VetBloom and IBM collaborate on blockchain project

VetBloom, an online platform that offers courses for continuing education credit, is working with IBM to form a group focusing on how blockchain technology can verify learning credentials.

Blockchain has been increasingly popular in several industries over the past few years, particularly as a way to record and securely verify financial transactions. In this case, IBM’s blockchain will produce a verifiable record to check prospective employees’ qualifications, according to the announcement.

The veterinary industry has seen a push toward “skills-based credentials,” in which hospitals seek candidates with specific demonstrable skills. The technology VetBloom and IBM are creating, which is still in early development, aims to address these changes by more smoothly connecting qualified job applicants with companies.

“We have worked diligently with IBM over the last year to bring key industry stakeholders into this initiative, creating a veterinary ecosystem that will join IBM’s broader work around learning credentials and blockchain,” said Dr. Patrick Welch, chief knowledge officer at Ethos Veterinary Health and founder of VetBloom. (VetBloom is part of Ethos, a hospital network.)

Initial collaborators on the project are the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges, the International Council for Veterinary Assessment, and the American Animal Hospital Association. Others will be named in the coming weeks.