Category: Newsletter

African Swine Fever

African Swine Fever (ASF) virus is a highly contagious Asfivirus that can cause serious disease and death in domestic and feral swine. The disease originated in Africa, then spread to Europe (2007) and Asia (2018). In 2021, the disease was detected in the Dominican Republic and Haiti, marking the first time the disease was diagnosed in the western hemisphere in 40 years.

ASFV is transmitted directly between pigs or indirectly via Ornithodoros ticks, ingestion of infected meat, or fomites. Meat from infected animals can remain infectious for up to 5 months.

After exposure, the incubation period is between 3-19 days. In the peracute form, sudden death may be observed. In the acute form, pigs demonstrate high fever, vomiting, diarrhea, abortion, and mortality (up to 100%). Less virulent subacute or chronic forms are often seen with less intense symptoms and lower mortality. A small number of animals can become lifelong carriers. No vaccine or treatment for this disease exists. The disease does not infect humans and poses no food safety threat.

International travelers should understand the risk of bringing ASF into the US, declare items and farm visits to US Customs, and avoid farms or locations with pigs for at least 5 days upon return.

Letter from the President – January 2022

Alfred Mina, DVM
HVMA President

Happy New Year Everyone!

As the COVID -19 Pandemic continues through 2022, we’ve learned how to adapt to providing veterinary care to the communities in Hawaii.  However, many of us have been affected by the omicron variant hitting close to home, causing staff shortage and supply chain issues.  Hopefully, 2022 gets better as we continue to stay vigilantly safe, healthy, and happy.  The HVMA board will continue to meet bi-monthly this year to discuss veterinary-related issues and prepare for HVMA Annual Meeting scheduled for November 2022.

If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact us. 

Alfred J. Mina, DVM
HVMA President

Meet a Local Vet – Anya Cotliarenko

Dr. Anya Cotliarenko

Anya Cotliarenko, BVetMed, MPVM, has been the Hawaii Liaison Veterinary Medical Officer for the USDA APHIS Vet Services since July 2021, filling the position vacated by Dr. Tim Falls when he retired at the end of 2020. She is originally from the Pacific Northwest and is a graduate of Royal Veterinary College/University of London. 

Following graduation, she completed an internship at the Alamo Pintado Equine Medical Center, an exclusive equine veterinary practice in central California. She then decided to pursue veterinary public health and completed a Master of Preventive Veterinary Medicine degree at UC Davis before joining USDA/FSIS. 

She served in several roles during her seven years of service with FSIS: Enforcement Investigations and Analysis Officer; Supervisory Public Health Veterinarian (SPHV), and Supervisory Veterinary Medical Officer/Frontline Supervisor. She started as a VS field veterinarian in the Ontario District of California from September 2019. While there, she helped close out the 2018 vND outbreak and assisted in the development of CAHEN (California Avian Health Education Network) program: an education/outreach program for backyard poultry producers geared toward decreasing the risks associated with introducing Newcastle disease into the US.

She and her husband Guilherme have two children, Enzo (5) and Anita (2), one dog and two cats. Her other interests include Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, running (has completed 3 marathons!), water sports, photography, painting, piano, and equestrian activities.

Pet Kokua Wellness Clinics

The Hawaiian Humane Society is seeking licensed veterinarians to assist with community outreach clinics in District 9 (Ewa Beach, Waipahu, Mililani).  Pet Kōkua Wellness Clinics are pop-up veterinary clinics that assist low-income and houseless pet owners with wellness checks, vaccinations, flea/tick preventatives, heartworm tests and preventatives, deworming, and treatments for minor illnesses and injury, at no cost to the owner.

Clinics are generally hosted one to two times a month, are 4 hours long and are generally appointment-based.  The Pet Kōkua Program is able to offer veterinarians a stipend of $250 per clinic due to a generous grant from the City & County of Honolulu.  If interested, please email outreach@hawaiianhumane.org with your general availability. You may also call Suzy Tam at 808-356-2225 with any questions.

HVMA Scholarship Announcement

Applications for the HVMA scholarship for current veterinary students from Hawaii are being accepted. Students must be enrolled full-time in an AVMA-accredited doctoral program of veterinary medicine and have graduated from a high school in Hawaii. Please share with any students you are mentoring!
All submissions due by 3/31/2022.
Application details here.

