Vet Times

Tag: anaesthesia

  • From the other side of the fence: how to help students make the most of EMS

    From the other side of the fence: how to help students make the most of EMS

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    Not long ago I was shadowing vets on placement, but now I’m on the other side of the fence – the one being shadowed. As a student, I found EMS placements variable – some were great, and some… not so much. This often depended on the individual vet, some of whom would be naturally better…

  • IV as a sign of competence?

    IV as a sign of competence?

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    There’s a trend in our industry that has been apparent to me since the early days of my training and I’m wondering if this attitude is prevalent elsewhere. I see, time and again, the placement of an IV being used as a marker of general nursing skill level and competence. Yet, it‘s common for vet…

  • Two things you probably already knew about pathologists (but I didn’t)

    Two things you probably already knew about pathologists (but I didn’t)

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    A few years ago, after spending a decade and a half in general practice and possibly inspired by watching a lot of Quincy, M.E. – when I was too young to know any better (incidentally, does anyone know how old we have to get before we do know better about things? I’d like to be…

  • Schedule 3 – evidence of our role secured

    Schedule 3 – evidence of our role secured

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    As well as traditional Halloween high jinks, 31 October 2017 marked a truly happy day for veterinary nurses, as the RCVS published results of its survey into VNs and vets‘ knowledge and use of – as well as future wishes for – the VN role under Schedule 3. As the full document is more than…

  • And now on Radio 4…

    And now on Radio 4…

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    If you don’t listen to The Archers this post probably won’t mean much to you – although, with that in mind, I have a little treat for you here. However, if you’re still here let’s get on with things, we’ve got to head out later to some sort of audition for the panto. It is…

  • The art of veterinary medicine

    The art of veterinary medicine

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    So, with less than three weeks until finals, my friends and I have finished rotations. Some of us have had job interviews and some have accepted job offers. This is all getting a bit real… Supposedly, we’re ready to take on the outside world as real vets. We’ve got heads full of knowledge and hands…

  • Role recognition: credit where credit’s due

    Role recognition: credit where credit’s due

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    Bloggers Jane Davidson and Nick Marsh team up to consider how much of each task on a typical invoice for surgery would, and could, be undertaken by a VN or vet. It reveals how, despite its importance, the role of the VN goes unnoticed and unrecognised. When Jane suggested writing a blog together, I thought…

  • Are vet nurses hidden in plain sight?

    Are vet nurses hidden in plain sight?

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    As a community, we vet nurses sometimes feel we are not noticed. We know the rest of the vet community sees us (we’ve had the RCVS petition to show support for protecting our title and now have the Schedule 3 working party to look at what we do every day) and people outside our community…

  • Supporting the whole team

    Supporting the whole team

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    While the nursing profession progresses with the protection for the title in the code of conduct and #VNFutures, we still have a shortage of RVNs, and while veterinary care will always a be a team effort, this shortage means care assistants can feel they are taking on a bigger role within the team than first…

  • Stronger together

    Stronger together

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    As regular readers of my blog will be aware, I was at the amazing #vetfutures last month. I’ve already written about the great day and the brilliant plans for #VNFutures. But there’s something I haven’t told you, because I wanted some time to reflect (and log that in my PDP). While I’ve been here spouting…