Gerry Henry's Groups Activities

I would really appreciate your thoughts on the idea of a standalone diagnostic imaging centre.

Judith Joyce — Mon, 10 Feb 2025 12:22:19 GMT

Afternoon all,

As part of my MBA I am doing a capstone project on whether there would be uptake for a standalone diagnostic imaging centre. I've inserted a diagram to show it would work and the question I am asking is whether vets would use it if they didn't have the caseload, capital or inclination to have the full diagnostic imaging set up in house.

It's a common model in human medicine but a bit different to how vet diagnostic imaging is procured. It needs a conurbation to function so that there are enough 'feeder primary care practices (PCPs) but it should operate more cheaply than small to medium sized practices.

I would specifically like to know whether you would consider it, and whether pet owners would use it. Also what factors are likely to influence vets and pet owners when/if using it.

I had originally thought of MRI and CT then thought it could include Xray, ultrasound etc.

I also wondered about ownership - external company, individual PCP, PCP co-operative?

But if you had any other comments I would be very happy to hear them.

It's a project, not a business plan! I would really be very grateful for your thoughts

.www.vetsurgeon.org/.../7802.Standalone-DI-centre-_2D00_-hub-and-spoke.pdf

BBC investigation into pressure on vets to meet targets

Cinzia Gandini — Tue, 15 Apr 2025 10:09:44 GMT

I'm not sure owning so many practices is actually business efficient is it not that they can incur in big financial problems?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c62zzegvk33o

Has anyone here had a threat from IVC?

Arlo Guthrie — Wed, 12 Mar 2025 12:50:52 GMT

Just back from a few days pretending to be Lawrence of Arabia, and whilst my back was turned ...

https://www.vetsurgeon.org/b/veterinary-news/posts/ivc-issues-threat-to-independent-veterinary-practices

Gobsmacked.

Daylight robbery ?

Gerry Henry — Wed, 02 Apr 2025 18:02:11 GMT

If the College succeed in marginalising veterinary representation on Council to the point where we’re more or less irrelevant, we will have lost control of the considerable assets our predecessors accumulated over more than a century. Since this exceeds £25 millions (including property) should we be concerned ?

RCVS leaving X social media platform

David Bentley — Thu, 23 Jan 2025 20:22:33 GMT

I’ve just read in the Vet Record today that the RCVS has quit the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) in the interests of “safety” of people viewing the content it posts . “Our decision was carefully considered and reflects our commitment to the safety and wellbeing of our audience “

Is this just another example of how a certain mindset has infiltrated our institutions? If there are some people who “don’t feel safe” on X they can still use Facebook for RCVS content. So why is that people who can cope with reading different opinions on X will no longer be able to use it to access RCVS content?

Do we really want to be governed by the GMC ?

Gerry Henry — Sat, 15 Feb 2025 12:23:02 GMT

Do we really want to be governed by the GMC ? Is this a norm we should be following ?

Governance and the RCVS. No see, no hear, no give a monkey's what the membership think.

Where are you on assisted dying?

Arlo Guthrie — Wed, 13 Nov 2024 09:24:44 GMT

[quote user="Lucy Fleming"]I agree with Miriam that a lot of our patients have inadequate analgesia[/quote]

Tangent of: RE: Why are so many pets dying without any pain relief?

Rightly or wrongly, I would expect most vets to be in favour of assisted dying for humans.

Is anyone here NOT in favour.

And do you think I am right in saying that palliative care (analgesia) can only do so much, ie that even with the best palliative care, there are those who will die a dreadful, painful death.

Open letter to the College NOT to move to an appointed council.

Gerry Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2024 21:02:22 GMT

Open letter to the College NOT to move to an appointed council drafted by the PVA. If you are interested (and please be interested) you can email Ian McGill here - iain.mcgill@pva.vet

Who's to blame for the racist riots?

Francisco Gomez — Wed, 07 Aug 2024 17:01:45 GMT

Racist thugs are taking to the streets because 'enough is enough'.

It's clear that the extreme left is to blame because this started as soon as Labour got to power. Right? RIGHT?

PS I wont ve buying a Tesla anytime soon

Do we love dogs too much?

Arlo Guthrie — Fri, 09 Aug 2024 16:21:44 GMT

https://www.vetsurgeon.org/b/veterinary-news/posts/dog-s-trust-research-reveals-we-may-love-our-dogs-too-much

Discuss! (comment part at the end).

Should RCVS Council be elected or appointed?

Arlo Guthrie — Mon, 10 Jun 2024 13:20:27 GMT

I went to the presentation at BVA Live, and heard Sue Paterson make the case.

I must say, I found the case for an appointed Council to be compelling.

I reported it here: https://www.vetsurgeon.org/b/veterinary-news/posts/rcvs-launches-consultation-on-how-the-profession-should-be-governed

But enough of what I think. What do you think?!

I'm going to share a short film of Sue's main points shortly, and for those who are interested in the future governance of the profession, you can watch a webinar on it tomorrow evening:

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/ensuring-good-governance-tickets-920243973497

and there is further info here: https://www.rcvs.org.uk/news-and-views/our-consultations/ensuring-good-governance/

(Cinzia Gandini as promised! )

RCVS launches consultation on how the profession should be governed

Arlo Guthrie — Mon, 10 Jun 2024 11:45:00 GMT

The RCVS has launched a consultation about how the profession should, in the future, be governed.

The consultation is open to veterinary surgeons, nurses, students, and the public.

One of the main - and most controversial - proposals in the consultation, which was unveiled by RCVS President Sue Patterson at BVA Live last week, is that the elected councils would be replaced by an independent merit-and-skills appointment-based system.

