Electronic medicines book (eMB): using antimicrobial usage data effectively
Date: Wednesday 5th March 2025
Opening times: 17:00 - 18:00
Venue: Online - free registration
Details
Join Farm Vet Champions and the Pig Vet Society for this live webinar that covers how to maximise the benefits of having data on the electronic medicines book (eMB). If you are a farm animal vet who sees pigs – whether routinely or occasionally – this webinar is for you!
Although specifically by pig vets and for pig vets, this webinar will demonstrate the added value that both vets and farmers can gain from centralised antibiotic usage data – benefits that will be applicable in the future from the ruminant Medicine Hub.
The Electronic Medicine Book for Pigs (eMB) is a UK-wide service for the collection of data on antibiotic usage in the pig sector and, optionally, acts as the full legal medicine book for the pig holding. Provided and managed by the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB), the eMB can be of huge value to veterinary practices and individual pig producers, as a tool to review and manage antimicrobial usage. Data from eMB can be combined with other information, such as vaccination strategies and health monitoring to strengthen discussions with pig producers around animal health and welfare.
Inputting antimicrobial usage data is a farm assurance requirement, but monitoring and bench-marking medicine use is beneficial for all producers. This webinar explains how to maximise the value of the eMB and use this in discussions with producers to help underpin preventative health strategies and facilitate conversations about antimicrobial usage.
This is not just a project about data and figures, it is about conversations, relationships, healthy animals, and good practice.
Fiona Lovatt, RCVS Knowledge Farm Vet Champions Clinical Lead
What will you learn?
- Understand what the Electronic Medicines Book (eMB) is.
- Learn how eMB data can be retrieved and analysed at a national level, but also on a specific practice or farm level.
- Listen to the case studies and understand the benefits of using this data to make clinical recommendations in real practice settings.
- Build confidence using data in discussions with producers.
What does the webinar entail?
The session will include a presentation from our three speakers, plus a 10-minute Q&A session at the end – bring your questions for a good discussion!
Hosted by
Fiona Lovatt, RCVS Knowledge Clinical Lead
Fiona has a passion for proactive veterinary involvement on UK sheep farms, particularly enthusing both vets and sheep farmers to interact better through proactive individual flock health planning and Flock Health Clubs. Fiona runs Flock Health Ltd, a sheep veterinary consultancy business that works collaboratively with vets, farmers, processors, retailers and pharmaceutical companies, primarily in the UK but also further afield. She is an RCVS Recognised Specialist in Sheep Health and Production, a diplomate of the European College of Small Ruminant Health Management and works, on a very part-time basis, as a clinical associate professor at the University of Nottingham. Fiona is a past president of the Sheep Veterinary Society and currently chairs the UK Sheep Antibiotic Guardian Group, having represented the sheep industry on the RUMA Targets Task Force since 2016.
Webinar speakers
Dr Alex Thomsett BVetMed (Hons) DPM MRCVS
Alex has worked in clinical practice at The George Veterinary Group since graduating as a veterinary surgeon in 2003 from The Royal Veterinary College. Initially Alex worked as a multispecies farm vet but quickly moved to focus on pigs. Alex has worked exclusively with pigs for over 15 years and this work covers larger and smaller scale producers over a range of production systems. Alex is also a Director of The George Veterinary Group. Alex achieved the RCVS Diploma in Pig Medicine in 2016 and is currently Vice President of The Pig Veterinary Society and the Chair of the Society’s Medicines Sub-group.
Jennifer Newman, Lead Livestock Science Data Specialist at AHDB
Jenny joined AHDB in 2012 and has worked to develop eMB and analyse the data collected by it since 2015. In 2023 she submitted an entry to the Antibiotic Guardian awards describing eMB and the results achieved by the pig sector, which won the award for the Animal Health, Agriculture and Food Supply category.
Richard Pearson BVSc MRCVS
Richard joined The George Vet Group from Liverpool University in 1993 with an already well-developed interest in pigs. For more than 20 years he has worked almost exclusively in the pig sector developing interests in outdoor production, gilt management, health surveillance, and veterinary medicines. Richard is a past President of Pig Veterinary Society, chaired PVS Medicines Group and has contributed to RUMA Target Task Force in helping to plot a path forward for antibiotic use in the pig sector. He is a Director of the George Veterinary Group.
Booking details
Save your seat! Please click here and follow the link to pre-register to our live webinar: Register now
This webinar will be recorded.
Co-hosted by RCVS Knowledge, Pig Veterinary Society (PVS) and Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB)
