View all veterinary jobs
IVC started writing to the practices at the start of last year, threatening legal action over their use of the term 'Pet Health Club', which the company says infringes its trademark rights.
In March 2025, IVC sent follow-up letters to affected practices, offering an extension until 31st December 2025 to comply with its demands, but according to We Are Spartacus, there has been no contact since the deadline passed.
Meanwhile, We Are Spartacus reports that 200 veterinary professionals have registered their opposition to IVC's claims via its website.
Dr Natalie Morris-Webb, owner of Malthouse Vets, one of the affected practices, said: “Last year was a worrying time for lots of independent practices with a ‘Pet Health Club.’
"Many of those that came forward had been using the term long before IVC registered its wordmark in 2019 and either had to face the cost and hassle of rebranding their health plans or enter into a legal dispute with IVC.
“Neither of these are appealing options for independent practices, or their owner managers.
"Although IVC appears to have ceased defending the ‘pet health club’ wordmark, with none of the affected practices reporting any further correspondence for many months, the uncertainty is still there.
"It’s unacceptable that IVC has not yet achieved a commercial settlement, or revealed whether they have given the industry a reprieve and no longer plan to take legal action.”
An IVC Evidensia spokesperson said: "We have no current plans to approach anyone we haven’t previously contacted on this matter, but of course, we reserve the rights available to the company, as trademark holder, to protect our trademarks and customers in the future, as in any sector."
"A material number of those previously infringing our trademark have now updated their branding.
"Anyone still in breach was given clear notification, so the position is unambiguous - they are required to update."
The Pet Health Club website does not currently state that the scheme is owned by IVC Evidensia.
www.wearespartacus.co.uk
The branding will sit alongside existing practice names, appearing on signage, uniforms, client materials and digital channels.
Lime Trees Vets in Stoke-on-Trent is the first site to adopt the identity, with further practices transitioning in phases through the year.
IVC Evidensia says the move is intended to bring its first-opinion, referral, farm and equine services together under a single banner, reflecting the scale of its UK network and communicating its core values simply, whilst preserving local clinical independence.
George Dymond, CEO of IVC Evidensia UK and Ireland, said the aim is to make it clearer how practices within the group are connected while retaining their local presence.
Website updates, client campaigns and social media channels will be updated as the rollout progresses.
The group said the funding has enabled all of its practices to access equipment including capnography and multiparameter monitors, alongside a structured training programme and a “low-flow anaesthesia” care framework.
So far, IVC practices have taken delivery of over 500 pieces of equipment and IVC says thousands of clinicians have downloaded the digital training and resources.
The project is designed to overcome three main barriers to adoption that IVC has identified: awareness, equipment availability and clinical confidence, with a focus on empowering Registered Veterinary Nurses and supporting change management at a practice level.
IVC says emissions from anaesthetic procedures can account for around 30% of the carbon emissions of a typical veterinary practice, and that low-flow anaesthesia reduces the environmental impact while maintaining or improving patient safety1.
In particular, IVC points to three main areas in the literature where there can be patient benefits from using low-flow: smoother inductions and frequently reduced recoveries; reduced risk of hypothermia; and warmed and humidified gases can further reduce hypothermia risk and, due to airway benefits, reduce the likelihood of other complications2.
Richard Hooker, Country Medical Director said: “By investing in state-of-the-art equipment, comprehensive training, and ongoing support, we are empowering our teams to deliver sustainable anaesthesia with confidence and safety. This commitment ensures we continue to provide the highest standard of care for our patients.”
Is low flow worth it? Discuss here: https://www.vetnurse.co.uk/b/veterinary-nursing-news/posts/ivc-evidensia-invests-500-000-to-support-adoption-of-more-sustainable-low-flow-anaesthesia
References
The installation is a collaboration between Vet Sustain and IVC Evidensia, supported by MSD Animal Health.
Laura Gelder-Robertson, CEO of Vet Sustain, said: “We want to show the best of what already exists within veterinary sustainability, to bring to life the business benefits for veterinary teams in a really hands-on, practical way that people can touch and feel and relate back to their everyday practice.
"This is a really positive news story where by sharing knowledge and collaborating across the profession, we can continually improve the health and wellbeing of animals, people, the environment and business.”
https://vetsustain.org/
IVC is one of 115 companies certified in the UK, including Vodafone, Bentley, Amazon and Pfizer, and the first veterinary organisation.
