Methods

Directive questionnaires were used.

We had several possible sources of information, with respect to the area of our study. We therefore decided to make up 3 different questionnaires:

An "Institution or Country" Questionnaire: On a national level, a certain amount of information is centralised, collated or held. We are able to quote figures for employment, the nature of qualifications, the number of veterinary assistants trained per year. A variety of institutions may have this information (different ministry departments, professional unions, training colleges…). The role of our national partners was to co-ordinate the information gathered in the questionnaire which we drew up together.

For the "clinic" and the "veterinary assistant" questionnaires, there were two possible ways to proceed:

1. Either a wide distribution, followed by a statistical study of the results.
2. Or use of a directive questionnaire, led by one person, with the help of someone in contact with the person in charge of the FOCUS programme in their country. This method has several advantages: it limits the number of questionnaires to just a few clinics and veterinary assistants, thus guaranteeing a better quality of answers. In addition, the choice of clinics approached (with their veterinary assistants) takes into account the widest variety of professional profiles possible. The analysis of the results is carried out on the basis of quality rather than quantity, though it would be possible, given the results, to weight the answers received. Each country can choose between these two methods.