Surrey-based North Downs Specialist Referrals (NDSR) has installed a £55,000 SonoCure ultrasonic surgical aspirator which it says will allow it to take tumour treatment to another level.

NDSR’s director of neurology Rodolfo Capello said: "This technology is one of the most advanced in medicine and helps to surgically remove tumours while also reducing the tissue damage to vital structures.

"The accuracy and control of the system offers us greater versatility and precision, and minimises invasive manoeuvres during both soft and hard tissue dissections.

"Surgeons can therefore be extremely confident of accurate tumour excision with reduced blood vessel and tissue damage which will all help increase and improve the outcome of our surgeries.

"We’ll be using the ultrasonic surgical aspirator for the removal of tumours in the brain, liver and to cut through bone where necessary. It will be a great asset."

For more information, visit: www.ndsr.co.uk

The BEVA has announced that from today, it is dropping membership renewal charges for all veterinary nurses for the next three months to help support you during the COVID-19 crisis.

All existing BEVA members will have their membership automatically extended until 30 June 2020. The association is also inviting vets and vet nurses who are not already BEVA members to join as online members free of charge until 30 June 2020.

BEVA President Tim Mair said: “In this extraordinary time of global crisis our profession, as with many industries, is under immense pressure. By offering free membership we are giving equine vets easy access to a wealth of supportive resources and online CPD to help them through these dark times.”

BEVA membership includes:

• Online access to BEVA Journals, Equine Veterinary Journal and Equine Veterinary Education.
• Free access to online learning resources which include a monthly webinar series and a range of quick quizzes and activities to help vets and vet nurses top up their CPD requirements.
• During the COVID-19 outbreak, regular updates and advice to the profession through email and SMS to members.
• The latest news from the industry via an eNews newsletter that is sent out every other Friday

The association is also looking at other ways to support the profession, which has included making all BEVA Congress 2019 webinars available to members via the BEVA online learning platform.

To sign up from Monday 30 March 2020 visit: https://www.beva.org.uk/Join-BEVA 

Virbac has announced that Cortavance, the topical steroid containing HCA, for the symptomatic treatment of inflammatory and pruritic skin disorders in dogs, is now licensed for the control of the symptoms associated with atopy.

Virbac says HCA targets specific affected topical areas with negligible systemic absorption, to provide direct and rapid relief from inflammation and pruritus, delivering significant clinical improvement in atopic cases, both lesion and pruritus scores, after 14 days¹.

Cortavance can be applied daily for up to 28 days and included within multimodal treatment plans for prolonged use to control atopy.

Cortavance is presented in a new ergonomic-shaped bottle allowing the user to accurately target the problem area at any angle, with its no-hand-contact spray applicators - 31ml and 76ml sizes.

For further information, contact your local Virbac Territory Manager.

Reference 

1. Olivry, T., DeBoer, D.J., Favrot, C. et al. Treatment of canine atopic dermatitis: 2015 updated guidelines from the International Committee on Allergic Diseases of Animals (ICADA). BMC Vet Res 11, 210 (2015). 

Three veterinary nurses have won monthly lifestyle subscription boxes up to the value of £150 in a NexGard Spectra parasite training competition.

Sally Rose RVN from Abervet in Aberdeen (pictured right), Jo Fuller RVN from Castle Vets in Farnborough and Gwen Raeburn RVN from Priory Close Vets in Somerset chose subscriptions to an arts and crafts ‘Witch Box’, a Hoppily Craft Beer Club box and a Nectar and Bumble box of bee-themed lifestyle items.

The nurses won the subscriptions after watching a NexGard Spectra online educational competition run in conjunction with BVNA during the association’s This is Us 2020 celebration of veterinary nursing. 

Sally said: "It was great to receive the news that I’d won the BVNA NexGard Spectra competition. I thought it would be a simple task of looking through a few choices of prizes, however I didn’t realise that there were so many! When I came to it, I picked The Witch Box arts and crafts box. Thank you NexGard Spectra for the fantastic prize!"

The RCVS has announced plans to move out of its Westminster offices by 31st March 2022. 

The College sold the premises in March this year, with an option to lease it back for up to two years, giving time for Council to consider the future building requirements of the organisation and how they might have changed following the coronavirus pandemic.

Following easing of government restrictions this summer, the RCVS says that Council members and staff have started using the building for some meetings and day-to-day working, but occupancy has not yet returned to pre-pandemic levels.

RCVS Council therefore agreed at its meeting earlier this month that there is now a clear financial benefit to moving out at the first opportunity under the existing terms of lease.

