The Veterinary Nurse – now part of the UK-VET group of titles – is the leading international peer-reviewed journal for veterinary nurses. It publishes evidence-based clinical, educational and practical articles, in addition to the latest nurse-led veterinary research. It promotes gold standard care by supporting readers’ continuing professional development and by sharing best practice worldwide.
Infection control is of paramount importance when placing and maintaining tubes, lines and drains in veterinary patients. This article covers the most commonly placed instruments in veterinary patients and how to care for them at a high standard....
Achieve all your CPD: The Veterinary Nurse produces an extensive range for CPD content, supporting subscribers to complete the mandatory requirement of 45 hours’ CPD over a 3-year period. Premium and website subscribers can access our latest and archive modules, a selection of which can be found below. Subscribe Today
There are numerous endo and ectoparasites that can affect domestic rabbits. Many of these may not have a clinical effect on the rabbit and treatment may not therefore be required. However, for those that cause clinical signs it is imperative that early diagnosis and correct treatment is implemented, since any delay in this can have serious consequences for the rabbit's health and welfare, as well as human health, as many are zoonotic.
Clinical audit is about measuring clinical effectiveness, it is part of a quality improvement process with the goal of continuously improving the quality of patient care. Veterinary nurses play a crucial role in preparing for, setting up and running clinical audits, so it is essential that they have a good understanding of the audit process. Thorough preparation for the audit should ensure a successful outcome. This involves choosing a suitable subject which is relevant to the team and measureable, and then deciding whether an outcome, process or significant event audit is the best course of action. Planning how to collect the data, analysing the data once the practice has it and most importantly acting on the results and making any necessary changes are all vital to ensure the practice gets maximum benefit from the clinical audit. A re-audit once changes have been implemented is also a crucial part of the process. The use of audit to benchmark the practice performance against other practices is discussed and there are examples of both outcome and process audits. Introducing simple nursing audits can allow the team to rapidly see the value of the auditing process and real differences made to patient care.
Wound management can be a challenging and confusing subject. With numerous products at our disposal and ever-changing advances in wound management techniques, it can become overwhelming trying to make the best clinical decision to suit patients. With the increasing awareness and concern of antibiotic resistance, and a holistic approach to veterinary medicine being sought by clients, the new and old ways of treating wounds are under scrutiny. Throughout various points in history honey has been linked to wound management, possessing desirable properties that can provide osmotic debridement, anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial effects that are beneficial during the inflammatory phase of healing. This article aims to discuss how manuka honey's properties can best be utilised within modern veterinary practice.
Tea tree oil is an essential oil from the Australian tea tree <italic>Melaleuca alternifolia</italic> and is sometimes promoted as a natural or herbal treatment for fleas in pets. Although products containing low concentrations of tea tree oil are not expected to be a problem in pets, the use of pure tea tree oil directly on the skin is potentially very serious in pets and should never be used. Exposure may cause ataxia, salivation, lethargy, coma and tremor. Dermal exposure to tea tree oil may also result in dermatitis as the oil is irritant to skin. Even a few drops of pure tea tree oil applied dermally can cause clinical signs, and deaths have occurred in pets treated with pure tea tree oil. Treatment includes dermal decontamination and supportive care.
Within a healthcare setting, effective team work is achieved when team members understand, believe...
This case report presents a 6-month-old, male, Miniature Longhaired Dachshund diagnosed with...
