Empathy in the Veterinary Profession.

Is your vet empathetic toward your horse? Is she empathetic toward you? Empathy is the ability to share someone else’s feelings or understand what they’re going through from their perspective. It can be a helpful trait for doctors so that they see their patients as fellow humans with complex emotional lives rather than just a list of conditions and symptoms to be treated. Although their patients aren’t human, veterinarians can have empathy for the animals they treat, too. But a veterinary practice is about more than just treating animals; the owners of the animals being treated are part of the equation, and their concerns and perspective must be considered, too. Researchers in Italy wanted to know more about empathy in veterinarians and how it varies based on a vet’s gender and length of service. In a study published online in the Journal of Veterinary Behavior this month, researchers studied 107 veterinarians using the Animal Empathy Scale and the Empathy Quotient to assess the vets’ level of empathy toward their animal patients and human clients, respectively. The Empathy Quotient is a 60-item questionnaire designed to measure a participant’s ability to understand and feel appropriate emotion in response to someone else’s emotions. The Animal Empathy Scale is a questionnaire that was developed for a 2000 study on the links between empathy with animals and with humans and has been used in similar studies since. The researchers discovered a link between gender and empathy toward animals. Overall, female vets showed more empathy toward animals than male vets did. There was no apparent link between length of service and empathy toward animals. In other words, the amount of time a person had spent working in the veterinary profession didn’t reduce or increase their level of empathy toward their animal patients. There was, however, a change in empathy toward human clients over time. The longer a veterinarian had worked in the profession, the higher their empathy level toward people. Although the researchers don’t speculate on why, it’s easy to imagine that anyone entering the profession does so with an existing love of animals, and that doesn’t change. But over years of working with human clients, their understanding of pet owners’ feelings could certainly have an impact on their ability to empathize. The veterinarians observed for the study worked mostly with cats and dogs, but there could be similar trends for equine vets, especially those whose clients are primarily owners of recreational and companion horses. A high level of empathy isn’t necessarily an advantage in the veterinary profession in all cases. The career is one with a high rate of burnout, and it’s possible that being highly emotionally connected to one’s patients could increase that. The researchers conclude by pointing out that their study is one of the first to look at vets’ empathy toward animals and people, and that more research would be necessary to evaluate "the role of empathy in the quality of care, pet-owners’ satisfaction and vets’ well-being.” more

Conjoined twins from Nigeria separated at Tennessee hospital .

Conjoined twin girls from Nigeria have been separated after a lengthy operation at a Tennessee hospital, days ahead of their first birthday. Miracle and Testimony Ayeni were separated during 18 hours of surgery that began on Nov. 7 and finished Nov. 8 at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital in Memphis, the hospital said. The twins were joined together at the pelvis, a condition that only occurs in one of about every 5 million births, said Dr. Max Langham, who led the surgical team. "Without separation, their future wasn't very good," Langham said at a news conference Tuesday. "They would grow up incontinent, unable to walk, totally dependent for all of their care and unable to participate in the world fully." Doctors are optimistic about the long-term prognosis and hospital spokeswoman Anne Glanker told The Associated Press that both girls are "doing really well." The twins have been in the hospital since their parents brought them from Nigeria in June to prepare for the procedure. The twins face additional surgeries and rehabilitation and it's not clear when they might return home. The family has another reason to celebrate — Wednesday is the first birthday of the twins. This is the second time a set of conjoined twins have been separated at Le Bonheur. Twin boys who were joined at the back and pelvis were separated in 2011. more

Young girl born with rare facial hernia gets to live a normal life after life changing surgery.

A young girl born with rare facial hernia gets to live a normal life after life changing surgery. The four-year-old girl born with encephalocele - a rare brain hernia and neural tube defect, has undergone a surgery that will change her life forever. Angel from the Philippines, was born with the rare defect that has left her restricted in many ways. Her mother, Cypres Salon told The Age, "When I saw her for the first time, I cried a lot. I cried every moment I looked at her and I blamed myself for her condition." When Angel was about 4-months-old, her parents managed to raise $5,500 for surgery in the Philippines.Although it stopped the growth of the hernia and what is described as her 'brain spilling into the hernia,' the growth was still covering most of her left eye. more

What if you could enjoy a mind-blowing meal without eating a thing? Virtual reality heads to...

What if you could enjoy a mind-blowing meal without eating a thing? Virtual reality heads to : Eating involves smell, taste, touch, sound, and sight, which presents obvious challenges for anyone trying to simulate it in virtual reality. But what if you could enjoy a mind-blowing meal without eating a thing – or perhaps just a spoonful of something nutritious?

Coca-Cola Life launches in the United Arab Emirates

Coca-Cola Life launches in the United Arab Emirates: Coca-Cola has launched its stevia-sweetened Coca-Cola Life in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The re-birth of cheese: cheese snacks are the number-one dairy growth opportunity

Connecting cheese to the snacking trend could mean market success, according to New Nutrition Business.

Probiotic supplements on rise in global €40bn market

Latest data from Euromonitor International shows the global probiotics market is worth about €40bn, yoghurt continues to be the dominant mode of delivery although probiotic supplements are growing fastest.