Supporting clients and improving outcomes through diabetic nurse clinics

Veterinary nurse (VN) led diabetes clinics will create more available veterinary time, increasing capacity for revenue from VNs and veterinary surgeons (VS), use VN knowledge and skills to promote job satisfaction and staff retention. They will also address real concerns of diabetic pet owners through provision of personal support. Two surveys from Niessen et al (2010; 2012) found that many of the most significant negative considerations for owners related more to the owner's quality of life than to the pet's: concerns around injecting insulin did not feature in the top 15 in either study (Table 1). Both surveys highlighted the lack of veterinary advice or support, with respondents feeling their veterinarian had a poor understanding or knowledge, particularly around diet and home monitoring of blood glucose (BG). A more recent study by Albuquerque et al (2020) also found advice lacking regarding how to recognise an unstable diabetic, diabetic remission, dietary change, hypoglycaemia or home blood glucose monitoring (HBGM), and some owners received no training or supervision around injection technique. The authors highlighted the importance of involving the entire veterinary team in the education of owners, with more use of veterinary nurses to address these gaps. Niessen's study (2012) concludes that there is no ‘average diabetic pet owner’, reminding veterinary professionals to take a tailored approach to each individual pet owner about the specifics of managing this disease, rather than relying on a standard protocol to suit all.