developing treatment plans, prescribing, and surgery are the domains of the veterinarian. Veterinarians receive an extensive education that prepares them to lead veterinary teams and make medical decisions. Veterinary technicians, veterinary technologists, and veterinary technician specialists support and complement the veterinarian by performing critical technical tasks. Many tasks can be delegated by the veterinarian to veterinary technicians, veterinary technologists, veterinary technician specialists, and other members of the practice team commensurate with their education and experience.
Not safe
An accredited educational program, national test, and regulatory structure would be needed to ensure a midlevel position would practice safely and effectively, and these are not available. All are necessary for licensing a competent professional, thereby protecting patient health and welfare and public interests. Furthermore, the duties and responsibilities necessary to build a curriculum and develop accreditation standards need to be approached as part of a national conversation, rather than by individual programs or small groups of proponents.
Not the same as a PA or APRN
Analogies are drawn to physician’s assistants (PAs) and advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs); however, human medicine and veterinary medicine are NOT the same. In addition to individual patients, veterinarians are responsible for food safety and public health. Accordingly, there are differences in how the activities of veterinary professionals are regulated (e.g., prescribing, disease control, animal movement). Furthermore, proposed training plans for a veterinary MLP are not comparable to the training that a PA or APRN receives. Results in human health care systems are mixed; it is not a given that adding a MLP will improve quality of care, efficiency, lower cost, or increase access to care.
Not practical (and costly)
To make a veterinary MLP functional would require legislative and regulatory changes in all 50 states (state veterinary practice acts, state pharmacy acts) and additional jurisdictions. All 48 states that have a VCPR Continued on pg. 7
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