The certification benchmarks organisations globally on their people practices, including strategy, work environment, talent acquisition, learning, diversity, equity & inclusion, and wellbeing.
IVC says the certification reflects a series of initiatives introduced to enhance the colleague experience, including private healthcare options for all staff, a family-friendly policy, a growing network of wellbeing champions and mental health first aiders, and the launch of two new training centres.
Duncan Phillips, IVC Evidensia CEO UK & Ireland, said: “This certification is a welcome acknowledgement of the progress we’ve made, and a motivator to keep improving the experience for every colleague across the UK.”
Androna Benade, Regional Manager for UK and Ireland, Top Employers Institute said: “With veterinary professionals playing a vital role in animal health, food safety, and public wellbeing, this recognition sends a powerful message about the importance of valuing and investing in the people behind the profession.
"As the UK faces ongoing workforce challenges in the veterinary sector, IVC Evidensia’s achievement sets a benchmark for how the profession can be supported, retained, and celebrated as a critical part of the UK economy and society.”
www.top-employers.com
The working group, which is led by Gudrun Ravetz, IVC's Group Chief Medical Officer, has been tasked with developing evidence-based, sustainable prescribing practices that protect animal health while safeguarding the planet.
The group comprises experts from within IVC Evidensia’s network who will collaborate with industry and academic partners including Vetoquinol, IDEXX, ESCCAP, and MSD Animal Health to deliver research, education, and practical tools for veterinary teams both inside and outside of IVC Evidensia practices.
Gudrun said: “We’re proud to be investing in this work and setting an example for the profession.
"Responsible parasiticide use is not just a clinical issue, it’s a sustainability imperative.”
Photo: www.depositphotos.com
The centres have cutting-edge facilities, including high-tech audio-visual equipment with ceiling-mounted cameras to relay demonstrations, phantom models for abdominal ultrasound training and advanced simulators for practicing echocardiography.
The courses will be taught mainly by clinicians from across the IVC Evidensia network,
IVC says the centres will deliver 20,000 hours of CPD for its staff this year, and it aims to make its training available to the broader veterinary community towards the end of 2025.
Daniella Dos Santos, Director of Professional Culture at IVC Evidensia, said: “These centres will allow us to provide tailored training, whether you’re just starting your career or you’re looking to develop new skills and techniques.
"The training will help us deliver exceptional care for pets and their owners by ensuring our colleagues and eventually the wider profession continue to grow and develop their expertise.”
VetNurse.co.uk has seen copies of correspondence from IVC which claims that its Pet Health Club has built up goodwill amongst the group's customers, and that the use of the term by other practices risks confusing the public and taking unfair advantage of the reputation built up by IVC.
One wonders which bright spark at IVC thought this was a good idea.
Bullying small independent businesses is not a great look, particularly in a caring profession such as this.
Besides which, where is the evidence that other practices using the term 'Pet Health Club' has any impact on IVC's business whatsoever?
After all, pet health plans, or clubs, are inexorably linked to the practice providing the subscription services they offer.
Nobody goes online looking for which practice offers the best pet health club, like they were choosing between the Hurlingham and the Groucho. It's something offered to the existing clients of a practice.
So there is literally zero chance of confusion over who is providing the service.
And on what planet does IVC think a client of another practice might be presented with an option to join a pet health club and think: "Oh this is that wonderfully smashy nicey club I have seen elsewhere. I must join it."
Ironically, given the CMA investigation, IVC's Pet Health Club website is opaque about which practice group (or practice) provides its own service.
How it is therefore possible to argue that it has built up a reputation is also unclear.
Finally, if you Google "Pet Health Club", you'll see that IVC already dominates the search results in a way that makes it vanishingly unlikely that its service is going to be confused with anyone else's.
This would all be laughable, except it's not if you're one of the 20 or 30 practices that VetNurse.co.uk hears have been on the receiving end of a threatening letter.
Natalie Morris-Webb MRCVS from Malthouse Veterinary Group, one of the affected practices, said: “I was stunned to receive a letter from IVC claiming that our Pet Health Club, which we launched in 2017, is an infringement under the Trade Marks Act 1994 and that we’re using a registered word mark without the consent of the proprietor.
