Education

Modelling compassionate veterinary nursing care – eight steps towards a more compassionate approach to patients, their owners and oneself

There is a growing body of evidence to suggest that compassion is not some ‘woolly add-on’ we can afford to dispense with in our hectic, resource limited times: it is the creator and hallmark of...

A compassionate journey part 2: the pet's passing

Veterinary professionals have reported having had little training on euthanasia at veterinary school. Comments include:.

Preserving the ‘passion’ in compassionate nursing care

Veterinary nurses want to be able to care for their patients with humanity and give patients the same kind of care they would want for their own companions. For many staff, such a desire may have been...

A compassionate journey part 1: preparing for and nearing end-of-life

One of the authors recently experienced the loss of her elderly and much loved dog. When calling her clinic to cancel her pet's vaccination reminder, she was asked in a brisk tone, ‘and the animal's...

The chronic illness management plan

The role of the veterinary nurse within the veterinary practice is clearly explained by Orpet and Welsh (2011) who discuss both the role of the veterinary nurse, and the associated responsibility...

A cancer diagnosis — what now?

Clients need time to adjust to the idea that their companion may have a terminal illness. Chun and Garrett (2007) suggested that small ‘sound bites’ work well when advising an owner that there may be...

Legalities of treating wildlife in UK veterinary practice

The Wildlife and Countryside Act (WCA) is still the main piece of legislation covering the protection and management of wild animals and plants in the UK. There have been several amendments and since...

Bare below the elbows — is there any evidence?

HAIs are infections which a patient acquires during a period of hospitalisation. They can take on many forms including urinary tract infections, surgical site infections and infections associated with...

Ethical, legal and professional implications of student veterinary nurses working lone shifts

According to Rollin (2006) ethics are a set of rules or standards that govern the conduct of a person or persons who are members of a profession or culture. They include the reasons behind...

Identifying and controlling hazards to operating theatre personnel

The vast majority of sharps incidents in human surgery occur in the operating theatre and most are due to scalpel and suture needle injuries, which is not surprising given that these are the two most...

The euthanasia of aggressive dogs

Although there are no veterinary specific ethical frameworks, there are several frameworks used in human medicine that can be applied to veterinary medicine. Of these frameworks, perhaps the most...

Using fluoroscopy safely

Fluoroscopy uses x-ray radiation to produce moving or still images of the patient. In this respect many of the radiation protection issues have been addressed elsewhere in articles concerning x-ray...