EPA 1

Summary

Gather a history, perform an examination and create a prioritised differential diagnosis list.

Description

Gather a history and perform an examination on an individual animal or herd/flock and assimilate the information collected to derive a prioritised differential diagnosis list.

The history and examination should be tailored to the clinical situation and specific patient encounter. This data gathering serves as a foundation for evaluation and management.

Expectations include integration of the scientific foundations of veterinary medicines with clinical reasoning skills to guide information gathering.

Success criteria

To have demonstrated expertise and proficiency in history taking and examination across a wide range of contexts, resulting in accurate differential diagnoses.

The practitioner is able to carry out this activity to a consistently high standard across the full range of clinical contexts relevant to their role, including:

Across different animal species
Clinical presentations
Acute or chronic conditions
Case complexities
Different degrees of animal and/or client support and co-operation

Required competencies

There is the potential for all domains within the 2022 RCVS Day One Competences to be relevant to this EPA. However, the key areas involved in performance of this activity/area of practice are: