What is a veterinary professional associate?
Established by the state of Colorado, the veterinary professional associate is a new role similar to a physician assistant in human medicine. This mid-level role fills a gap between veterinarians and veterinary technicians and – along with other institutional initiatives – helps address a national shortage of veterinary care, particularly in rural areas.
Veterinary professional associates will work under the supervision of a veterinarian and are specially trained to work on only canine and feline cases to diagnose animal medical concerns, perform routine surgeries, and order and perform tests and procedures.
With their unique skillset, VPAs will help relieve veterinarians from extra tasks, enhancing the efficiency of the veterinary care team as a whole, preventing burnout, and improving access to care. While VPAs address routine cases and help manage backlogs of patients, veterinarians can focus more time and energy on patient care in cases that require their unique expertise. Veterinary professional associates will have knowledge and authority, under supervision of a licensed veterinarian, to diagnose and treat common illnesses and injuries, but veterinary care teams will still need the expertise of veterinary technicians to provide well-rounded care to patients.
Master’s program trains VPAs
More than a decade in the making, CSU is launching a master’s program that equips graduates to pursue licensing as veterinary professional associates (VPA) in the state of Colorado. The Master of Science in Veterinary Clinical Care will provide extensive training in clinical care, client communication, and leadership.
Building on a 117-year history of veterinary education leadership, CSU is leading the way in creating a strict, top-tier educational program for the master’s in veterinary critical care. Created in collaboration with CSU faculty, welfare organizations, community members, and other academic institutions, this program will positively impact veterinary care in Colorado for both practitioners and patients.
The program curriculum was developed using the same course objectives, delivery of material, and assessment as our top-ranked D.V.M. Program. Students will gain advanced medical training (with an emphasis on common infectious and physiological diseases of dogs and cats), including mastering technical skills at the University’s $230 million Veterinary Health and Education Complex, that will prepare them to fill the VPA role on a veterinary care team.
In addition to developing the master’s program, CSU is also addressing the veterinary workforce shortage by increasing the size of its next D.V.M. student cohort and evolving the curriculum to help train and retain more veterinarians.
Learn more about the Master of Science in Veterinary Clinical Care.
VPA licensing and regulation
The Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) is responsible for determining the licensing and regulation requirements for the veterinary professional associate role, including rules for practice, professional and academic qualifications, and disciplinary measures. The state board may also determine the specific tasks and level of supervision required.
Learn more about the implementation timeline and rulemaking process for Proposition 129 from DORA.