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BSAVA reveals 2024 Clinical Abstract winners
Michelle Demkova wins the Best Student Award and George Smith wins the Best Medicine Award.
The awards celebrate high quality clinical research.

The British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) has announced the researchers winning this year’s Clinical Abstracts awards.

The awards recognise clinical abstracts, presented at this year’s BSAVA Congress, which show high quality research has been undertaken in practice, industry or academia.

BSAVA’s Best Medicine Award went to George Smith, for his work on predictors of clinically significant bleeding in dogs with severe thrombocytopenia.

Dr Smith graduated with a bachelor’s degree in microbiology from Imperial College London, before spending two years in first opinion practice. He worked a year as an emergency and out-of-hours clinician in Australia, before beginning an internal medicine residency at University of Glasgow in 2020.

He said: “This recognition not only motivates me to continue striving for advancements in veterinary medicine but also provides invaluable support for my ongoing professional development.”

Michelle Demkova, a final year student at Royal Veterinary College (RVC), receives the Best Student Award, for her studies on otitis externa of dogs in primary veterinary care.

Speaking about her award, she said: “It means being recognised as worthy by a panel of impartial judges that are willing to invest in my future and help me reach my potential. It has given me all the confidence I need to keep working with excellence towards my goals.”

The Best Practitioner Award goes to Kathryn Patel, who presented a project on clinical improvement which covered 39 veterinary practices across the UK. Ms Patel’s clinical interests are joint disease and surgical oncology, but she is also passionate about quality improvement in practice.

Sebastian Wylie’s work on the surgical management of Achilles Tendon injuries earned him BSAVA’s Best Surgery Award. Following internships at Langford Small Animal Hospital and The Ralph Veterinary Referral Hospital, Dr Wylie now works as a veterinary clinical demonstrator at the University of Bristol.

Finally, the Best Poster Award has been awarded to registered veterinary nurse Clare Jones. With her poster, Ms Jones aimed to investigate how standardised CPR training might improve the confidence of veterinary professionals.

Ms Jones said: “To receive the Best Poster Award was a shock and huge honour to be recognised for, not only the research, but RVNs undertaking research.”

The BSAVA will be opening submissions for the 2025 Clinical Abstracts on 9 September 2024, until 18 October 2024.

To submit your interest, visit the BSAVA website.

Image © BSAVA

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Practices urged to audit neutering data

News Story 1
 RCVS Knowledge has called on vet practices to audit their post-operative neutering outcomes.

It follows the release of the 2024 NASAN benchmarking report, which collates data from neutering procedures performed on dogs, cats and rabbits.

The benchmarking report enables practices in the UK and Ireland to compare their post-operative outcomes to the national average. This includes the rate of patients lost to follow-up, which in 2024 increased to 23 per cent.

Anyone from the practice can submit the data using a free template. The deadline for next report is February 2026.

Visit the RCVS Knowledge website to complete an audit. 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
RCVS pays tribute to well-loved equine vet

The RCVS and the Riding Establishments Subcommittee has paid tribute to well-loved veterinary surgeon and riding establishment inspector, Rebecca Hamilton-Fletcher MRCVS.

Linda Belton MRCVS, RCVS President, said: "I, along with my colleagues on the RESC, RCVS Council, RCVS Standards Committee, as well as RCVS staff, was very saddened to hear of the sudden death of Rebecca, or Becca as we knew her, last week.

"She was a true advocate for equine welfare and in her many years on the RESC worked to continually improve the quality and consistency of riding establishment inspections, all in the interests of enhanced horse welfare and rider safety."