White Cross Vets, the family-run veterinary group with 16 practices across the West Midlands and the North of England, has recruited its 200^th employee: Eilona Savage (pictured right), who joins the company's Kings Heath practice as a client care co-ordinator.

Eilona's is one of 50 new jobs created by the company in the last 12 months alone, across a range of positions including veterinary surgeons, nurses and client care co-ordinators. 

Eilona said: "White Cross Vets has an unrivalled reputation for offering exceptional pet care, as well as being recognised as a great place to work, which really appealed to me. To become the group’s 200^th employee is fantastic and I’m really looking forward to the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead."

Tim Harrison, Managing Director of White Cross Vets, said: "Welcoming 50 new team members into the White Cross family in the last 12 months is a major coup and we’re delighted to have created a 200 strong team with Eilona’s appointment. We are already planning to expand our team further over the coming months, with three new practices due to open before the end of this year, which makes it a very exciting time for us."

The British Equine Veterinary Association is encouraging veterinary practices to recognise and reward their nurses.

The initiative comes after BEVA's new nurse committee ran a survey which found a poor understanding within the profession and amongst clients of what equine nurses can do.

Nurses said they believed they could be given more responsibility and do more within their roles and that there was a lack of opportunity for progression.

BEVA President David Rendle, who is championing this initiative, said: “RVNs are a significant an asset to any equine practice.

“They have invested a lot of time and effort to become highly skilled but in some instances their significant attributes are not being utilised to the full.

“Allowing RVNs to perform the clinical tasks that they are qualified to carry out under Schedule 3 of the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966, will provide better job fulfilment and career development as well as free up veterinary surgeons to carry out other tasks, all increasing the efficiency of the veterinary team.

“I feel, and the RVN survey results would seem to confirm, that veterinary surgeons and practice managers do not appreciate how much veterinary nurses are allowed to do in equine practice.

"We all know veterinary nurses have the ability; look at what they do in small animal and human nursing, but we have felt unnecessarily constrained by Schedule 3 of the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966 and the associated RCVS guidelines.

"If you actually look at Schedule 3 it is clear that we can and should be letting our qualified equine nurses do far more. 

“There are so many things in equine practice that nurses do better than vets.

"In addition to performing clinical tasks they can add wider value; they are generally (or are perceived by clients to be!) more patient, empathetic and caring so we should utilise these skills and get nurses to take on some of the roles that take more time and require longer client interactions – discussing parasite control programmes,  running weight loss clinics, reviewing healthcare plans, making follow-up phone calls and visits to name just a few.

"Nurses can take a lot of pressure off vets and can add a significant revenue stream for the practice.” 

On the 9th February, the BEVA will be hosting an online discussion forum for all members of the practice team to discuss the role of nurses and how their skills, experience and knowledge can be better-used. 

It's free for BEVA members: https://www.beva.org.uk/Home/Events/BEVA-Events/Event-Details.aspx?eventDateId=1716 

Marie Rippingale Chair of the BEVA Nurse Committee said: “Last year’s recruitment and retention survey revealed that 50% of nurse respondents were earning less than £25,000 per annum and 48% of nurses said they were likely to look for a new job in the next two years.

"When asked their top reasons for leaving, salary was the biggest reason, and common themes on what would help the retention of nurses included salary, work-life balance and career progression.

“The review of Schedule 3 is important so we can encourage delegation of tasks to RVNs.

"This will allow RVNs to demonstrate their value and worth, earning money for the practice and achieving job satisfaction at the same time. This will contribute positively towards the current retention crisis.”

To find out more about what equine veterinary nurses can do in practice visit https://www.beva.org.uk/nurses 

Photo:  Liphook Equine Hospital.

The story of ‘Spliff' the Staffy has clinched the title of the National Office of Animal Health nationwide search for the most striking ‘it shouldn't happen to a pet' anecdote.  Submitted by Vets4Pets in Grimsby, the practice will receive a prize of £500 towards the staff Christmas party.

In a campaign to raise awareness of the importance of animal health and welfare considerations amongst pet owners and potential owners, NOAH has recently launched the new Pet Health Information website (www.pethealthinfo.org.uk) to enable them to make informed decisions about their pet's healthcare.