“It’s a ubiquitous term that lots of practices use and it quickly became apparent that these letters have been sent out far and wide.
"There are practices that have been using the term for well over 10 years and to rebrand will be very expensive and time-consuming for what are mostly small businesses.
“We’ve had some conversation with IVC’s representatives to discuss how else we can resolve the situation and whether such a heavy-handed approach is really necessary, because surely IVC don’t want a legal spat with so many independent businesses.
“It’s also very worrying to receive aggressive legal threats from a huge organisation, so it was reassuring to hear from other practices that are facing the same dilemma, and we want to extend our support to others in the same position.
"We’ve therefore launched We Are Spartacus where any practices that are affected can register their details.
"We can then work together and decide how to move forward as a collective."
Hopefully, there will be no need.
Hopefully, someone higher up the chain at IVC will stop this madness, admit that it called this one wrong and immediately write to the businesses it has already contacted, apologise profusely and withdraw its threat.
But if the company persists and wins it'll probably be a pyrrhic victory.
After all, pet health plans have largely been sold on the back of routine flea, worm and tick control, the need for which is starting to be questioned by the profession, particularly in the light of research pointing to the possible harm to other species, but also because of the greater focus on the cost of veterinary care.
IVC's existing Pet Health Club includes vaccinations, flea and worm treatments, microchipping, health checks and a variety of discounts.
IVC says the new tier, Pet Health Club Plus, has been introduced to encourage owners to bring their pet in early, meaning problems can be diagnosed more quickly and therefore improve the welfare outcome of the pet.
It is also designed to support owners by spreading the cost of their pet’s healthcare.
25,000 pet owners have already joined Pet Health Club Plus, which costs £27.99 for cats and £29.99 for dogs, and it is now being pushed with a national TV advertising campaign which will run till the end of the year.
IVC says this means its UK practices are on track to hit a group target of 5% by 2030, which follows in the footsteps of other IVC Evidensia territories such as Sweden and Norway, which have already reached figures of 4.9% and 5.9% respectively.
To achieve this progress, IVC says it has implemented a number of initiatives:
IVC says there has been a concerted efforts by its vets to become more aware of their own attitudes towards antibiotics and to educate their clients about the dangers of AMR.
One such example is Angharad Thomas, a veterinary surgeon from Fivelands Veterinary Centre in the West Midlands, who managed to reduce the amount of antibiotics prescribed in dentistry by 17.8% between 2022 and 2023:
She said: “Long dental treatments are a great time to chat to vet students, but one day, instead of quizzing them, I was trotting out my thoughts on the decision-making for the case when I reached post-operative drugs.
"Stopping here I asked: ‘What are you taught about this these days?’
"I suppose I wasn’t surprised to hear that antibiotics didn’t feature.
“It was a lightbulb moment: Why was I using post-operative antibiotics for my dental cases?
"I come from the generation of vets who were firmly taught never to give antibiotics to routine surgeries, so why was I continuing to use antibiotics in dentistry?
"All at once I felt terribly old and out-of-touch. I decided it was time for a change!”
“Given that reducing antibiotic usage is now fairly well recognised by the general public, owners have appeared very supportive.
"A day three post-operative check provides reassurance that their pet is healing and allows us an opportunity to intervene if required.”
“Being an ‘experienced’ vet can be a trade-off between textbook clinical decision-making and what we believe would work for our patients and their owners.
"Sometimes we need a paper or two to persuade us to change our ways, but here, going back to basic principles was enough for me.
“Twelve months later, after watching my cases for any mild complications and reflecting on the whether such complications could be attributed to the lack of antibiotics, I am convinced that this change has had no negative effects on my patients.”
https://ivcevidensia.co.uk/positive-pawprint
Duncan makes three requests of the UK Government:
The first is to make changes to encourage more overseas vets, and specifically the return of EU vets.
The second is to increase funding for UK universities to provide veterinary courses.
The final request is to update the regulatory framework to enable veterinary nurses to expand their role.
Full article: https://ivcevidensia.co.uk/News/duncan-phillips-time-to-overhaul-vet-support
For his research, Hugo visited the La Brea museum in Los Angeles, which gave him permission to study its collection of skeletal remains found in the La Brea tar pits.
“During my first visit, I concentrated on stifle diseases like cranial cruciate ligament rupture, which are very common in our modern-day dog companions.
