VeterinaryEquine clinical evaluation
The examiner plays the owner of an adult horse with a condition common in practice. You catch and restrain the horse, take the history, do a complete physical exam and talk the owner through the problems, the tests, the diagnosis, the treatment and the prognosis. You are graded only on what you say, in 45 minutes. It is station 1 (EQ01) of the Equine Practice section of the ECFVG Clinical Proficiency Examination.
Free to startScenarios
- An adult horse of mild temperament, sedated if needed, with a condition commonly seen in practice.
- A healthy horse: the owner asks for management advice on 3 of these 5, chosen by the examiner: feeding and housing, vaccination, deworming, dental care, foot care.
The steps
- Catch the horse in the box stall and restrain it with a halter and lead rope, by physical or chemical means if needed, giving any helper specific instructions.
- Question the owner to get the complete history.
- Do the distance exam.
- Give the body condition score.
- Take the objective measurements.
- Examine the head and neck, the heart, and the lungs and trachea.
- Examine the gastrointestinal system, the musculoskeletal system, the skin, and the perineum and external genitalia.
- Do the part of the exam directly related to the presenting complaint.
- Explain every normal and abnormal finding to the owner.
- Ask for a rectal exam if it is indicated; the examiner gives you the findings.
- Name every problem and a rational list of differential diagnoses from the history and the exam.
- Make the diagnostic plan: order the right tests or a necropsy.
- Interpret the results and explain how each test rules a diagnosis in or out.
- Give the most likely diagnosis.
- Give the treatment or management plan for the horse, and the herd if relevant, with follow-up, prevention and control.
- Give the prognosis.
- Speak in words the owner understands and answer every question correctly.
Safety rules that stop the station
- Handle the horse humanely and safely: the examiner can take points off or end the station with a fatal flaw and a zero, which fails the whole Equine Practice section.
- Putting yourself or the staff at risk, such as standing too close to the hind legs, lets the examiner stop the procedure.
To pass
- The sheet scores 100 points: history 20, restraint and safety 5, physical exam 33, problems and differentials 15, diagnostic plan, results and diagnosis 12, treatment plan and prognosis 5, communication 10.
- Only what you tell the owner counts; the notes you write are for you.
- The station is 40% of the Equine Practice section, which needs 60 weighted points to pass.
Official source
Manual of Administration for the Clinical Proficiency Examination
The AVMA publishes the CPE Manual of Administration free: every station, its assessment sheet and the score needed to pass.
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