Lizzie Lockett, RCVS Chief Executive, said: “As we all gradually emerge from the restrictions of the past 18 months, one of the things we, as an organisation, have learned from the pandemic is that we can cope well with remote and hybrid working, whilst continuing to provide a high level of service to the professions and the animal-owning public.

“Retaining the use of our current offices over the last few months has certainly helped us to do this, but our Estates Strategy Group recommended to Council that there was now little to be gained and much to lose financially if we continued to lease Belgravia House for another year.”

“In the coming weeks, we will be drawing up detailed plans for the safe removal and storage of our effects, including the library, historical collection and archives, which are maintained by RCVS Knowledge.

"To support the team until we can move into a permanent building, we will hire serviced office space and meeting rooms around London and elsewhere in the UK as and when we need them.

“We also plan to take Council meetings ‘on the road’ over the next 12 months to enable Council members to engage with more veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses around the country.

“Meanwhile, we remain fully committed to the purchase of a new permanent London home for the RCVS and are seeking a building that not only meets the needs of the professions both now and well into the future, but also aims to be a sound financial investment for the College in the years ahead.”

TVM had announced that its annual Pet Eye Health Awareness Week will take place from 22nd-28th September this year, focusing on brachycephalic pets which are particularly prone to eye problems. 

To help practices make the most of the week, TVM is providing waiting room displays, client leaflets, social media packs and online information to help educate pet owners on the symptoms of poor eye health.

The company will also be holding an webinar for vets and nurses which will be published during the week.   

Will Peel, Product Manager at TVM said: "Eye problems in pets are common and brachycephalic breeds are particularly prone to them due to a number of compounding factors. 

"They commonly suffer from corneal ulcers and are nearly four times more likely to develop dry eye than other breeds, so Pet Eye Health Awareness Week is focused on helping pet owners understand the issues, identify eye problems early and seek veterinary advice quickly". 

www.tvm-uk.com/eyehealth

Paragon Veterinary Referrals in Wakefield has announced the launch of a chronic pain clinic for pets referred to the centre by external first opinion practices.

The clinic is being run by Liz Leece, an RCVS and EBVS Specialist in veterinary anaesthesia and analgesia, to offer bespoke pain management plans for clients.

Liz has more than 20 years’ experience in specialist anaesthesia and analgesia and has extensive experience managing dogs and cats with complex problems causing chronic pain.

Liz said: "Our pets are similar to humans in the sense that the longer they live, the greater the chance they will develop conditions causing chronic pain.

"The clinic is available for any pet referred by their primary care vet for management of chronic pain, including osteoarthritis and other orthopaedic conditions, neurological and cancer pain.

"Animals will be assessed and advice given on how the pain can be managed, including monitoring a pet’s response to different treatments and what to expect."

For more information, visit www.paragonreferrals.co.uk.  

Five vet nurses working in a range of clinical settings have been announced as the winners of Animalcare’s Vet Nurse Heroes competition. 

Earlier this year, the company called on veterinary team members to nominate nurse colleagues who had gone beyond the call of duty, particularly since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

And the winners are:

Claire Defries, VN Programme Leader at the College of Animal Welfare, who was instrumental in developing online training virtually overnight when the national lockdown was announced in order to support vet nurses in training and to enable third year students to sit their finals.  She was also commended for the pastoral support she has provided to students during lockdown.

Ellie Tappenden from Albyn Veterinary Centre in Broxburn, was nominated for the long shifts she has been working before delivering regular medicines and ensuring that self-isolating clients are coping. She also created a local support network with other vets and organised a collection of spare PPE for the local hospital. She achieved this while managing her pain from Ehlers Danlos, a degenerative disease which she fights every day.

Tammy Jarvis from the RSPCA Block Fen Animal Centre in March was nominated for the exceptional support she has provided to all 105 patients at the RSPCA centre and the veterinary surgeon. With other staff furloughed, she has also taken on additional duties, including maintenance and grounds management, and has recently started sewing facemasks for the team.

Bethany Lavill (pictured right) from Etwall Vets in Derby was nominated for the wide range of additional duties she has taken on, including collecting animals from owners who are self-isolating; coming in after hours to check up on in-patients and supporting bereaved clients. She has gone over and above the call of duty on many occasions and still asks what more she can do to help.

Student vet nurse Shannon Mills from Leeds Colton Vets4Pets was nominated for being a major asset to the team over the last few months, despite a recent diagnosis of epilepsy. She has willingly covered a range of roles and recently nursed a critical care rabbit throughout the day, whilst manning reception. She even managed to pass her mock exam with flying colours during lockdown with little time to study.

