Speaker Profiles

Accreditation: AiCVIM (Cardiology)

Deni Noviana is Professor of the Division of Surgery and Radiology, School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (SVMBS), IPB University Indonesia.  In addition to completing the PhD program at the Yamaguchi University Japan, He had also participated in an internship program at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Miyazaki University Japan. In 2017, he was awarded with the title of Diplomate in Asian College of Veterinary Internal Medicine as a cardiology specialist (DAiCVIM).  He has published a number of books in the field of radiology and numerous scientific publications journals as well as proceedings of scientific meetings in the field of cardiology, diagnostic imaging and biomaterials. On top of that, Prof. Noviana frequently serves as the instructor of national and international continuing professional development programs.  In 2021-2023 he served as Dean of the SVMBS IPB University. He is currently the Vice Rector for Education and Student Affairs of IPB University.

Organisation: IPB University

Accreditation: DABVP (Feline Medicine)

Elise graduated, with honours, from Colorado State University (1998) and The Royal Veterinary College, U of London (2003). She operates a peripatetic endoscopy & endosurgery referral service (canine & feline) for first opinion and referral practices in SE England. She also operates quarterly referral clinics in the Middle East and SE Asia including United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia. She regularly lectures and provides practical endoscopy courses on both national and international platforms including UK, USA, Sweden, Finland, Germany, UAE, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia. 

Elise has received her formal post-graduate training in medical endoscopy, interventional endoscopy and 'key hole' surgery from well-known human paediatric & neonatology endoscopy hospitals as well as veterinary academic institutions based in the UK (Royal Free NHS Hampstead, London), France, Germany, Italy (Bambino Gesu Children's Hospital & European Endoscopy Training Centre, Rome), United States and Thailand (Siriraj Piyamaharajkarun Children's Hospital, Bangkok).

Elise currently divides her time between clinical work, teaching/lecturing and publishing within the subjects of feline medicine, endoscopy & endosurgery. She lectures for ISFM/University of Sydney Distance Education Course in Feline Medicine, co-lecturer (CE Endoscopy & Endosurgery courses) at Translational Medicine Institute at Colorado State University, and visiting Professor at Chulalongkorn University, Faculty of Veterinary Science, in Bangkok. She has a particular passion for delivering practical feline medicine and endoscopy/endosurgery education, for both undergraduate and postgraduate students, on a global scale. She's a recipient of the 2017 BSAVA Frank Beatty Travel Scholarship, 2018 BSAVA PetSavers Award for her meritorious contributions as a veterinary surgeon in small animal veterinary practice and awarded Fellow Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons for her contributions to the advancement of veterinary endoscopy education.
 

Organisation: Founder, Endoscopy Vet Referrals, UK

Accreditation: DACVIM (Nutrition)

Iveta Becvarova, DVM, MS, Diplomate ACVIM (Nutrition) currently serves as Sr Director of Global Academic and Professional Affairs at Hill’s Pet Nutrition, USA and she is an Adjunct Faculty member in the Department of Clinical Science, College of Veterinary Medicine, Kansas State University. She has been Director of Academic Affairs at Hill’s Pet Nutrition Europe from 2011-2018. Dr. Becvarova became a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Nutrition (ACVN) in July 2007. She has been a Clinical Instructor and Clinical Assistant Professor – Veterinary Nutrition at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine (VMCVM) from 2006-2011. Dr. Becvarova completed her Master of Science degree in Biomedical and Veterinary Sciences and Nutrition Residency program at the VMCVM in 2006 and earned her DVM degree in 1999 from the University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences Brno, Czech Republic. She is a past president of the board of the ACVN, and a member of the American Academy of Veterinary Nutrition (AAVN). Dr. Becvarova conducted studies in obesity, body composition and oxidative stress. 

Organisation: Hills Pet Nutrition

Accreditation: DABVP (Feline Medicine)

Lisa Restine grew up in New Jersey and earned her Bachelor of Science in Animal Science from Rutgers University. She received her DVM degree from Western University of Health Sciences in Southern California in 2014. Dr. Restine had been practising feline medicine exclusively at a cat-only practice in San Antonio, Texas since graduation and achieved board certification with the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners in feline medicine in 2020. In 2022, Dr. Restine started work at an ER/Specialty Center and practised on both dogs and cats in an emergency setting.  However, her real passion is feline medicine, and she has dedicated many hours to lecturing other veterinarians on both a national and international level as well as being a co-editor of a veterinary feline textbook. Outside of work, Dr. Restine has a strong interest in all things active – she is often found running or hiking and is currently enjoying the challenge of training for a marathon. Caring for her five cats Ruby, Macklin, Deku, and Minerva takes up the rest of her time. Dr. Restine is passionate about feline medicine and shares her love of practice and knowledge to help improve feline care – she is excited to be a part of the Hill’s team!

Organisation: Hills Pet Nutrition

Accreditation: DAiCVIM (internal medicine)

Professor Dr. Malaika Watanabe is currently employed at IMU University as Head, Department of Veterinary Science, School of Medicine. She has vast teaching, research and clinical experience and served as academic staff of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, UPM for 14 years prior to her current appointment. She was also the head of Small Animal Medicine (wards) and internal medicine consultant at University Veterinary Hospital during her tenure. She has conducted numerous continuing education lectures related to internal medicine and has published extensively in her topic of interest, namely canine and feline infectious diseases with special emphasis on parasitic and vector-borne diseases. 

Organisation: IMU University

Accreditation: DJCVP (Pathology)

Dr. Ishida was born in 1950 in Tokyo. His father was Professor Kiichi Ishida, a veterinary pathologist at the University of Tokyo. He graduated from International Christian University in 1973 with a BA degree. He then spent three years at Nippon Veterinary and Zootechnical College, graduating with a DVM degree in 1976. His graduate studies were at the University of Tokyo, where he obtained his PhD in 1981 with research focusing on coronavirus pathology. After working at the Institute of Medical Science, University of Tokyo, as a research associate for one year, he joined the University of California, Davis as a postdoctoral fellow.

At UC Davis, he joined the Oncology Section in the Department of Surgery at the School of Veterinary Medicine, under the mentorship of Dr. Theilen and Dr. Pedersen, where he studied molecular biology and immunology for three years. He returned to Japan and became an assistant professor of clinical pathology at Nippon Veterinary and Zootechnical College in 1985. His groundbreaking research on feline AIDS earned him the first Academic Award from the Japanese Veterinary Medical Association.

Subsequently, he became a board-certified pathologist and a member of the Japanese College of Veterinary Pathologists (JCVP). He left the college as an associate professor in 1998 and joined Akasaka Animal Hospital in Tokyo as the medical director. In the same year, he founded the Japanese Board of Veterinary Practitioners (JBVP) and initiated nationwide continuing education lecture series. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, he had been educating approximately 1,000 young veterinarians every month, travelling from Hokkaido to Okinawa and extending his teaching to East Asian nations, including Taiwan, China, and Korea. After retiring JBVP in 2020, he became the Honorary Chairman of JBVP. He is also the President of Japanese Society of Feline Medicine (JSFM) and Japan Veterinary Cancer Society (JCVM). As of July 2024, he is taking over the Presidency of FASAVA.

His lectures encompass a broad spectrum of veterinary internal medicine, with special expertise in feline medicine, hematology, cytology, immunological diseases, endocrine diseases, and oncology. His ongoing clinical research focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of FIP, activated T lymphocyte therapy for malignancy, and regenerative medicine using stem cells.

Organisation: Akasaka Animal Hospital