Assoc prof. Dr. Alexandra Mureșan, from USAMV Cluj-Napoca – the first Romanian ECEIM Diplomate in Internal Medicine of Horses!

The University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine (USAMV) Cluj-Napoca is pleased to announce an important achievement of a specialist from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine: the obtaining by Assoc. prof. Dr. Alexandra Nicoleta Mureșan of the title – Diplomat of the European College of Equine Internal Medicine (ECEIM – European College of Equine Internal Medicine), which is a premiere for veterinary medicine in Romania.

Conf. dr. Alexandra Nicoleta Mureșan passed the ECEIM certification exams and became EBVS Specialist in Equine Internal Medicine (EBVS Specialist in Equine Internal Medicine), with competences in clinical, imaging and laboratory diagnosis of a wide range of pathologies (cardiology, neurology, endocrinology, neonatology, infectious diseases, etc).

“Our faculty is constantly investing in the development of our teaching staff through this form of postgraduate training, of professional excellence. The faculty’s development is based primarily on advanced international training of its staff and the development of its mlogistics, a process that has visibly developed over the last 10 years. Currently, the faculty boasts three international training centers for European/American residents, seven international diplomats and 16 residents in training. We should also mention that some colleagues who have become European diplomats have obtained their titles for the first time in Eastern Europe, one more reason for us to emphasize excellence in education”, said Prof. Dr. Nicodim Fiț, Dean of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (FMV) of USAMV Cluj-Napoca.

The European Recognized Specialist Diploma was obtained by Assoc. Prof. dr. Alexandra Mureșan after completing a residency program at VetMed Uni Vienna (Austria), with internships in Nottingham (UK), Koret Veterinary School (Israel), Vetsuisse Bern (Switzerland), fulfilling mandatory credentials related to research, publication and dissemination, and rigorous examinations.

Dr. Mureșan is passionate about infectious diseases, especially viral liver pathology, and leads a research team in the field of donkey medicine.

“I learned enormously from people whose names I read with admiration in journals and textbooks, I gained a holistic view of what Internal Medicine and research means. I learned about a premature foal in need of resuscitation, the responsibility of a hundred-thousand euro patient with pneumonia… And the same responsibility for the life of a donkey rescued from a shelter suffering from malnutrition. I have consulted on diseases that I may see once in my lifetime, and together with colleagues from several countries, founded a research team that is breaking new ground in the field of viral hepatology. I fulfilled my dream of bringing everything I missed 20 years ago in my undergraduate studies closer to my students now, who are in fact my main focus. They can be exposed to European thinking, which is up to the world’s high standards, they can benefit from the experience gained, the research and clinical network I have built across Europe. I am glad to be able to share with them modern protocols, evidence-based clinical thinking, to draw them into research, even if sometimes it means wading through muddy mountains with donkeys. I support them in accessing exchange programs and want to guide them in their future careers, which may go beyond a veterinary degree. Equine medicine in Romania is still in its infancy, but it has evolved rapidly in recent years and will continue to do so through the specialists trained in Cluj-Napoca, together with modern techniques and equipment. In the long term, I hope to be able to accredit an ECEIM Residency Center in our faculty, to give a chance at home to those who want to step on a path still little followed”, said Assoc.prof. dr. Alexandra Nicoleta Mureșan.

At the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of USAMV Cluj-Napoca there are six other specialists who have previously obtained the title of Diplomat, as follows:

Prof. Dr. Andrei Daniel Mihalca, Diplomat European College of Zoological Medicine (since 2014), currently also President of the College;

Assoc prof. Dr. Marian Aurel Taulescu, Diplomat European College of Veterinary Pathologists (since 2018);

Prof. Dr. Alexandru-Flaviu Tăbăran, Diplomate American College of Veterinary Pathologists (since 2018);

Assoc prof.. Dr. Andras-Laszlo Nagy, Diplomat American Board of Veterinary Toxicology (from 2021);

Assist. Dr. Corina-Gina Toma, Diplomat European College of Veterinary Pathologists (from 2023);

Assoc prof. Dr. Constantin Cerbu, Diplomat European College of Veterinary Public Health, subspecialty Population Medicine (since 2024).