In Spliff's case, the website could have helped solve a number of queries. For Spliff it all started with a visit to the vet for a minor operation to cure a simple earache.

The problems started as Spliff was about to leave the practice, with a shiny new bucket collar. However, his owner explained that Spliff is a bit of a snappy dresser, and if it isn't bling, he's not interested. Despite the practice's advice, he insisted the collar was removed so he could take Spliff home to recover.

The very next day, the phone started ringing ‘Spliff's scratching his ear - we need a collar.' Far too busy to bring him round, the owner sent his girlfriend to pick it up.

Problem solved - surely? Nope. The phone continued to ring.  Spliff was ‘going nuts!' Apparently the dog was unable to walk, and was getting very distressed.

Finally, after nearly 24 hours of increasingly frantic calls, Spliff's owner brought him in. He arrived insisting that the vet came out to the car, as Spliff still couldn't walk. Not a common side effect of a minor operation on the ear, so it was a worry.

All became very clear when the vet reached the car, the ear was healing up nicely, and Spliff's paralysis was easily solved. They had put his bucket collar on the wrong way round, and every time he took a step - his front feet got trapped in the collar.  

Rather than collapse in a heap, Spliff, in one of the first sensible decisions of his life, chose not to move at all.  Mystery duly solved, Spliff went on to make a full recovery.  

Sounds like the owner should probably smoke a bit less of it.

The RCVS Standards Committee has decided to end the temporary dispensation allowing remote prescribing of prescription-only veterinary medicines on Monday 14th March 2022.

The dispensation was originally introduced during the spring 2020 lockdown to safeguard animal health and welfare, the health and safety of the veterinary team, and public health, by allowing prescriptions to be made by veterinary surgeons without their having first physically examined the animal, subject to conditions and safeguards.

The RCVS says the Committee considered the ongoing challenges posed by Covid-19 and recognised that staff absences due to isolation requirements were still causing issues.

However, given the relaxation of the requirement to work from home in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland and relaxation of restrictions generally across the UK, the Committee felt it was time to end the dispensation.

Chair of the Standards Committee, Dr Melissa Donald MRCVS, said: “The safety and wellbeing of veterinary professionals, as well as the health and welfare of the animals they care for, have remained uppermost in our minds when considering this temporary position on remote prescribing.

“We are pleased to have been able to support the professions through a very difficult time by introducing this dispensation, however, it was only ever a temporary measure and, given the relaxation of restrictions across the UK, we feel the time has come to revert to our usual guidance.

“We will continue to keep the position under review in light of any changes, including governments’ advice and regulations, as we have throughout the pandemic.”

Ceva Animal Health has launched ReprodAction, a new series of webinars to help address the problems commonly faced in bovine reproduction management.

James Husband, RCVS Specialist in Cattle Health and Reproduction, kicked off the series at the beginning of November with a live webinar for XLVet members: Assessing Fertility Records.

His presentation, which is now accessible to all large animal vets at http//onsync.digitalsamba.comn/go/ceva/ReprodAction, explores the common pitfalls and provides practical pointers for good fertility management. He discusses the limiting factors of oestrus detection, use of the calving interval as an assessor of individual fertility performance, implications of the varied definitions of conception rates, use of milk recording organisation data and the usefulness of the 21 day in calf rate.

Each webinar in the series is presented by a leading expert and has a facility for live chat and question and answer sessions. 

For further information and details of when the next ReprodAction webinar will be taking place, contact Ceva Animal Health on 01494 781510 or email cevauk@ceva.com.

Nominations are now open for the ‘Young Dairy Vet of the Year’, a recent addition to the Cream Awards: the annual dairy industry trade awards run by British Dairying magazine.  

The award, introduced in 2020 and supported by animal health company Krka UK, recognises an exceptional farm vet who has been working in the dairy industry for three to five years and who has contributed significantly to the health and wellbeing of herds under their care.  

The winner of the first award, in 2021, was Rob Hall from LLM Farm Vets in Shropshire. He said: "The sustainability of the dairy industry will remain in the spotlight for decades to come with young vets in a great position to work with dairy farmers of the future to improve the efficiency of their herds. This can be achieved, for instance, by improving nutrition, genetics and housing; by helping farmers to reduce antibiotics or wormers; and by reducing the detrimental effects of disease.”