AVMA Winter House of Delegates

AVMA House of Delegates Report Jan 2022

Over the last year and a half, the Veterinary Profession has been faced with many new struggles and challenges. The Veterinary profession has had to adapt to a changing professional environment and increase in our  workload. We have had to be innovative, resilient and creative to not only  survive – but to thrive.  

The American Veterinary Medical Association wanted to share this blog:  Start 2022 with a commitment to wellbeing to help you lead a positive and  bright 2022.  

AVMA HOUSE OF DELEGATES WINTER SESSION: 

The 2022 AVMA House of Delegates winter meeting was held in Chicago, Illinois from January 7-8. This meeting was held in conjunction with the AVMA Veterinary  Leadership Conference “Leadership in a new era”. The meeting included reports from the treasurer, AVMA staff, a message from the president, speeches by candidates for president-elect and vice president, and action items for Resolutions and the Veterinary Information Forum. 

The HOD meeting resulted in the following action items: 

Resolution 1 – Revised Policy on Rabies 
House of Delegates (HOD) voted for the resolution 

Resolution 2 – Revised Policy on Annual Rabies Vaccination Waiver
Your Reference Committee  HOD voted for the resolution

Resolution 3 – New Policy on Food Safety 
HOD voted for the resolution. 

Resolution 4 – New Policy on Supporting the Collection of Antimicrobial Use Data for  Antimicrobial Stewardship 
HOD voted for the resolution 

Resolution 5 – Revised Policy on Guidelines for Classifying Veterinary Facilities HOD refer the resolution to the Board of Directors for additional consideration

Mahalo to those of you who shared your story to the Veterinary Information  Forum topics. Here are the results to the House of Delegates Discussion:

VIF – License Portability 

Your Reference Committee recommends that the House request the Board of Directors  to further explore the issue of license portability, with consideration given to existing  policies and the possible need for additional policies, in collaboration with the state and  allied associations to further understand what issues need to be resolved and how to  best address them. 

VIF – Expanding AVMA Membership 

Your Reference Committee recommends that the House request the Board of Directors  to consider creating a pathway of communication with other veterinary healthcare team  organizations, starting with the National Association of Veterinary Technicians in  America, and the Veterinary Hospital Managers Association, to investigate how best to  work collaboratively to strengthen their organizations and professions as well as the  AVMA. 

AVMA CONVENTION 

JULY 29 – AUGUST 2, 2022
Philadelphia 

Registration opens spring 2022. 

Aloha and Mahalo!! 

Leianne K. Lee Loy – Hawaii Delegate to the AVMA House of Delegates
Carolyn Naun – Hawaii Alternate Delegate to the AVMA House of Delegates

Mahalo for the PPE

Mahalo to HI-EMA for their donation of PPE to veterinary clinics around the state. Oahu’s distribution was held August 28-29th and was a success due to the generosity and hard work of many HVMA members. Thank you to everyone who donated their time and energy, especially Jamie Furutani, Mililani Mauka Veterinary Clinic, and Waipio Pet Clinic. We could not have done it without you!

We are working to coordinate similar smaller distributions on the neighbor islands. Please contact us if you are on a neighbor island and want to help.

Veterinary Leadership Conference 2022

The AVMA’s Veterinary Leadership Conference is for veterinary professionals at every career stage who are interested in deepening their engagement with AVMA and other veterinary organizations. Leaders of all types are welcome to register:

Rising Leaders:
Attendees with a desire to get involved with veterinary organizations, and little or no prior leadership experience

Experienced Leaders:
Attendees with prior experience as volunteer leaders who want deeper engagement and opportunities to develop new skills

Presiding Leaders:
Attendees who have served as chair or president of a volunteer body, or as CEO or executive director, and want to perfect their leadership skills

The HVMA is willing to sponsor a member to attend the VLC. If you are interested, please contact us with your CV and personal statement by November 22, 2021.

Suicide Prevention Training

Veterinary medicine is a community, and a community supports its members. For that reason, the AVMA is offering free training in suicide prevention to all veterinary professionals. QPR gatekeeper training — short for “question, persuade, refer” — teaches people without professional mental health backgrounds to recognize the signs that someone may be considering suicide, establish a dialogue and guide the person to seek professional help.

Veterinarians, veterinary students, technicians, assistants, practice managers and all other veterinary professionals are now eligible to take this free online training.

Access training resources here