RCVS Fellowship for Liverpool alumni and staff
Five alumni and current School of Veterinary Science staff, including Adam Martin (BVSc 2001) were formally welcomed to the fellowship of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.
On the annual Fellowship Day held on 27th November 2023, five alumni and current School of Veterinary Science staff were formally welcomed to the fellowship of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS).
The title Fellow of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (FRCVS) has existed for over 140 years and is awarded in recognition of outstanding contributions to the veterinary profession.
Alumnus Adam Martin (BVSc 2001), David Bardell (BVSc 1998), Senior Lecturer in Veterinary Anaesthesia and Fernando Malalana Martinez, Senior Lecturer in Equine Internal Medicine were awarded RCVS Fellowship for Meritorious Contributions to Clinical Practice.
Georgios Oikonomou, Professor of Cattle Health and Welfare Livestock & One Health was awarded RCVS Fellowship for Meritorious Contributions to Knowledge.
Dorina Timofte, Senior Lecturer in Veterinary Clinical Microbiology was awarded RCVS Fellowship for Meritorious Contributions to the Profession.
We caught-up with Adam Martin, a European Veterinary Specialist in Animal Reproduction and RCVS Recognised Specialist in Cattle Health and Production who is currently an Associate Professor at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences.
“I qualified from Liverpool in 2001 having taken an elective in Farm Animal Medicine. The elective was largely interrupted as we were sent off around the country to help the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF, now DEFRA) in their work to control foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in the country. I loved my time at Liverpool. Although, if I am honest, I was quite a long way from being the most academically motivated of vet students… In my defence though I was always pretty engaged in LUVS and LVS activities, particularly the rugby and football teams. I was also heavily involved with the diametrically opposed activities of the University Officer’s Training Corps and University Trampolining Team.
I went back to work for the Ministry for a few months meaning that my first diagnosis as a veterinary surgeon was FMD, with all that that entailed! I was always convinced that mixed practice was right for me. However, I was convinced by a practice to take a job in farm/large animal practice on the Chesire/North Wales border (I applied thinking it was a mixed job..) and I absolutely loved it - thank you very much Barry, Paul (BVSc, 1974), Caerwyn (BVSc, 1979), Owen (BVSc, 1994) and Jane.
After five years life took me to Oslo, Norway where I undertook a residency in ruminant herd health and reproduction which led to a European Diploma in Animal Reproduction. Whilst undertaking my residency I also came back to Liverpool to take the Diploma in Bovine Reproduction led, at the time, by Hilary Dobson (PhD 1990) and Rob Smith (BVSc 1989). I remember debating, to the despair of my fellow students, about whether ‘bovine’ is just an adjective or an adjective and a noun. For those of you who are interested, it depends which dictionary you prefer. In a nice coincidence, Rob was my external examiner for my PhD (also undertaken in Norway) meaning he has examined me in my final BVSc exams, during my Masters (DBR), and for my doctorate – which is probably a fairly unique trilogy! I guess, Hilary, that this means you should probably lay the blame for me at Rob’s feet…
I currently work at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences as an Associate Professor in farm animal reproduction and herd health. My role is split between teaching and research. Unfortunately, considerably less of my time at the moment is involved in veterinary practice than I would like. But hopefully I will find my way back to that in the not too distant future. I am fairly involved with veterinary education and specialisation in Europe. I currently chair the Examinations Committee for the European College of Animal Reproduction, am Norway’s representative on the European Board of Veterinary Specialisation, and an assessor for the European Association of Establishments of Veterinary Education.”
Finally, we asked Adam whether he had any advice for current students or recent graduates that want to work in farm animal practice: "Take the opportunities that present themselves, if you find them interesting you will probably be able to do them well. If farm is your interest, I definitely recommend starting in a farm job to cement your skills early – you can always move to mixed practice after a couple of years and ‘relearn small animal practice’ with somebody else in the building. Going the other way would definitely be harder…”
Congratulations to Adam, David, Fernando, Georgios and Dorina! Will you consider applying for RCVS Fellowship in 2024?