He added: “As vets start their post-university careers, they face a steep learning curve.  Dairy vets, in particular, have a huge arsenal of practical skills to hone, as well as trying to forge relationships with farmers and colleagues. It can be tricky to strike the right balance, while finding time to pursue their own interests to keep work interesting. I’ve been lucky at LLM to have had the opportunity to work with a great team and engaged farmers.  This has enabled me to pick up the basics, as well as being able to delve deeper into the aspects of farming which interest me most. I’m extremely grateful to The Cream Awards for recognising this and to KRKA for its support of the Young Dairy Vet Award.”

Charlotte Read (pictured right), Krka Key Account Manager – Farm, added: “Krka is proud to support the recognition of rising stars within the dairy veterinary profession and hope that their achievements will inspire many of the next generation of veterinary surgeons to embrace the rewarding life of the farm vet.”

Full details of all of the CREAM Awards and the nomination process is available at: https://creamawards.uk 

The European Commission has agreed with the BSAVA and BVA that controls must be maintained to keep the UK free from the tapeworm Echinococcus multilocularis, and adopted a regulation that will permit pre-movement treatment for dogs travelling to listed Member States (i.e. the UK, Ireland, Finland and Malta).

In June Defra announced that the UK's derogation from European pet travel rules, which allows additional protection for the UK against rabies, ticks and tapeworms, would end on 31 December 2011. The movement rules on rabies and ticks will now be harmonised with the rest of Europe.

However, due to the significant public health risk posed by Echinococcus multilocularis, the BVA and BSAVA (working with Defra, the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe [FVE] and colleagues in Veterinary Ireland) continued to lobby the European Commission for controls on tapeworms to be maintained.

The regulation will ensure that a dog must be treated by a veterinary surgeon 24 to 120 hours (1-5 days) before entering one of the listed countries.

The BVA and BSAVA say they made a scientific case for a treatment window of 24-48 hours, but accept that the Commission had to find a compromise that would assist pet owners travelling during national holidays.

Harvey Locke, President of the BVA said: "This has been a long process but the BVA and BSAVA put forward the strong scientific case for the UK to maintain tapeworm controls and we are delighted that the European Commission has adopted this resolution.

"In our role as guardians of public health, vets were deeply concerned that the removal of tapeworm controls would see the introduction of EM to the UK and Ireland.

"Although relatively benign in dogs, the resulting disease in humans - alveolar echinococcosis - is an invasive, cancer-like cystic stage of the parasite, and is invariably fatal if not treated.

"The next stage of our lobbying will be to ensure that Member States and MEPs from across Europe support the UK's case for the additional controls."

Andrew Ash, President of BSAVA said: "Echinococcus multilocularis is a significant public health threat and we have worked hard to ensure the European Commission understands the potential impact of allowing this zoonotic disease to enter our country.

"The BVA and BSAVA will continue to promote the best possible health and welfare advice for pet owners taking their animals abroad. Our advice to owners is to speak to a vet as early as possible to make sure pets are protected from all diseases and parasites encountered abroad."

The RCVS Council has approved a pilot of a new outcomes-based approach to measuring and recording continuing professional development (CPD).

In June the College held a six-week consultation with the profession, asking for opinions on its proposal for an outcomes-based approach to CPD which would concentrate less on hours logged and more on interactive, reflective learning and measuring the impact that CPD has on the individual’s practice and patient health outcomes.

The proposed model for CPD had four key components: planning, doing, recording and reflecting. While an overall majority of the 3,357 people who responded to the College’s consultation agreed with the proposed changes to the CPD requirement, certain elements received less support than others. The lowest amount of support was received for the ‘reflection’ component with 35% of respondents disagreeing with it.

The RCVS Education Committee therefore decided that a pilot of a new outcomes-based approach should be held during 2017 with a group of volunteers, before making a recommendation to Council.

