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Australian Small Animal Veterinary Association (ASAVA)

Unit 40, 6 Herbert Street
St. Leonards
NSW 2065
Australia

Tel: +612 9431 5090
Fax: +612 9437 9068
Website: www.asava.com.au
E-mail: asava@ava.com.au

President: Matthew Retchford

WSAVA Representative
Roger Clarke
PO Box 234 Bundoora, 3083
AUSTRALIA
ph +61-3-9467 2255
Fax +61-3-9467 7369
bunvet@bigpond.com.au

Members: 1496 (as of December 2007)
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ASAVA ANNUAL REPORT 2008 (posted May 2009)

It is my pleasure to present my first annual report as the ASAVA President. I believe that 2008 was the most successful year in the ASAVA’s history as we build on our existing strengths and continue to further develop the benefits we provide to our members.

The most significant achievement for the ASAVA in 2008 was the annual conference, Keep up to date in 2008, with over 500 attendees. As has come to be expected from the annual ASAVA meeting, the conference was packed full of great educational, social and recreational opportunities. All the feedback from members was positive. The convention centre in Cairns proved to be an outstanding venue. As always the objective of the ASAVA is to further raise the bar at our annual conference in Christchurch in 2009. The industry support for the ASAVA and our conference was outstanding and I would like to thank the many companies involved in the trade exhibition. I would also like to make special mention of our Gold Sponsor (Hill’s Pet Nutrition), our Silver Sponsor (Provet) and our Bronze Sponsor (IDEXX Laboratories).

The hard work and dedication of your ASAVA committee was recognised by the AVA this year. Dr Phil
Brain was awarded the most prestigious AVA awards, Fellowship of the AVA. This award recognises Phil’s outstanding service to the ASAVA and the AVA over many years. I congratulate Phil on a well-deserved and hard-earned award. Dr Matthew Retchford also received a much deserved AVA Meritorious Service award at the AVA Gala Dinner this year.

I am delighted to report that membership numbers remain steady at 1300. This increase is the result of a number of factors, including the significant exposure the ASAVA gained through the WSAVA conference and also ongoing awareness of the many valuable benefits membership offers. Some the key membership benefits include:
• Excellent opportunities for Continuing Education at the ASAVA and AVA Conferences every year.
• The Australian Veterinary Practitioner (AVP); Australia’s leading scientific journal for companion
animal practitioners
• The Companion; the ASAVA magazine, keeping members up to date with information of
relevance to companion animal practitioners and free classifieds for members
• The ASAVA Accredited Hospitals of Excellence; providing a framework for veterinary hospitals
to provide the highest standard of practice for their clients
• ASAVA brochures and other materials designed for veterinary practices to provide relevant and accurate
information to their clients
• ASAVA website providing a source of information to members, including conference
information, conference registration and the E- Library.

2008 was a time of change which extended to the ASAVA office. We had said goodbye to Dr Matthew Miles in late 2007, who has moved to a new job based at the University of New South Wales, helping with various research and fundraising projects in the human medical field. We also said goodbye to Ellen Quinn, our office administrator who recently gave birth to her first child, a boy called Nicolas. Both mother and baby are thriving. Our other administrator Michelle has returned to the UK. We would like to thank Matthew, Ellen and Michelle for their very large contributions through the last few years and wish them the very best for the future. As a result we have some new faces in the office. We welcomed a new Office Administrator Cristina Sacco, and in the New Year Patricia Soesanto.

The ASAVA Committee continues to maintain representation on the AVA Board, Australian Companion Animal Council, Nursing Industry Advisory Group, Therapeutics Advisory Committee, Australian Veterinary
Association Centre of Companion Animals in the Community, the AVA Policy Advisory Council. The current committee is comprised of myself, Dr Matthew Retchford (immediate past president), Dr Deborah Osborne (Honorary Treasurer and Northern Representative), Dr Philip Brain (Honorary Secretary and Eastern Representative), Dr Adrian Choi (Southern Representative) and Dr Neville Robertson (Western Representative).

This past year the ASAVA committee has been involved in implementing several new AVA policies and updating several older AVA policies. The companion animal vaccination policy will be revisited in line with the newly released WSAVA vaccination guidelines. New policies introduced involve the surgical alteration of the natural state and genetic manipulation.

As the largest special interest group of the AVA, our representation on the AVA Board and various subcommittees means we will continue to provide the best possible support and representation for our members.

The ASAVA Committee is continually trying to devise new ways we can provide further services for our Members. During the next 12 months we plan to maintain and improve our current level of member services.

Major initiatives for the coming year include:
• A fully revised ASAVA website providing increased and improved online services for ASAVA members. The ASAVA website will provide more up-to-date information for members and more services, such as better access to the AVP, membership information and conference registration
• The ASAVA smart card. Members can be quickly and easily identified and use the card to store CE points, obtain access to ASAVA Member’s services, keep member status up to date, with the potential for more services to follow.
• The PennHIP hip assessment scheme. The ASAVA will continue to promote and support the PennHIP scheme in Australia, with more training programs and communication programs to members.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Dr Matthew Retchford for his incredible efforts as ASAVA President over the last three years. He leaves large shoes to fill.

Thank you for your support and I look forward to working with you in 2009.

Dr Graham Swinney
BVSc FACVSc
President of ASAVA