Each of the five winners was rewarded with a Betty’s Gift Box, brimming with treats, including Betty’s champagne truffles, chocolate desires, Yorkshire tea and shortbread.

Animalcare Product Manager James Beaumont said: “We wanted our competition to highlight the fantastic contribution vet nurses around the country are making to their colleagues, clients and patients – but the number and quality of entries hugely exceeded our expectations.

"At such a difficult time, the positivity, passion and care that each nomination exuded made reading them a moving experience and selecting only five as winners was no easy task.  We thank all those who took the time to nominate their amazing colleagues and thank every vet nurse who was nominated for their extraordinary commitment and dedication."

A Veterinary Care Assistant from Surrey has reached the final in a national competition to find young adults who have helped in their communities during the pandemic.

The Heroes 2020 award has been set up by insurance company, Urban Jungle. CEO Jimmy Williams said: "We think young adults have had to endure a lot in 2020 and want to do our bit to say ‘thank you’."

Ashleigh Walton, 25, was nominated for the award by her mum, Emma Walton, who said: "My daughter has worked consistently through both lockdowns, taking care of other people’s sick and injured pets as well as wildlife. She is a locum VCA and works all over Greater London and Surrey, travelling by public transport. She always goes the extra mile to ensure an animals' comfort."

Ashleigh, from Thornton Heath, said: "I don't consider myself to be a hero - I've loved animals all my life and I will do everything I can to make sure a sick or injured animal gets all the help it needs."

If you'd like to nominate a colleague for a Hero Award and a £250 Amazon voucher, visit: https://explore.myurbanjungle.com/blog/urban-jungles-heroes-2020/. 

Nominations need to be in by 7th January 2021. 

VetNurse.co.uk is to give a percentage of the revenue it earns from recruitment advertising on the site back to those of its members that contribute to the community, in the form of Amazon vouchers.

To take part in this initiative, members need to do three things

1. Subscribe to the VetNurse Digest email, either daily or weekly, here: https://www.vetnurse.co.uk/p/questions
2. Complete at least basic profile information on the site, which must include real name, year and place of qualification and ideally current practice
3. Post or answer at least one question for the community here: https://www.vetnurse.co.uk/f 

That's it. This month we'll be giving a £50 Amazon voucher to six RVNs, VNAs or SVNs who meet this criteria at the end of the month. 

In the future, the number of Amazon vouchers given away each month will tie in directly with the number of recruitment adverts posted on VetNurse.co.uk. 

Rather than being picked at random, they may also be tied to the community leaderboards, which display the most active members in order of points scored for posting.

VetNurse Editor Arlo Guthrie said: "VetNurse.co.uk now exists for one very focused reason, which is to be somewhere vet nurses come to help each other.

"In that regard, VetNurse avoids some of the problems that beset other social network platforms, such as the lack of provenance for opinions shared, not to mention the sometimes very unkind posts."

"Taking some of the revenue we earn from recruitment advertising and giving it back to members for helping each other means more people visiting the site and more people seeing the available job opportunities, so it's a bit of a virtuous circle.

"What's more recruitment advertisers on VetNurse can take some pleasure from knowing that they are advertising on the one board which gives something back to vet nurses." 

Zoetis has announced that the licence for Cytopoint (lokivetmab) has been extended to include the treatment of pruritus associated with allergic dermatitis in dogs.

Cytopoint is an injectable monoclonal antibody therapy for dogs that targets and neutralises the cytokine IL-31, a mediator of allergic itch¹.

Zoetis says the new claim was granted following a randomised, double-masked, multi-centred, placebo-controlled study which looked at Cytopoint’s efficacy and safety for the treatment of pruritus associated with allergic dermatitis in client-owned dogs. The study showed that Cytopoint significantly decreased pruritus, and improved skin lesions.²

Allison Henry, Product Manager Companion Animal Dermatology at Zoetis UK, says: "Allergic dermatitis is one of the most common skin conditions in dogs.³ The associated clinical signs – including scratching, hair loss and skin lesions – are disruptive for the dog, impacting their quality of life and that of its owner. Allergic skin disease is one of the most frequent reasons owners present their dog to a veterinarian.

"The licence extension demonstrates further innovation from Zoetis in the field of veterinary dermatology, and across the continuum of care, increasing the treatment options available to manage pruritus. Apoquel remains an ideal choice for short-term control due to its ability to provide rapid itch relief within four hours⁴ for as little as one day.⁵ This enables pruritus to be tightly controlled during the diagnostic work up,⁷ as well as being used for longer term control where tablets are the preferred method of administration.

