This may be a helpful article! Thank you Dr. Lacey Licensed Veterinary Emergency Clinic vs 24/7 Clinic with emergency services There is sometimes some confusion as to the different options regarding after-hours emergency care for your pet. This confusion comes from the fact that in Barrie there is a licensed veterinary emergency clinic as well as another clinic that is open 24/7 and offers emergency services. Where should our clients go? Well, it is important to clarify the difference between a licenced veterinary emergency clinic versus a clinic open 24/7. The main difference is that a clinic that is open 24/7 is not required to have a veterinarian on site at all times- staff may be on site, but the veterinarian could be elsewhere. A licensed emergency clinic is required to have a veterinarian and an auxiliary (i.e. registered veterinary technician- RVT) present at all times, thus making the distinction between the two clinics very important and very reassuring for a client needing after-hours emergency help. It is mandatory for a licensed emergency clinic to accommodate services 24 hours a day on weekends and statutory holidays, whereas this is not a requirement of a clinic open 24/7. A licensed veterinary clinic will have specialized equipment for monitoring critically ill patients (e.g. immediate patient side blood testing such as electrolytes and blood gas analysis, blood pressure monitoring, oxygen supplementation, etc.) and employ veterinarians and RVTs who have specialized training in emergency and critical care (e.g. CPR, blood transfusions, etc.). We refer our after-hours emergency care to the Huronia Veterinary Emergency Clinic (HVEC) for all of the above reasons. We trust the veterinarians and RVTs on staff and know they will treat our patients as if they were their own pets. They notify us promptly when they have seen one of our patients and ensure medical records are faxed to our clinic as soon as possible. This allows us to continue accurate and thorough patient care upon rechecking the patient (if applies). Please note that it is unprofessional (and at times, awkward) for a clinic offering emergency services to offer or perform routine veterinary care to another veterinarian’s patient during an emergency visit (e.g. updating vaccinations). HVEC always maintains a courteous and professional relationship with our clinic. A common comment that comes up is that licensed veterinary clinics are more expensive. In general this is true, and this is due to the aforementioned benefits of an emergency clinic (trained staff, specialized equipment and medications). However, it is only marginally more expensive to go to a licensed emergency veterinary clinic and priceless to have the peace of mind of knowing your pet is in very capable hands. Due to our established relationship with HVEC, It is important to note that when we see a patient that is transferred to our clinic from HVEC, the examination fee is significantly reduced ($32.80). If we are examining a patient seen at a 24/7 clinic, regular office visit fees apply ($83.90). We hope that this article will help you in making an informed decision when choosing after-hours veterinary care for your furry family member.
Posted on: Fri, 09 Aug 2013 15:01:41 +0000
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