Center for Food Security and Public Health Expands Online Courses on Veterinary Immunology and Vaccinology

February 17, 2016 — 

A new introductory course, Introduction to Principles of Veterinary Vaccinology, has been added to the courses offered by the Center for Food Security and Public Health (CFSPH) at the Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine. This new online course introduces how veterinary vaccines work.

“We have expanded the course offerings to provide different levels of knowledge to meet the needs of individuals at many levels of the animal health world,” said Dr. Jim Roth, DVM, DACVM, PhD, Distinguished Professor, College of Veterinary Medicine at Iowa State University and instructor for all three courses. “The courses are designed to be taken either alone or in sequence to build on users’ knowledge.”

Introduction to Principles of Veterinary Vaccinology is designed for individuals who do not have a veterinary or biology background or who need a brief refresher. This course is eligible for 4.5 hours of continuing education as approved by the Registry of Approved Continuing Education (RACE).

This course complements additional courses already offered by the CFSPH that provide graduated levels of education: Introduction to Veterinary Immunology - provides an overview of how the immune system works, how vaccines can prevent disease, and why vaccines sometimes fail to protect from disease and occasionally cause adverse reactions. This course concentrates on immunology with information on vaccinology. This course is eligible for 7 hours of RACE credit. Veterinary Immunology and Principles of Vaccination - covers the scientific principles of immunology as it applies to vaccines and vaccination. It includes the material in the two shorter courses plus more in-depth information on the topics. This course is eligible for up to 17 hours of RACE credit.

Information for all three courses is located at http://www.cfsph.iastate.edu/Immunology/ For questions on which course would be right for you, or if your organization would like to arrange group courses, contact the CFSPH at vetimmune@iastate.edu

All lectures are delivered via on-demand video, with accompanying printed materials mailed to participants. Participants can access courses from an IPad®, other tablets, and many smartphones as well as regular computers. The CFSPH has delivered courses on veterinary immunology and the principles of vaccination to more than 2,000 individuals.