Sue discussed the main benefits of an appointment-based system at BVA Live:

An appointment-based system is more accessible - anyone can apply and the process is less daunting and potentially off-putting than the 'hell' of elections by social media, which are causing the College to 'miss out on so much talent.'
People are currently elected to Council on a bit of a false premise: that with their opinion-based manifestos, they are able to represent the electorate. They are not. They are there to be representative of the profession.
An appointment based system allows the College to select a more representative group on Council, including people from all over the UK and people who are representative of different areas of the profession, such as new graduates, production animal vets and people from the public health centre.
Appointed candidates, selected for their skills and experience, should be more able to hit the ground running when they start on Council, where currently it can take time to get new Council members up to speed.

Other proposed changes include:

to have parity or near parity of laypeople and members of the profession on Council, to assure the public that the RCVS, as the regulator, is not ‘setting and marking its own homework’.
to build in flexibility to allow veterinary paraprofessionals which have been identified as requiring regulation by the RCVS, such as veterinary technicians, musculoskeletal therapists, clinical animal behaviourists and equine dental technicians and cattle foot trimmers to be members of RCVS Council.
to separate the Chair of RCVS Council from the presidency, so that the Chair of Council, also selected for their skills and ability, would remain in post for longer than the presidential term, offering greater continuity.
to remove Veterinary Schools Council appointees and instead ensure there is an appropriate level of educationalist expertise on the RCVS Education Committee and on RCVS Council via the independent appointment process.
to reduce the size of VN Council from 14 to 12 members in line with regulatory norms and to ensure that there is a focus on strategy and governance while maintaining a broad range of knowledge and experience.

The good governance proposals are part of the College’s overall legislative reform agenda in which it is seeking to replace the 1966 Veterinary Surgeons Act with new and more modern, flexible and forward-looking legislation, which would expand the regulatory remit of the College to encompass veterinary practice premises and paraprofessionals, while empowering veterinary nurses and creating a new fitness to practise system.

Sue said: “The current governance structure of the RCVS is set by the VSA and updating our governance systems is a vital prerequisite to getting new primary legislation, as the outdated and out-of-step nature of our current arrangements will be clear to see.

“Governance may not be the most exciting topic, but it is the foundation on which all other aspects of the College’s work rests.

"As a professional regulator with animal health and welfare at our heart, the RCVS has a duty to ensure that our arrangements best serve the public on whose behalf we are entrusted to regulate and uphold veterinary standards, while still maintaining veterinary input in all our decision-making processes.

“We believe these good governance proposals help us meet this mission, ensuring that we are bringing our governance in line with regulatory norms, while still recognising our unique role as a dual regulator and royal college.

"The proposals would also help us get the best talent with the right skillsets and experience to serve on RCVS Council, VN Council and our committees, drawing on both laypeople and the broad sweep of the veterinary professions.

“We acknowledge that there has been some disquiet over the fact that, under these proposals, we would no longer be holding the annual elections to either RCVS Council or VN Council.

"However, we believe that an independent, fair and skills-based appointment process would be a superior way of selecting the membership of RCVS Council and VN Council than the elections which, unfortunately, the vast majority of the veterinary professions do not currently engage in, and which risk creating the impression that the RCVS is some sort of representative organisation.

“We look forward to hearing the considered views of the professions and public regarding our good governance proposals and will carefully review the feedback we receive.”

Belinda Andrews-Jones RVN, current Chair of VN Council, added: “In many ways VN Council is ahead of the curve in terms of governance reform with a smaller number of members and two independently-appointed veterinary nurse members – of which I am one – as well as appointed lay members.

“I can personally vouch for the robust nature of the application and independent appointment process for VN Council and how it took into account what I had to offer to the role in terms of my skills, my knowledge and my experience.

“I would like to thank my fellow members of VN Council, including my elected peers, for their positive engagement with the good governance proposals and their recognition that these reforms aren’t about reducing scrutiny of the College or the amount of challenge to its decisions, but about improving outcomes for the public, their animals and the professions at large.”

The good governance recommendations have been drawn up on the basis of the Law Commission’s 2014 Report ‘Regulation of Health and Social Care Professionals’, the recommendations from which were adopted by the UK government as being the ‘regulatory norm’.

The College says any future appointment processes for RCVS Council and VN Council would also be based on the Professional Standards Authority’s appointment principles of merit, fairness, transparency and openness and having a process that inspires confidence.

The deadline for completing the consultation is Monday 22 July 2024.

https://www.rcvs.org.uk/news-and-views/our-consultations/ensuring-good-governance/

The College will also be presenting the proposals at a Zoom webinar called being chaired by Sue between 7pm and 8pm tomorrow evening, Tuesday 11 June 2024: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/ensuring-good-governance-tickets-920243973497

CMA investigation: Is £45 too much for a booster?

David Mills — Thu, 07 Sep 2023 07:08:50 GMT

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-66733077

Seems an odd aspect to quote...

Who else finds this a bit sinister?

Evelyn Barbour-Hill — Sat, 11 Nov 2023 19:45:39 GMT

Or is it just me?

"Also at Council yesterday, we approved some amendments to the RCVS Council Election Scheme around prospective candidates for Council having to declare they have not engaged in any activity or behaviour that would be likely to bring the profession into disrepute or undermine public confidence in the profession."

What's behind this?

Ever heard of SVS ?

Gerry Henry — Mon, 08 Apr 2024 16:57:35 GMT

Ever heard of SVS, second victim syndrome, possibly not but I bet most of us have experienced it at some point. Have a read here - notmycollege.blogspot.com/.../how-does-second-victim-syndrome-affect.html