"But in addition to cruciate disease, I also found OCD (osteochondritis dissecans) defects in the stifles and shoulders – which is again very common in modern dogs."
"My second visit was more focused on the changes in the spine of the dire wolf and the Sabre-toothed cat.”
"Some dire wolves had cruciate ligament ruptures, but it was uncommon compared to the most affected dog breeds.
"This is very similar to modern-day grey wolves which also suffer rarely from cruciate damage.
"In contrast, the prevalence of stifle OCD in these fossilised remains is amazingly high, especially in the sabre-toothed cat.
"This could indicate some degree of inbreeding, a factor which is predicated for species close to extinction.
Located on the Longbridge regeneration site near Birmingham, Blaise Referrals is IVC's first purpose-built, multi-disciplinary hospital in the UK and the company says it provides a blueprint for its future hospitals, with a clinician-led building design and a nurse-led clinical floor, both of which are fairly new practices for the profession.
Blaise Referrals will accept patients from first opinion practices across the UK and offer a wide range of services including orthopaedic and soft tissue surgeries, neurology, cardiology, internal medicine.
The hospital has a state-of-the art intensive care unit with a dedicated ICU team which can support other hospital departments with its advanced facilities.
The 36,000 square foot hospital also boasts a 1.5T Siemens MRI, a 64 slice Siemens CT scanner, multiple ultrasound machines and both fixed and digital radiography machines.
The team at Blaise is led by clinical director Former Member and hospital director Julie Davis, both of whom have been hard at work over the last year amassing a team of veterinary professionals across multiple disciplines including Jacques Ferreira as head of anaesthesia, Jennifer Raj as head of internal medicine and Carlo Anselmi as head of diagnostic imaging.
Andy said: “We’ve worked incredibly hard to get to this point and I know I speak on behalf of the whole team here at Blaise when I say we are thrilled to officially be able to welcome pets and owners from all around Birmingham and the Midlands.
“Recent years have seen an ever-increasing need for specialist referral services in the veterinary industry and we are here to answer that demand by providing excellent high-quality and professional care for pets who need it.”
www.blaise-referrals.com
In response to the question ‘How important is sustainability to you personally?’, 57% of respondents said it was very important making it the most popular choice.
However, in answer to the question: ‘Is your practice team actively working to improve sustainability?’, 20% of respondents said ‘Always/wherever possible’ and 42% said ‘Most of the time’, leaving 38% not actively working to improve sustainability.
IVC says the conclusion to be drawn is that sustainability is a personal priority, but this isn’t always translating to practice and more can be done.
To help with this, the company will shortly Positive Hoofprint, an Equine and Farm specific toolkit to help practices become more sustainable, with resources, checklists and practical advice for prioritising environmentally friendly initiatives.
Mark Tabachnik, UK Head of Equine for IVC Evidensia, said: “It’s clear from our survey that sustainability is still being treated as a secondary concern in practice, and this is something that IVC Evidensia is actively seeking to change.
“With our Positive Hoofprint about to be launched, there has never been a better time to prioritise our sustainability goals and to embed them in our own practices.
“This will give colleagues the tools they need to care for the planet, so we can fundamentally change equine veterinary to be more environmentally conscious for the future.”
On day one, Laura Playforth, IVC Evidensia’s Group Quality Improvement Director, will be looking at psychological safety and the adoption of a safety-critical culture in veterinary practice.
Sayaka Okushima from Pride Veterinary Referrals and Sarah Heath, IVC's Director of Sustainability, will be discussing the use of anaesthetic gases and ways to reduce them.
Other talks on day one will include: ‘Vets vs Nurses: Are we Blurring the Lines?’ and ‘The Criminal Underworld and Animal Welfare’.
On the second day, IVC referral clinicians will present lectures on various subjects, from handling emergency situations to mastering diagnostic testing equipment in first opinion practice.
David Owen, a Referral ECC Clinician at Vets Now in Manchester, will be talking about talking about emergency dyspnoea cases and how veterinary colleagues can cope with challenging situations efficiently.
Frances Bird, a European Specialist in Small Animal Surgery at Pride Veterinary Referrals, will be closing out the day with a discussion on treating respiratory disease from a surgeon’s perspective.
