PDSA

RE: PDSA

Clive Ansell — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 14:59:50 GMT

I've done a fair few locums for the PDSA, and for Vets-Now working within PDSA premises, albeit not for a long time now. I enjoyed my time with them (less so with vets-now), and overall it was a positive experience. If I was looking for a full time employed position I would certainly work for them again.

I would echo what others have said; great for surgical experience, limited for medicine, full on busy clinics but a properly structured working day with set working hours as per the WTD and compulsory breaks etc. Pay as a locum was on a par with private practice. No OOH work, and some weekend days on a rota with time off in lieu.

There was no internal blood work other than running a pcv and a glucometer. There was I believe a limited budget for external lab work, but in practice I found I could send blood off to the lab if clinical justified ( a TT4 (only) to prove hyperthyroidism would be fine, but a full battery of tests and blood gases for a cba out of the question!)

Although the medicine side was limited and sometimes frustrating, they did offer an adequate level of basic care, battlefield medicine if you like. I found it helped hone my consultation and clinical examination skills - have to rely more on clinical acumen rather than blood testing everything than comes through the door.

Another big plus is that they utilise their RVN's well; there were nurse clinics for things like poc's, nails and anal glands. Walk in "emergencies" would be triaged by nurses and sent away if not (that's most of them). Nurses would also carry out small procedures as allowed.

The killers for me would be:

1) the clients; most are fine they're just poor, but a minority are verminous, parasitic, abusive and obnoxious sh1te. I was finding it increasing hard to be civil around bolshy "I know my rights" type benefit claimants wearing new designer clothes, driving new cars and parading £800 handbags and £2000 pedigree puppies.

2) politics and management: some of their policies were ludicrous, but it my well be different now. carrying out endless C-sections on endless SBT's for skanky back street breeders without speying must have been by far the stupidest; a massive waste of resources not to mention the welfare concern with these bitches subjected to repeated breeding. Another was not making neutering a compulsory requirement for registration (for the pets, not the owners!), as well as disallowing the registration of expensive pedigree dogs. The almoning process needed updating too; clients would roll in with a dog belonging to their second cousin 3 times removed claiming it as their own, often not knowing its age or even its name sometimes!

While local management, colleagues, svs's and the working team were fantastic; support and back up from head office was poor to say the least in the event of difficult clients or situations. There was a tendency to side with the awkward client rather than support staff citing the public relations card as the get out. May have improved, I don't know.

RE: PDSA

joanne mcallister — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 11:03:32 GMT

I've worked in several PDSA clinics throughout the UK and enjoyed my time in most of them. Things might have changed in the years since, but I found there to be quite a variation in facilities and size of clinics, from small 2-man clinics to large multi-vet ones. I agree with all the advantages noted, and would add that there is some career progression possible (from VO to SVO and beyond), and they were also very supportive of CPD and encouraged specialisation. Certainly a good way to gain surgical experience

RE: PDSA

grumpyoldman — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 00:42:28 GMT

Not been there myself but known many who have , 1. pay good 2. finish every night on time 3. lots of surgery 4. No ones going to click on complain if something goes pear shaped . 5. Some poor people are nice but most are just poor. 6. depressing lack of compliance and follow up .

RE: PDSA

David Mills — Mon, 05 Dec 2016 13:36:30 GMT

What everyone else has already said.

Medical work-ups are tricky in charities. I believe the PDSA used to have (and may still) a monthly external lab budget which limited blood work that could be done, and many did not used to have internal lab machines. This may have changed though.

There will be lots of surgery.

I've never quite got the preventative side of things from a PDSA perspective - they charge above many private practices for spays, and yet run pet health checks and the like.

The other thing to consider is that they're quite religious about 9-5 days and lunch breaks, though as said there will be a lot packed into a day. They pay relatively well for the charity sector too.

RE: PDSA

Virginia Campbell — Sun, 04 Dec 2016 21:57:50 GMT

I only locumed there for a week 10 years ago so not best placed but anyway:

Advantages

- don't have to spend any time/angst having the money conversations

- clients often no jobs, so can come for rechecks any time (taxi or lift permitting)

- no shows for said rechecks actually not bad, as they don't have to pay

- quite a lot of nice appreciative clients

- big surgery caseload; don't have to worry that someone else could do it better (you offer referral, they usually can't afford it so you explain the limitations of whatever is available in house and crack on)

- nursing staff were excellent

Disadvantages

- demand is high so you work very fast. When I was there 15min appts but all double booked, so 7.5min. So eg skin cases had to be worked up in bits- " here's some ear stuff, shampoo and pred, feed Harringtons not Bakers, come back at 2 week intervals for the next few months so we can explain in 3 minute sections about environmental allergens and long term maintenance". Mind you when I was there the head vet was sick, the other had just left and they had been recruiting for a third anyway, so the other locum and I turned up new to the place on Monday morning to do the work of 3 vets

- some gems of clients like the one with a suspect parvo pup who looked me up and down and said, "Not being funny love but how long have you been a vet, I paid four hundred pound for this Akita pup and I don't want him to die, like".

- don't watch clients like the above one get their "here's what it would have cost" pretend bill. I've actually seen them mentally decide it isn't good enough quality loo roll and toss it straight in the bin in front of the receptionists.

- try not to grind your teeth when clients come in with a couple of expensively professionally groomed pedigree dogs

- get used to working without much of a history from those clients who are strangers to "their" dog (it's their housing benefit that got them in the door, holding the lead of their granddaughter's boyfriend's dog).

RE: PDSA

Francisco Gomez — Sun, 04 Dec 2016 20:37:50 GMT

Ive worked as a locum in PDSA. If you want to do some real work and learn surgery, the place is great. Do it! Im not saying that there isnt responsibility, but the fact that client can't afford private surgery, allows you to do the best you can without the constraint and push for referral.

I don't work for them right now because of a moral disagreement. Unfortunately, the fact that preventive medicine is to be paid for, causes clientele to only seek advice when a preventable problem has became an emergency, so the work can be done for free. Ie. Your bitches won't be spayed unless they are presented with a pyo.