Professor Michael Day BSc BVMS(Hons) PhD DSc DipECVP FASM FRCPath FRCVS

Michael qualified as a veterinary surgeon from Murdoch University (Western Australia) in 1982. After a period in small animal practice he returned to Murdoch to complete a Residency in Microbiology and Immunology, and a PhD involving collaborative research with the Royal Perth Hospital.

Michael held postdoctoral positions in experimental immunology at the Universities of Bristol and Oxford and in 1990 returned to Bristol where he is currently Professor of Veterinary Pathology and Director of Diagnostic Pathology.

He is a diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Pathology, and holds fellowship of the Australian Society for Microbiology, the Royal College of Pathologists and the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. He is chairman of the WSAVA Scientific Committee, the WSAVA Vaccination Guidelines Group and the WSAVA One Health Committee and is a member of the Petplan Charitable Trust Scientific Committee. Michael is Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Comparative Pathology.

Previous BSAVA posts that Michael has held include Petsavers Grant Awarding Committee Member, Scientific Committee Member and Chair and, Education Committee Member and Chair. In the latter role, he laid the groundwork for the BSAVA postgraduate certificate programmes. Additionally, Michael has been a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Small Animal Practice and edited the first and second editions of the BSAVA Manual of Canine and Feline Haematology and Transfusion Medicine.

He has received the Association’s Amoroso Award and has been co-recipient of the Petsavers award on three occasions.

Michael lives in Cheddar, Somerset, and has two children; Chris and Natalie. He admits to having inherited the Australian passion for travelling and enjoys nothing more that spending time in an art gallery or National Trust house.

Mark Johnston BVetMed MRCVS

Mark graduated from the Royal Veterinary College in 1981 and initially took a position in the RVC Department of Medicine as a Houseman. After a year he moved to a mixed practice in South Wales until 1986 when he moved to work, with his wife Teresa, at her father’s practice in Crowborough, East Sussex. Mark and Teresa took over the practice when Teresa’s father retired in 1988.

Previous committee posts that Mark has held within BSAVA include Secretary and Chair of Surrey & Sussex Region, Secretary and Chair of Petsavers Grant Awarding Committee, Public Relations Officer, Honorary Treasurer, Junior Vice President and Vice President.

Mark and his wife have three daughters – Emma, Robyn and Georgina. He enjoys long walks with the family Labrador and is an avid rugby fan (he still harbours dreams of earning a cap for England).

Initially Mark planned to serve on a Regional Committee for a couple of years and then stop, but he insists that once you start as a volunteer with BSAVA you just don’t want to stop.

Katie McConnell MA VetMB CertVR CertSAM MRCVS

After graduating from Cambridge in 1988, Katie worked in small animal practice in East Anglia before returning to Cambridge Veterinary School to take on a series of academic roles culminating as University Assistant Physician (Small Animals).
 

After six years at Cambridge Katie then moved into the veterinary publishing world with Vetstream. For five years she was also Editor of the Journal of Small Animal Practice (JSAP). She now works as a freelance medical writer and copy editor.

Previous committee posts held by Katie within the BSAVA include Regional Officer (Secretary, Treasurer and Chair of East Anglia Region) and Chair of JSAP Management Committee.

Katie and her husband Fraser McConnell (Head of Diagnostic Imaging at Liverpool Veterinary School) live in Cheshire and have two daughters – Freya and Charlotte. Katie’s eldest daughter Lizzie continues the family interest in clinical medicine studying child nursing at University.
 

Family and local community commitments take up much of Katie’s free time, as well as her beloved Flat Coat Retrievers. She is involved with Parent Teacher Associations at her two younger children’s schools and is also a first responder in her village community, offering emergency response to local residents when a 999 call is made.

Patricia Colville BVMS MRCVS

After qualifying from Glasgow University Vet School in 1993 Tricia worked for three years in a small animal practice in Guisborough, North Yorkshire. Several years working for PDSA in Leeds and then Glasgow led Tricia to the role of Senior Veterinary Surgeon at PDSA Tollcross in Glasgow in 2005. In November 2009 Tricia became Hospital Manager at Vets Now Referrals, Glasgow.

Previous BSAVA posts that Tricia has held include Scottish Region Committee Member, Scottish Region Treasurer, Petsavers Chair and most recently Membership Development Committee (MDC) Chair.

Tricia lives with her husband Rory (also a small animal vet) in Stirling and in her spare time enjoys cycling, time in the gym and Munro climbing as well as relaxing with a good book. She admits to having no luck at the few times she has tried fishing, and would like to have the time to take up golf.

“Being involved with BSAVA has given me the opportunity to make many new friends and be involved in a wider aspect of the veterinary community.”