"The sustained duration of action of Cytopoint makes it better suited to long-term management of pruritus, particularly when administering tablets is a challenge. Other benefits, such as no restrictions on age or with comorbidities, coupled with the flexibility of the new claim, make it a useful treatment at an earlier stage for more unique cases, e.g. young dogs or those with comorbidities."

For further information, contact your Zoetis Account Manager.

watch?v=A8EJ8LpLVzw

The BVA has submitted a detailed response to the Competition and Market's review of veterinary services, which highlights four main reasons for above-inflation increases in the cost of veterinary care.

The reasons are: above average increases in veterinary salaries, advances in veterinary medicine which mean practices can now offer ever more complex but expensive treatments, veterinary practices becoming more business-focused and now charging fair prices for services that they have in the past subsidised, and the cost of providing out-of-hours care.

One reason for the increase in veterinary salaries is the fact that historically veterinary surgeons and especially nurses have been relatively badly paid, although for vets that was always mitigated by the expectation of practice ownership later in their career, something which is no longer a realistic prospect for many.

Veterinary salaries have also been driven higher by the reduction in EU vets coming to work in the UK post-Brexit, although the report shows that UK trained vets and vets from the rest of the world are starting to pick up the slack. 

The BVA report says it recognises that it is 'challenging' for clients to accept that rising bills are in part because of increased salaries, but they need to increase further still, pointing to the fact that NHS consultants earn around £100K per annum after four years, whilst vets earn around half that.

The submission also points to developments in veterinary medicine and technology which allow for far better standards of care, but which come at increased cost, notably in advanced imaging, dental work and laboratory services which increasingly involves specialist input.

The BVA also highlights the fact that veterinary practices have become more business savvy, especially since the 1997 decision by the RCVS to allow people and organisations other than veterinary surgeons to own practices.

With that came an influx of business skills and a prioritisation of financial considerations. 

Lastly, the report points to the ongoing burden of providing out-of-hours care.

Unlike in most European countries, British vets must provide 24 hour emergency first aid and pain relief to animals, the costs of which have increased considerably as practices which used to provide the service in house at a loss, have increasingly opted to outsource it to veterinary service providers which charge commercially realistic prices.

The submission also discusses the cost of prescriptions, noting how important it is that veterinary practices are able to charge for the time and work it takes to issue a prescription, which despite an above-inflation increase, still only costs around £18.

Finally, the BVA addressed the issue of transparency over practice ownership, saying that whilst it is not aware of any data concerning whether pet owners select a practice based on its ownership, it nevertheless "supports the principle of improved transparency of ownership to help increase customer awareness and enable consumers to make an informed choice".

British Veterinary Association President Anna Judson (pictured) said: “In our submission to the CMA, we have explained the complex challenges facing the profession, alongside highlighting the value of veterinary care.

"The CMA’s review will provide valuable insights, but it is essential that any recommendations are informed with full knowledge and understanding of today’s veterinary landscape and the pressures the profession is operating under, including workforce shortages.”

COMMENT

In all, the submission seems a detailed and fair representation of the reasons for increasing veterinary costs, although there is no mention of the impact of the increasing regulatory burden (such as the cascade), other than, ironically, the need for more regulation at a practice level, as well as of individuals.

It will be very interesting to see what the Competition and Market Authority concludes.

After all, there is no reason whatsoever why veterinary practices shouldn't charge a price which reflects the costs of providing the service, or that veterinary professionals should not be paid reasonably for their knowledge, skills and experience. 

The problem is that as the industry has started to charge commercially viable rate for an increasingly higher standard of more advanced care, so the true cost of providing that care has become clear.

Maybe the industry is in danger of trying to sell a Rolls Royce service to marketplace of people who either can't afford or don't want to spend more than the cost of a Ford Focus. 

If that is true, the only logical conclusion is that either society will have to accept that pet ownership is a luxury for a smaller group of people who can afford it, or the industry will have to adapt its offering, in other words offer a lower level of cheaper care in order that more people can experience the joys of pet ownership. 

The latter of those will be ideologically challenging for a profession bound by its oath that "my constant endeavour will be to ensure the health and welfare of animals committed to my care", not to mention pet owners who often want the best that the profession can offer, despite not always having the wherewithal to pay for it.

https://www.bva.co.uk/media/5459/submission-to-cma-oct-2023.pdf