VIN ALTM401-2020: Medicinal Plants - Tips on Identification, Preparation, and Use

This course is a self-paced, non-interactive course.

The 2020 Non-Interactive/Self-Study courses have closed for enrollment.
However, in consideration of COVID-19 limitations on in-person CE and as a benefit to its members, VIN/VSPN CE is extending enrollment through December 31, 2020. **

Please contact us if you wish to enroll:
Email CEonVIN@vin.com or call 800.846.0028 ext 797

** This course must be completed and the end of course test submitted by December 29, 2020 to be awarded a certificate by December 31, 2020.

Presenter: Sandra Mitchell, DVM, ABVP Feline, ABVP ECM
Course Open: May 26-December 31, 2020

Level and Prerequisites: This basic course will be open to VIN and VSPN members actively interested in wild medicinal plants.
VIN CE Course: Open to VIN and VSPN members. This non-interactive course is approved by RACE for veterinarians and veterinary technicians/technologists. (RACE 22-42169)

Course Description:
In this course, we will discuss some of the plants found in nature which might have medicinal applications, as well as some harvesting and preparation techniques that can be used for these plants. This course is not meant as a complete tutorial on medicinal herbs, nor does it heavily cover the diagnosis and treatment of disease entities – rather it is meant as an aid in the identification of medicinal plants, proper preparation, their chemical properties and potential indications.

This course will consist of 3 non-interactive modules in the form of videos to watched. Modules will include handouts to be read and poll quiz questions. The final module will include an end-of-course test.

To earn a certificate of completion, the participant must attain a score of 80% for the end-of-course test. Completion of all 2 modules (videos, reading handouts, poll quiz questions, and end-of-course test) will take a minimum of 182 minutes to complete. Participants must complete the participation requirements by December 31, 2020 to be eligible for a certificate.

Course Outline:

Module 1: Introduction, Identification and Terminology
Total Time: 86 minutes
Video: 86 minutes
Objectives: Upon completion of this session, the participant should be able to

  • discuss the history of using plants as medicine.
  • list the basic categories of medicinal plants.
  • discuss the basics of harvesting and identification.
  • understand how to prepare the gathered plant.

Module 2: Plant Families and Their Medicinal Properties
Total Time: 96 minutes
Video: 76 minutes
Handouts: 5 minutes
End of Course Test: 15 minutes
Objectives: Upon completion of this session, the participant should be able to

  • understand the basics of harvesting, identification, and properties of plants in each of the Medicinal Plant Families (Mint/Lamiaceae, Parsley/Apiaceae, Mustard/Brassicaceae, Pea/Fabaceae, Rose/Rosaceae, Aster/Asteraceae, Buttercup/Ranunculaceae, and St. Johnswort/Hypericaceae)
  • list the potential uses of the gathered plant.

About the Presenter:
Sandra Mitchell is currently the owner of Animal Medical Associates in Saco, Maine and is a board certified feline specialist and exotic companion mammal specialist. Additionally, she is a licensed wildlife rehabilitator in the State of Maine and routinely treats wildlife in her area. She loves caring for companion animals, particularly dealing with geriatric patients as well as animals with difficult to diagnose or treat conditions. If it fits through the door, she will see the pet as there are no medical challenges she is unwilling to tackle. She is "owned" by her own personal tribe which includes cats, a dog, ferrets, chinchillas, and whatever wildlife have decided to take up temporary residence. In her spare time, she writes for veterinary journals, gives lectures to veterinarians, veterinary staff, and owners, writes exam questions for a variety of veterinary qualification exams, and authors for animal-oriented magazines and websites. In her real time off, she loves to canoe - especially whitewater. In 2011, she completed a 1,000 mile canoe race in the Yukon, finishing in only 7 days, 10 hours, and 46 minutes! She’s grown, foraged, and used medicinal herbs for more than 20 years. In fact, she thinks there are more herbs in her cupboards at times than food.

Total CE Credit: 3

Tuition: $69
Prices are listed in US dollars.

*Enrollment will close on December 1, 2020 at 5 pm ET (USA).
*For more information on how online CE works, see the Participant Resource Center.

To Enroll:
  1. Enrollment qualifications: VIN CE courses are open to VIN member veterinarians. Veterinarians enrolling in a VSPN CE course must be a VIN member. Veterinary support staff must be a VSPN member to enroll in a VSPN CE or a VIN CE course open to VSPN member enrollment.
  2. Each enrollee must be able to receive emails from @vspn.org and @vin.com addresses. Email is our major form of communication with participants; personal emails are highly recommended rather than clinic/hospital email addresses.
  3. Each person is individually responsible for his/her own registration. To ensure that all information received is secure and correct, please do not enroll for a course on behalf of another individual.
  4. For further assistance call 800-846-0028 ext. 797 or email . Please include the course title, your full name, and contact information in your correspondence.
Enrollment is closed.

"This program (22-42169) is approved by the AAVSB RACE to offer a total of 3 CE Credits, with a maximum of 3 CE Credits being available to any individual veterinarian or veterinary technician/technologist. This RACE approval is for the subject matter categories of: Non-Medical, using the delivery method of Non-Interactive-Distance: (Online, Correspondence, Journal, or Other Self-Study). This approval is valid in jurisdictions which recognize AAVSB RACE; however, participants are responsible for ascertaining each board's CE requirements."

Course withdrawal and refund policy: A complete refund of the paid course price will be issued when your withdrawal request is received prior to the listed start date of the course. If you wish to withdraw after the start date please contact the VIN office 800-846-0028 ext. 797 to discuss eligibility for a pro-rated refund.

*For more information on VIN's upcoming CE courses, check the VIN Course Catalog.

Katherine James, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (SAIM)
VIN Education Director

VIN CE Services:
800-846-0028 or 530-756-4881; ext. 797
or direct line to VIN/VSPN from the United Kingdom: 01 45 222 6154
or direct line to VIN/VSPN from Australia: 02 6145 2357