For the full programme, visit: https://london.vetshow.com/conference-programme?&filters.LOCATION=63903&searchgroup=ADD5CDE8-conference-programme-2023
The film features veterinary nurses with all sorts of different roles within IVC Evidensia, including being a Clinical Manager, a Farm Tech, a Referrals Nurse, a Student Nurse, an ECC Nurse, a Consulting Nurse, an Equine Nurse and a Mental Health First Aider, not to mention clinicians, friends, mentors, coaches, leaders, innovators and lifesavers.
Jessica Hotchin, Acting Chair of the IVC Evidensia Nurse Board, said: “In making the video, we wanted to make IVC Evidensia vet nurses feel supported in their roles, whilst showcasing the development and career opportunities open to them.
“Whatever exciting path they choose in their nursing career, whether that's specialising or generalising, working in practice or moving to a management position, we're here to support them every step of the way.”
In what the company says is a European first, IVC vets will be recognised for the skills they already have, as well as supported to achieve new skills within the GP framework.
The programme is also intended to increase GP's status within the profession, boost confidence, develop ability and provide a clear path for career progression.
Edward Davies BVSc MRCVS, IVC's new Aspirational GP Lead, said: "The plethora of skills a GP vet has is unparalleled when you look at other professions.
“This programme is about recognising the core and expansive knowledge sets we as GP vets possess, not just at an individual level, but an organisational and professional level.”
An initial two cohorts of up to 20-30 vets from across the business will take part over the next 12 months, and the expectation is that it will take around two years for every cohort to complete.
The programme is structured around a portfolio-based assessment by peers, with six core and three elective categories.
The core section includes the elements seen as fundamental to being a successful GP vet, complimented by the individual vet’s selection of three elective modules which best fit their clinical interests.
IVC says it plans for the GP Vet Futures Award to be externally accredited.
Ear cropping in UK dogs was exposed by BBC’s Panorama as a growing problem particularly with extreme mix breeds such as American Bullies and XL Bullies.
Dave said: “We need to urgently relook at legislation in the UK to prevent the serious rise in ear cropping which we’ve witnessed in recent years.”
It is currently illegal for a dog’s ears to be cropped in the UK, and proposals for a ban on importing dogs with cropped ears have been put forward by the Government. However, Dave says this legislation doesn’t go far enough to prevent an exponential rise in dogs with cropped ears, which some owners see as a status symbol: “At the moment the legislation in the UK is very hard to enforce unless you actually catch someone in the act of cropping the dog’s ears.
“It’s not currently illegal for someone to own a dog with cropped ears.
"So, if an owner were challenged by enforcement agencies, they’d just say ‘I bought the dog like this’ and there’s no liability.” “We propose that any dogs who already have cropped ears at the time the ban is due to come into force, must be registered on a database, which enforcement agencies and the veterinary profession would have access to.
"And for anyone owning an unregistered dog with cropped ears after the legislation comes into effect, then it’s a criminal offence.”
The Panorama programme also exposed co-ownership – where the breeder and the pet owner share ownership of the dog, often the bitch – as a system which has enabled unscrupulous breeders to get around current laws on dog breeding in the UK.
The breeder retains ownership of the stud dog and uses the network of co-owned female dogs for reproduction purposes. Dave said: “People need to be made aware of the risks of entering into a legal contract as a co-owner of one of these extreme mix breed dogs. “All the contracts I have seen in my role as an expert witness are strongly weighed in favour of the breeder. “So for example if the bitch does not have the requisite number of litters, or becomes ill or injured and has to be put to sleep, then the co-owner is fully liable for the full purchase cost of the dog to the breeder. “Considering that the female dogs are often valued in excess of £12k and the breeder may well have connections to organised crime or have a criminal record, there are huge risks for people entering into co-ownership.”
The technology, developed by US firm SignalPET, sends X-rays through an AI machine algorithm to get a more or less instantaneous report, rather than needing a radiology specialist to analyse results, which can take up to three days.
IVC starting trialling the system with 22 of its practices last November and it quickly became clear that there were huge benefits, including saving time for clinicians, cost, and improving confidence in the diagnosis.
The majority of IVC's trial teams said they viewed the technology as a positive diagnostic aid, supporting their own professional opinion.
It also served as a learning tool, increasing the confidence and clinical independence of younger or newly qualified vets.
