The goal of the NVAP program is to ensure that private veterinary practitioners who provide regulatory services to U.S. livestock, poultry and aquaculture industries, are adequately trained and well acquainted with regulatory requirements through USDA-APHIS accreditation. In addition to other accreditation requirements, accredited veterinarians are required to successfully complete a required number of 30 training Modules (http://tinyurl.com/NVAP-Modules), four of which currently cover aquatic animal health regulatory issues.
Although initiated as a 1896 agreement between the U.S. and Canada to combat equine disease outbreaks, in 1921 the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) formalized the National Veterinary Accreditation Program (NVAP) so private practitioners could assist Federal veterinarians in controlling animal diseases. In 1992 regulations allow standardized procedures and requirements, and uniform administration to be managed nationally by APHIS, but with authorization of veterinarians licensed to practice on a State-by-State basis.
In 2001/2002 an "Animal Health Safeguarding Review by the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) to further redesign and upgrade the NVAP and suggested that "the accreditation program be the core for emergency preparedness and the response plan." Recommended revisions were published in 2002 ("New Directions for the National Veterinary Accreditation Program," J. Amer. Vet. Med. Assoc., 22(10): 1470-1472), with revised regulations implemented in 2009.
With accredited veterinarians being the first line of defense against catastrophic disease outbreaks, U.S. has successfully controlled outbreaks of several foreign animal diseases (FADs), including contagious equine metritis, equine piroplasmosis, epizootics of exotic Newcastle disease and West Nile virus, cases of screwworm and monkey pox, and pandemics of the influenza virus - and several aquatic animal diseases.
Module 14 guides users to the lists of aquatic animal diseases that are reportable to Federal, State or international governments; explains the role of the accredited veterinarian in reporting aquatic animal diseases in the United States; describes the procedures required when conducting veterinary inspections of aquatic animals; and discusses common signs of illness and disease in aquatic animal species. The module also discusses the importance of collecting appropriate samples for diagnostic testing, where to find appropriate diagnostic requirements, and overviews diagnostic sample packaging and shipping procedures.