Rate My Professor Annelies Decloedt

Annelies Decloedt is an associate professor in the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at Ghent University, Department of Internal Medicine, Reproduction and Population Medicine. She earned her DVM as an equine veterinarian from Ghent University in 2008 and completed her PhD there in 2012 on equine echocardiography, utilizing tissue Doppler imaging and two-dimensional speckle tracking to quantify left ventricular function. As a postdoctoral research fellow funded by the Research Foundation Flanders from 2012, she investigated the impact of pulmonary hypertension and exercise training on right ventricular function in horses. In 2015, she was appointed assistant professor in veterinary clinical and communication skills, where she established and now heads the Skillslab, enabling students to practice procedures like injections, surgery, and clinical examinations using simulation models, dummy patients, and blended learning approaches. She lectures on clinical and communicative skills from the second bachelor to second master levels in the veterinary program and serves on the faculty council, as vice-chair of the education committee, member of the active learning subcommittee, examination committee, and deputy national representative for the International Association for Communication in Healthcare.

Decloedt's research expertise spans equine cardiology, veterinary education, and veterinarian-client communication, with active involvement in the Equine Cardioteam Ghent on diagnostics and treatments for valvular diseases and arrhythmias using advanced techniques like intracardiac ultrasound and electro-anatomical mapping. Key publications include "Vectorcardiography at rest and during exercise in horses using the Delta (Δ) 12-lead configuration" (2026, Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine), "Students’ and Recent Graduates’ Perception of Clinical and Communication Skills Training in the Veterinary Curriculum" (2026, Journal of Veterinary Medical Education), "Arrhythmias across the tree of life: comparative insights for human electrophysiology" (2026, Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine), and "If you trust a vet, it's easier to reach out to them with questions: Flemish horse owner perspectives on communication about complementary and alternative veterinary medicine" (2026, American Journal of Veterinary Research). Her contributions have enhanced simulation-based training and communication practices in veterinary medicine.