Opening General Session: The US Veterinary Specialist Workforce: Key Historic Trends, Current Status, and Thoughts for the Future

Driven by remarkable increases in demand, the veterinary specialist workforce has been growing at a substantially faster rate than the overall population of veterinarians, especially in recent years. This session will examine trends in consumer spending on veterinary services, with a particular focus on specialists, along with trends in the number of veterinary specialists. Workforce analysis will include details on specific specialties, academic vs non-academic career pathways, and the current employment market. The nature and capacity of specialty training pipelines will be considered as a context for framing possible directions for the future.