Differences Between Veterinary And Human Medicine

Animal health and human health are inextricably linked. So much so, that initiatives to unite human and veterinary medicine which have existed for centuries (as reported by the American Veterinary Medical Association Hippocrates (" On Airs, Waters, and Places" (estimated 400 BC)).

More recent initiatives to unite the professions have been advanced by the One Health Initiative:

The One Health Initiative is a movement to forge co-equal, all inclusive collaborations between physicians, osteopaths, veterinarians, dentists, nurses and other scientific-health and environmentally related disciplines, including the American Medical Association, American Veterinary Medical Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Nurses Association, American Association of Public Health Physicians, the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the U.S. National Environmental Health Association (NEHA). Additionally, more than 800 prominent scientists, physicians and veterinarians worldwide have endorsed the initiative.

While many aspects of human and veterinary medicine may be similar, and these initiatives could benefit all patients and the professions, there remain undeniable differences between the two that cannot be reconciled. For example compare the recent article published in the New York Times, titled Modern Doctors' House Calls: Skype Chat and Fast Diagnosis with the recent decision in the 5th Circuit, Hines v. Alldredge, 783 F.3d 197 (2015).

The Times article describes the increasingly accepted practice of human medicine via skype and other virtual online resources. In stark comparison, in Hines v. Alldredge the 5th Circuit upheld the Texas statute that requires a veterinarian to conduct a physical examination of an animal or its premises before the veterinarian can practice veterinary medicine with respect to that animal.

In this Texas case, Dr. Ronald Hines, a retired veterinarian licensed to practice in the State of Texas, founded a website after retirement where "he began 'to provide veterinary...