Sarah Merrell, Clinical Director at Lincvet, a group of IVC Evidensia practices in Lincoln and one of the trial clinics, said: “SignalPET has proved really valuable – giving us excellent support for radiography.
"It has been used by both our highly experienced and newly graduated clinicians to get a second set of ‘eyes’ on our cases giving reassurance and support when reading our radiographs.
“Overall, it has improved clinician confidence, reduced the pressure on senior vets, given us an additional tool for training and development, and greatly enhanced client understanding of our findings.”
Alistair Cliff, IVC Evidensia’s Deputy Chief Medical Officer, said: “The AI radiology process developed by SignalPET represents a real revolution in how results are analysed.
"The overwhelming success of our initial trial in November means we are confident in pushing ahead with rolling out the technology in the UK this year and eventually, in Europe too."
Vet Sustain works to inspire and enable veterinary professionals to become leading forces in sustainability and improve the health and wellbeing of animals, people and the environment.
To that end, the company produces tools, training and communications for veterinary professionals centred around its six Veterinary Sustainability Goals (SDGs):
Gudrun Ravetz, Chair and Director of Vet Sustain, said: “We are very pleased to announce IVC Evidensia as a strategic partner of Vet Sustain.
"Veterinary professionals sit at the One Health triumvirate of people, planet and environment every day and working with IVC Evidensia will allow Vet Sustain to continue work on ambitious projects to support veterinary professionals to be active sustainability champions.”
You can find out more about IVC's Sustainability Report here: https://ivcevidensia.com/how-we-work/sustainability/
AniDent is a dental care range for cats and dogs - a rinse, a toothpaste and a gel - created with Virbac to help prevent periodontal disease.
Anident joins VetSoothe, a range of dermatology products which includes shampoos, ear cleaners and skin wipes, developed with Vetruus.
Earlier in the year, IVC also launched Joints & Mobility with Omega-3s, an addition to it's VetPro range, developed with one of the company's orthopaedic experts, Jamie McClement.
On the equine side, the company has also launched EquiXcellence, a range of equine nutritional health and wellbeing supplements.
VetNurse asked what longer term plans the company has for its exclusive brand product range.
An IVC Evidensia spokesperson said: "We're developing own brand veterinary products specifically where we think we can see areas we can add value for our practices, pet owners, and patients. In the case of Anident, we saw there was an opportunity to make oral care easier by offering a range of options to suit pet owners' needs.
"In the case of Joints & Mobility with Omega-3s, there is research which has shown that high levels of Omega-3s EPA & DHA can greatly support freedom of movement and pain, which was the key focus when developing the product.
"We plan to continually enhance our own brand portfolio across our UK and Europe practices with some exciting product launches on the horizon."
Photo: Gerhard Putter BVSc MRCVS MANZCVS (Veterinary Dentistry and Oral Surgery) Diplomate of the European Veterinary Dental College uses Anident on a big cat
The company has set up the Group Veterinary Medical Board (GVMB) Research Fund to offer practical support and financial assistance.
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Alistair Cliff (pictured right), said: "We introduced funding for research across our European Group at the beginning of this year and have been overwhelmed by the interest this has received. We understand the importance of these opportunities for professional development and also an individual’s job satisfaction.
“We believe it is incumbent upon us to increase this support for research to contribute to the advancement of knowledge, the development of our teams and our value as an employer. Ensuring our teams are content, with a diverse range of ways to develop, is important in allowing us to continue to attract the best people in the profession.
The GVMB Research Fund made its first awards in June 2021. Seven grants were provided to research teams from three countries – the UK, The Netherlands and France. In total, the funding will benefit some 21 researchers working as interns, residents, referral clinicians and specialists from a variety of different settings.
Chief Medical Officer Amanda Boag said: "It is incredibly satisfying to be able to provide support to our teams at critical points of their professional development. In some cases, funding has been provided to experienced researchers looking to contribute yet more to the understanding within their respective disciplines. In other examples, we have supported interns, who are at the very beginning of that journey and at a stage where funding can be difficult to secure.”
She added: “With additional interest from several general practitioners and nurses, the fund has quickly become a significant benefit to working for IVC Evidensia."
The GVMB also provides resources to guide teams on study design, ethical requirements, and statistical support. Less experienced researchers can access a network of Research Partners - a group of experienced clinicians from around Europe who have volunteered their own time to mentor colleagues through a collaborative approach to a project.
