Figure 1A (left): Dr. Robert Marshak, referred to as the “Father of Veterinary Specialties,” passed away on Oct. 20, 2020 at the age of 97; Figure 1B (right): Dr. Peter Emily, DDS, who was influential in development of the veterinary dentistry specialty, passed away on August 24, 2022, at the age of 90. Another year comes to an end, and as I write this column, I wish you and yours a safe, happy, and prosperous holiday season and new year. As you might expect, the columnists for Veterinary Practice News write their articles months ahead of the publication date, and therefore, as I write this, I am enjoying the early fall weather of late September and traveling to our annual dentistry conference, the Veterinary Dental Forum (VDF). The VDF provides educational opportunities for people who are at various levels of their dental journey, including fundamental, intermediate, advanced, research, anesthesia, and technician lecture tracks. The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) recognized specialty of dentistry began in 1988. Many of the founding members of the American Veterinary Dental College (AVDC) are still with us, but we recently lost a giant in Peter Emily, DDS. Have you ever wondered how a veterinary specialty becomes a reality? Having just finished a yearlong term as chair of the American Board of Veterinary Specialties (ABVS), I thought you might have interest in learning the history and function of the ABVS. The ABVS is the AVMA committee that considers continued acknowledgement of Recognized Veterinary Specialty Organizations (RVSOs) and reviews proposals for new RVSOs. The ABVS also reviews reports and proposals of recognized veterinary specialties (RVSs) under the umbrella of specialty organizations. A call for change In the past, the ABVS consisted almost entirely of specialist representatives from each of the existing specialties. However, to minimize conflicts of interest, there was a desire to have a more diverse group responsible for making decisions about new and already existing specialty organizations. Therefore, a change in the structure of ABVS occurred in recent years. A new committee, the Veterinary Specialty Organizations Committee (VSOC), was created. VSOC has a similar structure to that of the previous version of the ABVS, with one specialist representative for each specialty college. The VSOC provides an advisory role to the ABVS and gathers information and advice to allow ABVS to perform its various functions. Four VSOC members are elected to serve as voting members of the ABVS. The “new” ABVS consists of four VSOC representatives and other voting members of the ABVS, including four veterinarians who are not board-certified, a representative of the American Association of State Veterinary Boards, a representative of the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges, an individual with expertise in psychometrics or certification activities, and a member of the public. The ABVS meets at least twice a year to review triennial reports created by RVSOs, review new specialty proposals, and discuss best practices of AVMA-recognized veterinary specialties. A collaborative approach Human health care professionals often play a role in helping to educate and provide insight to veterinarians interested in creating a veterinary specialty. In fact, some of the earliest veterinary specialties were fostered by collaboration with medical schools. Perhaps the earliest example of this, which directly resulted in development of veterinary specialties, was a program initiated by Dean Robert Marshak, DVM, DACVIM, of the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine (PennVet). Concerned about the disparity between the clinical programs of medical and e veterinary schools, Dr. Marshak reconfigured his clinical professors’ schedules to allow them to spend time at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in various departments, including medicine, surgery, cardiology, and anesthesia. The close proximity of PennVet to Penn’s medical school and dental school made such a commitment easy: only a few city blocks separate the schools. Many of these veterinarians went on to be instrumental in the creation of veterinary specialties, including Marshak himself, who was a charter diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine in 1973, and served as president of ACVIM in 1975. (Figure 1A). A focus on veterinary dentistry The specialty of veterinary dentistry benefitted from the advice and knowledge of Dr. Peter Emily, as well as other human dentists and dental hygienists. Emily grew up wanting to be a veterinarian, but when the time came to choose a career, he joined some friends who were attending dental school. He always had a love for animals, and after he graduated from dental school, he sought opportunities to help. He studied comparative dentition and anatomy, authored multiple textbooks, and taught at multiple veterinary schools. He became a dog show judge with an eye for malocclusions and volunteered his time to help zoo veterinarians provide much needed dental care for animals in zoos and wildlife sanctuaries. Emily recently passed away after a long, productive career. He was most proud of creating the Peter Emily International Veterinary Dental Foundation, a non-profit organization that provides funding for missions to remote animal sanctuaries, providing dental care to animals that would otherwise suffer with dental pain (Figure 1B). I had the opportunity to interview him a few years ago for a podcast series we created for the Journal of Veterinary Dentistry. My sincere thanks to human doctors, dentists, nurses, and dental hygienists who have given freely of their time and talent to help foster veterinary specialties. In turn, veterinary specialties have provided benefit to not only animals, but also humans. John Lewis, VMD, DAVDC, FF-OMFS practices and teaches at Veterinary Dentistry Specialists and Silo Academy Education Center, both located in Chadds Ford, Pa.
