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Basic Standards for National Accreditation Process and Procedure in Association for Evaluation and Accreditation of Educational Institutions and Programs of Veterinary Medicine
Basic standards for national accreditation and evaluation, introduced for all Faculties of Veterinary Medicine (educational institutions and programs) that wish to apply to AEAVM, have been formed in accordance with Field Qualifications of National Qualifications Framework for Higher Education in Turkey (NQF-HETR) and criteria of international accreditation institutions (specifically EAEVE and AVMA).
Educational institutions of veterinary medicine (faculties of veterinary medicine) ought to provide occupational, ethical and research-based educational service, which would ensure competence of its graduates- in the profession of veterinary medicine and all relevant fields, according to the standards, and should guarantee quality and sustainability. Accreditation, quality assessment and control of faculties of veterinary medicine are to be performed by AEAVM, through the cooperation of stakeholders in official capacity and via policies, strategies and procedures open to the general public.
Education of veterinary medicine in faculties must be based on scientific information, research and application (including lifelong learning), and should provide students with sufficient learning opportunities.
Students must encounter with certain issues such as animal diseases, clinical and laboratory education, animal production and public health within the concept of One Health, at the early stages of their education; and this affiliation should be retained all through their education. Moreover, it is of utmost importance for faculties of veterinary medicine to have the necessary infrastructure and be equipped with facilities and opportunities to perform scientific research, provide postgraduate education and continuing education; so that they could serve the veterinarians and the society in their full potential.
BASIC STANDARDS
Standard 1. Organizational Structure
- Veterinary Medicine Educational Institution (Faculty of Veterinary Medicine) must establish its job definition, and should possess the qualifications mentioned there while maintaining continuous improvement.
- Faculties of Veterinary Medicine in Turkey that have been established and recognized by the Council of Higher Education (CoHE) must be a member of AEAVM, which is also authorized by CoHE for national accreditation. Veterinary Education Establishments in other countries whether recognized by CoHE or not, must be a member of AEAVM.
- Deans that are responsible for the corporate governance of the faculties must be veterinarians (graduates of faculties of veterinary medicine). Personnel, responsible in occupational, ethical and academic fields and carry on educational and research activities in accordance with the curricula must also be veterinarians.
- Faculties of veterinary medicine must possess sufficient number of managerial staff and administrative personnel, required for a proper and efficient conduct of registration-student affairs and administrative affairs.
Standard 2. Financial Situation
- Veterinary Medicine Educational Institution must possess sufficient budget and financial means for the attainment of the qualities prescribed in the job definition and for the maintenance of current educational programs.
- Faculties must explicitly indicate their budgets (all expenses and income) spared, in accordance with their aims and objectives, for administrative affairs, research activities, curricula and educational programs.
- Financial means of the faculties must be adequate for the sustainability of the institutions- plant and equipment, and for addressing the needs of clinical and field services as well as training, research and post-graduate programs.
- Clinical and field services, laboratories and hospitals that exist within the structure of the educational institution must serve as sources for education. All of these sources must be assessed collectively –in accordance with educational unity in undergraduate education- from a financial point of view. Self-sufficiency of clinical service units must also be evaluated.
Standart 3. Physical Potential of Faculty, Facilities and Equipments
- All physical facilities in the veterinary faculties should be aimed at providing suitable environment for education. Ambulatory and lecture halls, laboratories, educational hospitals / clinics, ambulance / field service vehicles (which can be included in physical facilities but not necessarily), seminar halls and other training areas are cleaned, maintained and repaired, it must be of sufficient number and size, equipped with modern equipment.
- Administrative and academic staff rooms and research laboratories should have numbers and competences to meet the needs of the faculty and staff.
- An academic faculty is required to have a training hospital / clinic and affiliated clinics operating within or outside the boundaries of the campus for training purposes. It is also appropriate to include a pharmacy (not mandatory), operation rooms, diagnostic imaging and support services, animal care and isolation units, intensive care and rehabilitation units, ambulance / field service vehicles, necropsy units and emergency services to support diagnosis and treatment services in hospitals and clinics units must also be possessed. Working guidelines and principles on operations and practices in these units should be hung in appropriate places.
- Facilities and animal shelters used for educational and research purposes should be of sufficient size, properly constructed and arranged and managed in accordance with accepted animal welfare standards. A sufficient number of training, laboratory, research and clinical instruments and equipment must be available for the examination, diagnosis and treatment of all animals kept in the faculty shelter. The facilities should ensure the safety of students, staff and animals, reduce risks to a minimum, ensure animal welfare and biosecurity standards.