IVC says the new brand will allow better communication for equine teams within the IVC Evidensia group as well as collaboration with the wider equine world.
IVC Evidensia Equine Vets range from graduates to European Specialists, working in both dedicated equine and mixed practice, with all practices supported by the four large equine veterinary referral hospitals in the UK: Donnington Grove Veterinary Group, Fyrnwy Equine Group, Oakham Veterinary Hospital and Pool House Equine.
IVC says the brand's mission is to put the welfare of horses at the heart of everything it does, to providing outstanding continuity of care for all equine species and breeds across the network, to be at the forefront of continual professional development, supporting and facilitating the development of clinical and leadership skills across all their equine teams, and to build the leading network for equine veterinary care across Europe.
Richard Stephenson, Chair of the IVC Evidensia Equine Clinical Board, said: "Our network brings together all forms of equine work from ambulatory practice to some of leading UK equine referral centres.
“It gives support to all our staff in their careers. We facilitate clinical development from the graduate academy, through intern training, residencies and training up to European Diplomat level.
“We provide coaching and leadership, flexible roles and friendly, inclusive teams.”
For more information, visit https://www.ivcevidensia.co.uk/Equine or stand B01 at BEVA 2021 congress.
Instead of the traditional format, where one expert, perhaps two, come and lecture on a subject, IVC has gathered together experts from different disciplines to give their differing perspectives on a subject, each talking for 30 minutes.
For example, you'll be able to hear about BOAS surgery from the perspective of a Specialist in Small Animal Internal Medicine, an anaesthetist, a Specialist in Small Animal Surgery and a Specialist Surgical Nurse.
Collapse will be covered by a neurologist, a cardiologist and an ECC specialist.
IVC says the aim is to make the sessions as concise and to-the-point, but as practical as possible, and you'll be able to come and meet the speakers on the stand afterwards.
Richard Artingstall (MBA, MA, Vet MB, CertSAS, MRCVS, RCVS Advanced Practitioner in Small Animal Surgery) from Vale Referrals and the IVC Evidensia Referrals Strategy Group, said: "Working our Referrals and Equine streams like this gives delegates the opportunity to gain a real insight, from different disciplines, into how our specialists work up a case.
"The lectures will offer practical, discipline-based guidance, looking at clinical presentations and problems from different discipline perspectives. Our hope is that this will help delegates in decision making and planning case management plans for these more tricky case presentations in practice. I think it will be incredibly useful for them and I can’t wait to be there."
More information: https://london.vetshow.com/ivc-clinical-theatre
PawSquad, which was founded in 2015 by Diwaker Singh and Radu Georgescu, offers veterinary consultations by video and live text chat in the United Kingdom. IVC says it continue to operate as an autonomous entity within the IVC group.
PawSquad CEO, Dr Mark Boddy MRCVS (pictured right) said: “Our network of experienced veterinarians has already helped many thousands of pets in the UK, providing medical advice, emergency triage and preventive health plans. Being part of IVC will allow us to help even more pets and to continue to work positively and collaboratively with the veterinary profession, as well as expand geographically.”
Stuart Caton, Chief Commercial Officer at IVC Evidensia said: "Telemedicine will support the efforts of the group to make high quality veterinary care more accessible to pet owners, lowering the barriers to engagement with the veterinary profession. It’s an excellent acquisition that will further complement the group as pet services grow and evolve in the future. We are delighted the entire PawSquad team will continue with the business supporting their corporate and private clients as before.”
IVC says the accessibility of the PawSquad service encourages pet owners to seek professional advice earlier and more frequently, with around half of all queries being referred for necessary in-clinic follow-up and otherwise providing much valued reassurance and peace of mind.
The company also says telemedicine is particularly appreciated by cat owners or those with nervous dogs, where the stress of a clinic visit can sometimes result in those pets missing out on veterinary care.
PawSquad Chairman and Founder, Diwaker Singh said: “We are pet lovers and launched PawSquad with the objective of making sure that pet owners have instant 24/7 access to quality pet care, accessible from their homes. Towards this end, PawSquad is a great success. The service has grown significantly, confirming there is a clear need for this service. IVC Evidensia’s extensive network will help the business strengthen and grow to even greater heights.”