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In celebration of the BVNA Veterinary Nursing Awareness Month (May), MSD Animal Health UK Ltd’s (known as Merck Animal Health in the United States and Canada) Keeping Britain’s Pets Healthy (KBPH) initiative is focusing attention on the role of veterinary nurses and research undertaken by the University of Nottingham’s Centre for Evidence-based Veterinary Medicine (CEVM ). The research relates to the opportunities to strengthen the role of veterinary nurses in support of a more proactive and evidence-based approach to preventative healthcare in pets.

MSD Animal Health’s KBPH initiative was launched last year with the backing of the first ever set of evidence-based guidelines1 on improving the approach to dog and cat preventative healthcare consultations. The guidelines were created following extensive research carried out in partnership with the CEVM at the University of Nottingham.

Nicola Barclay, Senior Product Manager at MSD Animal Health comments: “The new research showed that there was no universal agreement among owners or vets on which services veterinary nurses should provide suggesting that this was an area where more clarity is needed. Therefore, maximising the potential of the veterinary nurse role requires improving communications with clients so they understand the full breadth and quality of the service veterinary nurses can offer. We are really proud to be headline sponsors of Veterinary Nursing Awareness Month and believe campaigns like #whatvnsdo are a great way of gaining recognition and understanding of the importance of the vet nurse role.”

The research revealed that alongside the perceived traditional role in relation to health, wellbeing and guardians of animal welfare3, veterinary nurses now have a range of specific responsibilities. These include: performing consultations4, minor surgery5, running educational interventions6, and providing complex inpatient care7. Other less commonly documented skills however, which the vet nurse role also needs to be recognised for, include building rapport, facilitating good communication and providing empathy in a client-facing setting. The CEVM research revealed that neither owners nor veterinary surgeons were completely confident about the services veterinary nurses could, or should, provide, suggesting greater clarity is needed.

As the veterinary nursing title is not protected in the UK it is not possible to determine how many of the staff described as “veterinary nurses” by interviewees were actually registered veterinary nurses. This research therefore supports the potential need for the statutory protection of the veterinary nursing title in the UK, and further reinforces the urgent need for further understanding and clarity of the training, roles and responsibilities of nurses and indeed all client-facing staff within small animal practices.

Nicola Barclay concludes: “The need for better clarity and communication are therefore at the heart of this research project’s conclusions on the veterinary nurse role. Getting these right in practice is integral to developing the future role and responsibilities of the veterinary nurse. Furthermore, achieving better outcomes in pet health and improved client experience will need practices to ensure that suitably trained veterinary nurses are available before the full value of the important role they play can be realised.”

Further details on KBPH and the guidelines for practices can be accessed at msd-animal-health-hub.co.uk/KBPH.
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References:
  1. Developing practical recommendations for preventative healthcare consultations involving dogs and cats using a Delphi technique. Natalie Robinson, Zoe Belshaw, Marnie Brennan, Rachel Dean. Vet Record (2019) 10.1136/ vr.104970 (in press).
  2. Owner and veterinary surgeon perspectives on the role of veterinary nurses and receptionists in relation to small animal preventative healthcare in the United Kingdom. Zoe Belshaw, Natalie Robinson, Rachel Dean, Marnie Brennan. Vet Record (2018) Sep 8;183(9):296
  3. The role of the veterinary nurse in animal welfare. J. W. Yeates. Veterinary Nursing Journal (2014) 29, 250-51.
  4. Veterinary nurse clinics – opportunities and obstacles. S. Wilds. Veterinary Nursing Journal (2017) 32(4), 118-20.
  5. Inter-professional practice: From veterinarian to the veterinary team. T. Kinnison, S.A. May, D. Guile. Journal of Veterinary Medicine Education (2014) 41(2), 172-78.
  6. How to run weight clinics effectively in practice. L. Jobson. Veterinary Nursing Journal (2013) 28(11), 372-74.
  7. Using the ability model to design and implement a patient care plan. D. Nelson, P. Welsh. The Veterinary Nurse (2015) 6(3), 141-49.