- Access to field studies should be provided for practical training in faculties. The quality of the mentioned field applications and the education and evaluation are the responsibility of the faculty management.
- Veterinary facilities are adequate and suitable for use in libraries, laboratories, classrooms, etc. Apart from departments, it should also provide farm facilities for education, research and application. Local sources such as licensed slaughterhouses and food processing facilities should be accessible for students to practice inspection and food hygiene practices.
Standart 4. Animal Hospital and Clinics
- Pet animals, livestock, and other exotic animals (horse, cattle, sheep-goat, dog, cat, poultry, etc.) needed by the clinical sciences for student education and practice, other than animals brought to the faculty, should be made available in the faculty and affiliated units by educational institutions . In line with this need, training programs and the availability of sufficient number and variety of healthy and sick animals, including those on the farm and on the farm for continuity of clinical education, are provided for hospitalized or outpatients, emergency clinics and intensive care units, should be visible in student applications.
- In order to provide and enhance the clinical education experience of the students, surgical procedures and other medical practices should be included within the faculty clinical activities of various and sufficient number of patients. If the number of sick animals in the clinics is inadequate, students should benefit from sources outside the faculty, such as mobile clinics and agreements with state / private farms for training purposes.
- All practices to be carried out in the direction of clinical information should be done under the supervision of the faculties and supervised by the academic staff, the clinical experience obtained outside the faculty and the results of the training should be actively evaluated. Diagnostic, diagnostic and treatment facilities should be equipped with modern techniques, equipment and technological tools (laboratories, diagnostic and imaging devices, necropsy unit, etc.) by the subject experts of clinical education and practice.
- Patient care should be provided at clinics and training should be provided. For field experience clinical experience, students should be provided with field service and / or ambulance program (under supervision and counseling of one or more academics) with different options. Under all circumstances, students should be involved as active participants in practices, including physical diagnosis and problem-based decision-making.
- Records for clinical practice must be comprehensive and, if necessary, a system should be established to allow for the monitoring and recovery of records to support educational, research and clinical care programs in the community.
Standart 5. Library and Information Sources
- In veterinary medicine education, access to library services and information resources present great importance in terms of research and continuing education. Access to professional and academic information resources and publications should be provided in a timely and prompt manner for students and faculty staff. The library should be managed by an experienced library specialist.
- The provision of information services in veterinary medicine education is the basis. Basic services such as basic application, research, graduate education, social services, etc. will be appropriate for the purpose of this service and should be able to provide continuous information in the fields. Adequate and up-to-date information should be available to students and faculty staff in printed and/or electronic media and in various formats. On the other hand, students should be encouraged in terms of self-study and research. Resources with educational material may include different teaching models and computer-based applications (e-learning).
Standart 6. Faculty Structure and Academic Staff
- The number of academic staff and their scientific qualities should be able to fulfill the institutional aims. The distribution of faculty and staff to fields and departmental branches should be balanced, consistent with the intensity of research and training and curriculum content.
- The proportions of eligible faculty members/students and faculty members/supportive staff should be such that practical training can be provided in small groups. Part-time and full-time staff and graduate students should be assigned full-time academic staff to assist in practical training. The workload of the academic staff should be arranged in such a way that they can research outside their theoretical training/practical activities and take part in other non-academic activities.
- The projects and/or scientific activities constitute an important criterion in the evaluation of the faculty. The faculty should prove a well-defined and comprehensive training program for the professional development of the student and for the realization of the scientific activities in the field.
- Faculties should include different activities and well-defined programs in terms of professional growth and development. Academic titles and positions of faculty staff should acquire a useful, sustainable structure that is consistent with the field competencies.
Standart 7. Students
- The number of faculty graduated students should be consistent with the faculty job description and resources.
- The faculties should also provide postgraduate training programs such as internships, specialty / masters and doctorate who complete and strengthen the vocational training program.
- Faculty and university should have student counseling and support services.
- Faculties should provide candidates with up-to-date information on educational programs and facilities in the area in relation to registration services. Apart from this, it is possible for the institution to acquire the aims and objectives of the educational program in the faculty, the acceptance conditions and procedures of the faculty, the education at the bachelor level, the faculty identification, the education fees and fees, the academic calendar, the registration deletion and registration freeze applications, and present it to their students in an up-to-date manner. The information provided to students must cover all details of undergraduate education. The grading and grading system applied in the faculty must be consistent and applicable to all students fairly and in an example.