Professor Stephen May, who chaired the Working Group that developed the CPD proposals, said: "Because of the concern voiced by members of the profession responding to the consultation we decided that, at this stage, it would not be appropriate for the RCVS to move straight into this new way of doing CPD but that it would be more appropriate to hold a pilot. The idea is that we will explore some of the concerns around reflection and around the extra time and paperwork that people felt that a more reflective approach may lead to.

"We have taken all these comments into account and are now seeking to work with individual volunteers on this pilot. It is important to note that we are not only looking for volunteers who agree with what we are doing but also those who are apprehensive about it or even some who see it as something they do not support. We want to explore the full range of views and how we can move forward in changing our approach to CPD."

The pilot is expected to be launched in February next year and the College is now looking for volunteers who both support the proposals and have a ‘healthy scepticism’ about them. Volunteers will receive help and support throughout the trial and will also be invited to attend an introductory CPD meeting at the RCVS offices in February.

If you are interested in volunteering, contact Jenny Soreskog-Turp, RCVS CPD Officer, on cpd@rcvs.org.uk.

Further information, including the CPD Policy Working Party’s response to the consultation and the full interview with Stephen May, is available at www.rcvs.org.uk/CPDpilot. 

The British Equine Veterinary Association (BEVA), British Equestrian (BEF) and the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) are working together to assess and minimise the impact of a shortage of equine influenza vaccine.

They say that they've been aware of minor interruptions to the supply of such vaccines throughout 2022.

However, a significant, pan-European logistical problem being experienced by Boehringer Ingelheim has raised the prospect of a further reduction in supplies in the coming months.

BEVA is liaising with the three vaccine manufacturers to quantify the impact of the shortage and to consider solutions, both to minimise the threat to equine health and to prevent disruption to equestrian competition.

Marc Laemmer, equine business head at Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health, said: “We are currently experiencing a European-wide supply issue relating to our equine influenza and influenza-tetanus vaccines. 

"This has been caused by unexpected issues following the implementation of a technology upgrade and is not a product or quality issue.

"This means that some vet practices will have difficulty obtaining sufficient influenza vaccines and there may be a shortage in the UK market. 

"We understand the importance of these vaccines to equine welfare, and we are continuing to work tirelessly to find a solution so that we can return to normal supply as soon as possible.”

Amanda Melvin, equine business manager at MSD Animal Health, said: “Based on prior demand, MSD’s equine vaccines Equilis Prequenza and Equilis Prequenza Te are in full supply.

"MSD have taken steps to protect as many horses as possible at this time.

"We will continue to supply existing customers with the available MSD stock on ‘allocation’ and, where possible, to allocate stock to additional customers. Allocations are being made to our veterinary customers based on their historical demand which we believe is the most efficient way to manage the available supplies.”

Rebecca Cabrejas, equine business unit manager at Zoetis, said: “Demand for our vaccines currently exceeds what we can supply.

"Whilst we have adequate stocks to fulfil current customers’ orders unfortunately, we are not in a position to be able to supply new customers at this time.

"We will continue to work with BEVA to limit the impact of the current shortages.”

The Codes were approved by RCVS Council and the Veterinary Nurses Council earlier this year, following a lengthy consultation and review process that began in 2009, and will replace the existing Guides to Professional Conduct.

The College says the new Codes are principles-based, easily accessible and, at 16 pages long compared to the 50-page Guides, much more concise. They bring the College's guidance into line with the codes of conduct of other regulatory bodies, and help to describe those professional responsibilities that are fundamental to veterinary surgeons' and veterinary nurses' practice.

To expand on and clarify these professional responsibilities, an additional 27 chapters of supporting guidance have been published on the RCVS website, which also consolidate and update all existing RCVS guidance for veterinary professionals.

Both Codes set out five principles of practice: professional competence; honesty and integrity; independence and impartiality; client confidentiality and trust; and, professional accountability.

The veterinary surgeons' Code features an update to the declaration made on admission to the profession and, for the first time, the veterinary nurses' Code includes a declaration to be made on professional registration.

Among the professional responsibilities introduced in the Codes are: mandatory recording of continuing professional development; a mandatory professional development phase for new veterinary surgeons and period of supervised practice for registered veterinary nurses (RVNs) returning to practice after a break; a Performance Protocol; and, notification to the RCVS of any matter that may affect fitness to practise, including convictions (although this will require further consideration by the College).

