The University of Liverpool School of Veterinary Science was the first
veterinary school
Veterinary education is the tertiary education of veterinarians. To become a veterinarian, one must first complete a veterinary degree in Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM , V.M.D. , BVS, BVSc, BVMS, BVM, cand.med.vet).
In the United States and ...
in the United Kingdom to be incorporated into a university. The school's teaching, treatment and research facilities are on the main campus and at Leahurst on the
Wirral Peninsula
Wirral (; ), known locally as The Wirral, is a peninsula in North West England. The roughly rectangular peninsula is about long and wide and is bounded by the River Dee to the west (forming the boundary with Wales), the River Mersey to t ...
, approximately 12 miles outside Liverpool.
History
Foundation
The foundations for the vet school at Liverpool were laid in the early 1900s when
William Owen Williams
William Owen Williams FRSE FRCVS (1860–1911) was a Yorkshire-born veterinarian of Welsh descent.
Life
He was born in Bradford in 1860, the son of William Williams and his wife Caroline Owen. Caroline died in 1867 when young William was onl ...
, principal of the now-defunct
New Veterinary College in Edinburgh (not to be confused with the
Royal (Dick) Vet School, with which it was in competition), was invited to transfer his institution to Liverpool. The emerging science of veterinary medicine was of particular relevance both to the busy port city itself, which depended upon heavy horses to drive its docks and associated industry, and to the economy of the surrounding countryside, which at the time boasted the highest stocking density of cattle in the UK.
Initially, there was considerable resistance to the idea of a vet school operating within the confines of a civic University, as this seemingly endorsed a 'one-portal' entry system to the profession, thereby cementing the authority of the
RCVS and its diploma. There was also opposition from the Royal College itself, as the new school was initially incorporated into the university's medical faculty and, controversially, students received some instruction from medical staff.
Leahurst
The UK's first veterinary field station was established at Leahurst in 1941. Today, most of the school's clinical facilities are located at this site, including the three main referral hospitals and many of the research facilities. It was the focus of
Rolf Harris
Rolf Harris (born 30 March 1930) is an Australian entertainer whose career has encompassed work as a musician, singer-songwriter, composer, comedian, actor, painter and television personality. He often used unusual instruments in his performan ...
'
Channel 5 series ''
Rolf's Animal Clinic'', which returned for a second season in 2014 as ''
Ben Fogle's Animal Clinic'', with
Ben Fogle
Benjamin Myer Fogle, (born 3 November 1973) is an English broadcaster, writer and adventurer, best known for his presenting roles with British television channels Channel 5, BBC and ITV.
Early life
Fogle is the son of English actress Juli ...
taking over presenting duties.
Veterinary Surgeons Act
The 1948
Veterinary Surgeons Act made a university degree a registrable qualification for veterinary practice. Two years later, the school was the first in the UK to receive an
Order in Council
An Order-in-Council is a type of legislation in many countries, especially the Commonwealth realms. In the United Kingdom this legislation is formally made in the name of the monarch by and with the advice and consent of the Privy Council ('' Ki ...
allowing those obtaining the BVSc qualification to practice veterinary medicine.
Internal structure
In 1952, the school was formally accorded
faculty status. In 2009 following an internal restructure of the university, the faculty was demoted back to school status under the stewardship of the new faculty of health and life sciences..
Facilities
The trend towards increased specialisation and the subsequent expansion in clinical training has led to the development of Liverpool's three main teaching hospitals:
Philip Leverhulme Equine Hospital (PLEH)
Built in the late 1990s at a cost of £1.4 million, the
equine
Equinae is a subfamily of the family Equidae, which have lived worldwide (except Indonesia and Australia) from the Hemingfordian stage of the Early Miocene (16 million years ago) onwards. They are thought to be a monophyletic grouping.B. J. MacFa ...
hospital (also known as the Philip Leverhulme Equine Hospital or PLEH) is one of the busiest and most successful equine referral hospitals in the UK, treating over 2,000 patients per year with an annual turnover in excess of £1.2 million.
The hospital has particular expertise in the areas of
gastroenterology
Gastroenterology (from the Greek gastḗr- “belly”, -énteron “intestine”, and -logía "study of") is the branch of medicine focused on the digestive system and its disorders. The digestive system consists of the gastrointestinal tract ...
,
oncology
Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγκος (''ó ...