- Veterinary faculties should have a vision of an organization that allows students to (if they wish to keep their identities confidential) to communicate their suggestions, comments and complaints to the faculty on the current accreditation standards and the development of the training program. Students must have the authority to represent on the faculty board of directors.
Standart 8. Acceptance Provisions for Faculty
- Acceptance procedures should be well defined and structured according to official and objective criteria within the relevant legislation within the quotas opened to faculties' educational programs (undergraduate, graduate, doctorate).
- The success achieved in the admission phase to the faculty programs will provide the basic infrastructure to be established by vocational training as well as facilitating life-long education based on continuous and personal development. Apart from the academic qualification and course grade average, some other factors must also be determined as application criteria and taken into consideration by the boards.
Standart 9. Education Program and Curriculum
- The curriculum applied within the scope of the veterinary medicine education program should include at least five years full-time education courses and an academic year practical education. The curriculum and education process should initiate and encourage lifelong learning for each Veterinary Faculty student.
- The curriculum and education program should include sufficient knowledge in all areas where veterinarians can fulfill legal authorities, duties and responsibilities.
- New issues, professional developments and technological innovations should be considered in curriculum planning, control and management. The content of the curriculum should be encouraged to have adequate flexibility in the current information and diversity in transfer of courses with different quality and quantity of information.
- Balanced and harmonious curriculum should ensure that problem-solving veterinarians are trained with practical and clinical skills and professional perspectives, taking into account local and national characteristics. Theoretical and practical courses should be balanced and coordinated among the different courses.
- The curriculum should also provide the following conditions and qualifications:
- The curriculum should enable understanding of the basic biological principles and mechanisms underlying animal health and diseases from the molecular and cellular level to the organism and population level.
- Educational content should be regularly and clearly transferred to the students based on the scientific knowledge and discipline involved in the curriculum in terms of the normal function of health and disease, homeostasis, pathophysiology and mechanisms, and knowledge of the natural history and symptoms of important animal diseases both within the country and around the world.
- Both theoretical and practical training curriculum should be prepared for medical practices and surgical procedures to be carried out in a wide variety of animal species. The curriculum should be focused on physical examination, laboratory diagnostic methods and related evaluations (diagnostic imaging, diagnostic pathology and necropsy) for clinical animal diseases at the individual and population level, applications for treatment including disease prevention, biosecurity, surgery, patient care, emergency clinical practices and isolation process). The curriculum needs to be prepared in such a way as to include problem solving that allows for taking and implementing decisions based on veterinary medicine.
- The curriculum should include the basic principles of epidemiology, zoonotic diseases, animal production, food safety, animal breeding, care and feeding, drug applications, herd management, animal husbandry, environmental relations, public health and contributions of veterinarians to public and health groups in which the professional relationship.
- The curriculum should offer students the opportunity to obtain anamnesis from animal owners, to keep information and data about the disease, to evaluate it with colleagues when needed, and to have effective communication with patient owners.
- Curriculum should include information for students to provide professional ethics throughout the course of their education, to provide professional services in the field of medicine for the public, to provide knowledge about business financing and clinic management skills, coverage of veterinary medicine, career options and other information for the occupation.
- The courses in the curriculum should have content to provide students with knowledge, skills, values, perspectives, responsibilities and competent behaviours to meet the changing community expectations in animal health and welfare issues.
Standard 10. Research Programs
Faculties need to be involved in high quality national and international research activities in related fields that overlap with and support the vocational education program at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
Standard 11. Quality Assurance Policies and Evaluation of Results
- Program outputs of the faculties that teach veterinary medicine should be measured and analyzed and evaluated for the development of the program. To evaluate the results of the mission's mandate for faculty development program, and thus the conditions for the current situation is of great importance. In this context, using different methods (surveys, data collection, interviews, focus like groups and self-evaluation) student achievement levels, recruitment rate, views and criticism of the program, clinical competence and institutional achievements should be assessed results by considering and faculty training programs to contribute to donor form It should be reflected.
- Veterinary medicine educational institution or program is concerned with the quality assurance policies, the existence of control, monitoring and decision mechanisms for this policy, the quality indicators of quality assurance processes, the quality indicators of students and other stakeholders, the existence of faculty quality strategies, sharing information on training processes to external stakeholders, trackability of graduates and employment areas, etc. evaluation should be made in accordance with existing information flow procedures.
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