For the first time, mandatory clinical governance has been introduced, and minimum practice standards have also been incorporated, at equivalence to the core standards set out in the RCVS Practice Standards Scheme.

A pocket-sized hard copy of the Code will be posted to all vets and RVNs shortly, which will include references to where the supporting guidance and further information can be found on the RCVS website. The online versions - at www.rcvs.org.uk/vetcode and www.rcvs.org.uk/vncode - are fully searchable by keyword, and PDF versions will soon be available to download. A digital version is also being explored, to enable veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses to access the Codes and supporting guidance on smart phones and tablets.

Although only registered veterinary nurses have agreed to abide by the VN Code of Professional Conduct, the College hopes that all veterinary nurses will consider it a useful benchmark of professional standards.

Dr Jerry Davies, RCVS President, said: "I am delighted that this significant piece of work has come to fruition. The RCVS has shown that, despite aged legislation, the Codes will, through imaginative interpretation of the Veterinary Surgeons Act, ensure the public and their animals continue to receive the level of professional service they have come to expect from veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses in the UK."

Wiley has announced the joint online publication of a special issue of 22 ophthalmology papers from Equine Veterinary Journal, Equine Veterinary Education and Veterinary Ophthalmology.

Clinical equine ophthalmology: The current state of the art brings together papers on some of the most significant advances in equine clinical ophthalmology into a single issue to make them more readily available to a wider audience. The issue contains information of direct relevance to all sectors of the veterinary profession from general practitioners and specialists to researchers, surgeons and students, covering common diseases, surgical procedures and outcomes.

The new publication was devised and compiled by a panel of guest editors comprising Mary Lassaline, member of the Veterinary Ophthalmology Editorial board and Veterinary Ophthalmologist in the Department of Surgical and Radiological Sciences at UC-Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, California, David A. Wilkie, Editor of Veterinary Ophthalmology and Professor at Veterinary Clinical Sciences Comparative Ophthalmology Ohio State University, Tim Mair, Editor of Equine Veterinary Education based at Bell Equine Veterinary Clinic, Kent and Celia M Marr, Editor of Equine Veterinary Journal, based at Rossdales, Newmarket.

Mary Lassaline said: "The goal was to provide broad access to the most current information applicable to every stratum of the equine veterinary profession. Subsequently, a salient feature is that many of the papers included are collaborations between veterinary ophthalmologists with a special interest in horses, equine practitioners with a special interest in ophthalmology, private practitioners and those in academia, and academicians from different institutions."

Subjects covered include seven papers on new approaches to the diagnosis and treatment of ulcerative and non-ulcerative keratitis in the horse. There are three articles on novel approaches to corneal surgery and a further three on corneal neoplasia. Six papers provide valuable data regarding long-term outcomes following surgical intervention for Equine Recurrent Uveitis (ERU), glaucoma, and cataracts.  Finally, three articles present new information regarding retinal and orbital disease.

Professor Celia Marr, Editor of the Equine Veterinary Journal said: "The key purpose of the EVJ is to disseminate information to help the enhancement of specialist knowledge at every level of the veterinary profession. By collating the most important and up-to-date ophthalmology research into one easy resource the new special issue does exactly that."

The ophthalmology special issue is available free online at: http://bit.ly/1bi0RG0

The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons has produced bookmarks for accredited practices to give clients, which explain the RCVS Practice Standards Scheme (PSS).

Lizzie Lockett, Head of the RCVS Communications Department said: "A key part of the PSS is helping practices explain their accreditation to clients - and the bookmarks are a simple and eye-catching promotional tool for this. We hope they will have the advantage over conventional leaflets of being kept, and used, by clients, meaning the accredited-practice message is more likely to be taken on board. Although many people are using e-books these days, the traditional book - and bookmark - still has a place." 

All accredited practices may order a free sample of 100 bookmarks, and a further 400 free bookmarks are available to practices recently renewing or receiving accreditation. More bookmarks may also be ordered from the RCVS, as well as the new accredited-practice logos. To find out more, or download an order form, practices can visit www.rcvs.org.uk/PSSpromo.