,
orthopaedics
Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics ( alternatively spelt orthopaedics), is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and nonsurgical means to treat musculoskeletal ...
and
neurology
Neurology (from el, wikt:νεῦρον, νεῦρον (neûron), "string, nerve" and the suffix wikt:-logia, -logia, "study of") is the branch of specialty (medicine), medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of co ...
and is fully equipped to undertake
laparoscopic
Laparoscopy () is an operation performed in the abdomen or pelvis using small incisions (usually 0.5–1.5 cm) with the aid of a camera. The laparoscope aids diagnosis or therapeutic interventions with a few small cuts in the abdomen.Medlin ...
investigations of the equine abdomen (e.g. for recurrent or chronic
colic
Colic or cholic () is a form of pain that starts and stops abruptly. It occurs due to muscular contractions of a hollow tube ( small and large intestine, gall bladder, ureter, etc.) in an attempt to relieve an obstruction by forcing content out ...
) and to perform operative procedures via laparoscopy, e.g.
ovariectomy
Oophorectomy (; from Greek , , 'egg-bearing' and , , 'a cutting out of'), historically also called ''ovariotomy'' is the surgical removal of an ovary or ovaries. The surgery is also called ovariectomy, but this term is mostly used in reference t ...
.
Digital imaging technology available at the hospital includes
digital X-ray
Digital radiography is a form of radiography that uses x-ray–sensitive plates to directly capture data during the patient examination, immediately transferring it to a computer system without the use of an intermediate cassette. Advantages inclu ...
/computed
radiology
Radiology ( ) is the medical discipline that uses medical imaging to diagnose diseases and guide their treatment, within the bodies of humans and other animals. It began with radiography (which is why its name has a root referring to radiat ...
,
gamma scintigraphy,
CT,
MRI
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and radio waves ...
and
ultrasonography
Ultrasound is sound waves with frequencies higher than the upper audible limit of human hearing. Ultrasound is not different from "normal" (audible) sound in its physical properties, except that humans cannot hear it. This limit varies fr ...
.
There are also facilities for
iridium wire therapy,
laser treatment
A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word "laser" is an acronym for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation". The fir ...
and in 2011 the hospital opened the Barrie Edwards Intensive Care Unit, one of the most advanced and well-equipped equine intensive care units in the UK.
The hospital is named for Philip William Bryce Lever, the 3rd
Viscount Leverhulme
Viscount Leverhulme, of the Western Isles in the Counties of Inverness and Ross and Cromarty, was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom created in 1922 for the industrialist and philanthropist William Lever, 1st Baron Leverhulme. He had ...
in recognition of his support for the school and university (see the
Leverhulme Trust
The Leverhulme Trust () is a large national grant-making organisation in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1925 under the will of the 1st Viscount Leverhulme (1851–1925), with the instruction that its resources should be used to suppo ...
).
Small Animal Teaching Hospital (SATH)
The Small Animal Teaching Hospital, originally established in 1977 on the Liverpool campus, joined the other teaching hospitals at Leahurst with the construction of a new £9.6 million facility in 2007. It currently treats over 10,000 patients per year with a turnover in excess of £2.5 million.
Farm Animal Hospital
The farm animal unit, which opened in 1996, takes cases from throughout North West England and North
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
for detailed investigation and intensive care treatment.
Liverpool University Veterinary Society
Liverpool University Veterinary Society (LUVS) is the official student body of the veterinary school at Liverpool.
They organise many sporting, social, theatrical and charitable events throughout the year.
Organisation
The school provides undergraduate and postgraduate courses in
veterinary medicine
Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in animals. Along with this, it deals with animal rearing, husbandry, breeding, research on nutri ...
.
Undergraduate
In 2006 there were 559 undergraduate students enrolled on the
BVSc
The Bachelor of Veterinary Science (BVSc or BVSC; Latin Baccalaureus Veterinariae Scientiae), "Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine" (BVetMed), or "Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery" ("BVM&S" or "BVMS") is a degree for studies in veterinary me ...
course and 84 on the
Bioveterinary Science BSc degree course.
Postgraduate
The school offers three master's degrees: Veterinary Parasitology, Animal Reproduction and Veterinary Infection and Disease Control. The Diploma in Bovine Reproduction is available to MRCVS qualified candidates.
The school has research degrees in infectious diseases, epidemiology, musculoskeletal systems, animal behaviour and protein function.
References
*''Liverpool Veterinary School: the first 100 years'' by Alison Kraft,
The Veterinary Record () 2004, vol. 155, no. 20.
{{Authority control
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
Veterinary
Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in animals. Along with this, it deals with animal rearing, husbandry, breeding, research on nutri ...
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
1904 establishments in England