Perdi Welsh

Tail docking: a professional dilemma for veterinary nurses

In the UK, there are specific regulations that cover tail docking in accordance with the Animal Welfare Act 2006. These are The Docking of Working Dogs' Tails (England) Regulations 2007 and The...

Leading organisational change in the workplace: a review of the literature

Owen (2011) defines leadership as an individual's behaviour, rather than the position they hold. Historically, effecting change was identified as a key function of leaders (Kotter, 1996). More...

Using the ability model to design and implement a patient care plan

As described by Can and Erol (2012) NCPs provide an organised framework for the knowledge, thoughts and actions that nurses bring into patient care. Their structure is based on a model of nursing care...

Veterinary nurses creating a unique approach to patient care: part two

While published reflections on the design and implementation of care plans based on the OJAM (2007) almost uniformly identify the advantages of utilising this framework for planning patient care, they...

Veterinary nurses creating a unique approach to patient care: part one

The medical model derived from the human medical practice focuses on the illness or malfunction of a particular part or system of the body (Faulkner, 1985). The treatment thus focuses on just that...

Professional and legal issues: surgical misadventure

In the scenario (Box 1) there are several issues to consider. The primary concern is the validity of the action of euthanasia by the RVN, as authorised by the veterinarian, due to someone other than...

A case-based approach to professional and legal issues

The introduction of the non-statutory register for veterinary nurses (VNs) in 2007 was a milestone in the recognition of the VN both within practice and in the eyes of the general public. Although...

Whistle-blowing explained: to be or not to be a whistle-blower, that is the question

It is widely accepted that professionals have responsibility to demonstrate professional integrity and behave in ways which are transparent and deserving of the public's trust (Blass, 2010; Royal...

Anniversaries and achievements

‘Follow effective action with quiet reflection. From the quiet reflection will come even more effective action’..

Writing patient care reports: author guidelines for VNs part 2

Veterinary nurses intending on writing patient care reports suitable for publication are advised to adopt certain academic conventions for the writing and formatting of their work. In particular, the...