The Veterinary Nurse

Pre-anaesthesia preparation in cats and dogs – recent evidence

Although this paper focuses on pre-anaesthesia preparation, it is important to understand factors that affect complications related to anaesthesia. Several studies have been published determining the...

Figure 4. Maintenance on oxygen and inhalant gas delivered via a T-piece and a tight-fitting mask.

Anaesthesia in small rodents

The pre-anaesthetic phase comprises a thorough pre-anaesthetic evaluation to include a clinical history and a physical examination, as well as selecting the appropriate pre-anaesthetic drugs and...

Figure 1. Multimodal anaesthesia, or total intravenous anaesthesia, can be administered by syringe drivers at set rates while being closely monitored by appropriately trained personnel.

Working towards a greener future in veterinary anaesthesia

The climate crisis is the largest and most prolonged threat to global health ever described (Costello et al, 2009). The rising temperatures documented over recent centuries are attributed largely to...

Nerve blocks on forelimbs and hindlimbs as part of a multimodal analgesia plan

Table 1 shows the different local anaesthetic drugs and the doses that can be used in locoregional blocks. A combination of these local anaesthetics and an opioid, can be used to form part of a...

Endotracheal intubation of small exotic mammals

Small exotic mammals are prone to stress in hospital environments and should be given time to become accustomed to their unfamiliar surroundings. These species have high sympathetic tone that can...

Figure 1. Diagram of anatomical features associated with endotracheal intubation.

Endotracheal intubation of the dog and cat

Intubation of the trachea is one of many ways of ensuring the provision of oxygen to the respiratory system but is more usually used primarily to ‘secure the airway’; meaning to prevent foreign...

Figure 2. Surgical Safety checklist in use at time out.

Surgical safety checklists from concept to implementation

Human error is not predictable, many factors affect our ability to perform at our best. The full integration of the surgical safety checklist to the usual working practice of the hospital would ensure...

How to reduce anaesthetic risk in geriatric patients

Hospitals should create not only anaesthetic drug protocols for geriatric patients, but also pre and postoperative care instructions for staff and pet owners to ensure high-quality care and monitoring...

An evidence-based approach to workplace anaesthesia training. Part 2

When a SVN enters a workplace, they are expected to begin to ‘put into action’ what they have learned in the classroom. This is no simple transition (Konkola et al, 2007). Students may struggle to...

The potential benefit of local anaesthetics during routine ovariohysterectomy

Woolf (2011) defined the three types of pain as: neurological, this stems from the nervous system because of abnormal function; nociceptive, this is a result of a noxious stimulus damaging the...

The use of an evidence-based approach for teaching student veterinary nurses during workplace anaesthesia training. Part 1

Key to helping students learn is to understand them as learners: how they learn and the difficulties they encounter. SVNs are ‘adult learners’ (Knowles 1984a; Knowles et al, 2005), which means they...