The WikiQuiz project - a free online question and answer tool which enables vets, vet students and vet nurses to test their knowledge - is now online thanks to £4,770 of funding from the RCVS Trust.

WikiQuiz is a new resource to enable vets and students to structure and direct their learning, and links directly to information on WikiVet, the free research and academic collaboration resource put together by over 40 academics, veterinary surgeons and students from the Universities of Cambridge, Edinburgh and Nottingham, and the Royal Veterinary College (RVC).  However, unlike its namesake Wikipedia, WikiVet is designed to be an accurate, peer-reviewed source of information for the veterinary profession and tailored to the undergraduate veterinary curriculum. Some of the material is also of interest to veterinary nurses, in particular those pursuing advanced professional qualifications.

Nick Short, Head of E-Media at the RVC said: "WikiQuiz is purpose-built for vets and students to structure and direct their learning. The questions and answers in WikiQuiz will help vets and veterinary students and work out what topics they might need to study, and link them directly to relevant information published on WikiVet.

"The Wikipedia concept is familiar and popular with students and vets; however, the information on the site can lack quality and relevance", he continued.  "In creating WikiVet, we've used the look and feel of Wikipedia - but by making WikiVet available only to veterinary students, surgeons and nurses, introducing a peer-review system and appointing an editorial board to oversee the site, we can ensure the information published is relevant and accurate.

"We are hugely grateful to the RCVS Trust for supporting this project."

Cherry Bushell, RCVS Trust Director said:  "Veterinary undergraduates and veterinary surgeons alike need to be able to assess where there are any gaps in their knowledge as part of planning their learning and development.  The WikiQuiz resource helps them to do this.

"Using good quality online tools and information can save vets and students valuable time - which is one reason why we chose to support WikiQuiz.  The WikiVet project also fits very well with the online Library services provided to vets, veterinary nurses and students by the Trust."

Veterinary surgeons, students and nurses can apply for a free log-in to WikiVet at http://www.wikivet.net/.

The RCVS reports that almost 500 veterinary nurses have been removed from the Register of Veterinary Nurses as a result of not renewing their registration with the College.

Some 692 veterinary nurses had their names removed from the Register on 1 January 2016, although 205 subsequently applied to have their name restored to the Register.

A number of communications were sent to registered veterinary nurses last year to remind them that their annual renewal was due – including via email, text, letter, in RCVS News and through the veterinary press.

Nicola South, Customer Experience Manager and Head of Registration at the RCVS, said: “Veterinary nurses must renew their registration by the end of every year because, if their name is removed from the Register, they will no longer be able to perform acts of minor surgery or medical treatment as defined under Schedule 3 of the Veterinary Surgeons Act. Furthermore, the restoration fee is an additional £112 on top of the annual renewal fee for veterinary nurses, so it represents a significant extra cost.”

The RCVS recommends that practices carry out checks to ensure that veterinary nurses they employ are on the Register. A list of those who have been removed from the Register can be found at www.rcvs.org.uk/registration/about-the-vn-register/

Employers, veterinary nurses and others can also use the online Check the Register search tool (www.rcvs.org.uk/registration/check-the-register/) which is updated daily.

Those who have been removed from the Register of Veterinary Nurses and who wish to apply to be restored can do so by contacting the RCVS Registration Department on 020 7202 0707 or registration@rcvs.org.uk

The RCVS has launched an online petition calling on Parliament to protect the title ‘veterinary nurse’ in law.

The petition follows on from the work done by the College earlier in the year, drawing up the ‘Veterinary Nurse (Protection of Title) Bill’ which was submitted to a ballot of the House of Lords in May by former RCVS President and Council member Professor the Lord Trees and received its first reading on 10 June.

Unfortunately, Lord Trees' Bill was drawn low in the ballot, so it is now thought unlikely - though not impossible - that it will be given time for a second reading in this parliament.

Nevertheless, the College is continuing to try and raise awareness of the issue, both amongst the public and parliamentarians. If the petition gains enough signatures, it should maximise the chances of the Bill being given a proper airing in parliament, this year or in the future.

Liz Cox, the Chair of VN Council, said: “We believe that the fact that anybody can call themselves a veterinary nurse is unacceptable. It means that there is potential for the public to be misled and for animal health and welfare to be compromised. Therefore we would urge veterinary nurses, veterinary surgeons and animal owners to sign this petition. With 10,000 signatures the Government is obliged to respond formally and take a stance on the issue; with 100,000 signatures the issue would be considered for a formal parliamentary debate.

“If we are successful with this campaign, the public will be assured that they are receiving the highest standard of nursing care for their animals from a genuine professional and by protecting the title we can remove any doubt about who is a veterinary nurse.”

In conjunction with the petition, the RCVS has also produced a template letter which the profession and public can use to write to their local Member of Parliament asking them to support the campaign. For example, the letter asks the MP to adopt the Veterinary Nurse (Protection of Title) Bill and enter it into a Private Members’ Bill ballot or introduce it as a 10-Minute Rule Bill. 

The petition, and the campaign in general, has received support from the BVNA and the British Veterinary Association BVA.

Fiona Andrew, President of the BVNA, said: “BVNA has campaigned for the protection of the title of 'Veterinary Nurse' for many years. We are delighted that the RCVS is continuing the campaign with the addition of the online petition and letter template. 

“We would ask all out members to sign the petition and write to their MP. We believe that this is an important step towards giving clarity and reassurance to the public, strengthening the profession and raising awareness of what veterinary nurses can do and enhancing animal welfare.”

John Blackwell, President of the BVA, added: “BVA is delighted to support the campaign to protect the title, as veterinary nurses are an essential part of the veterinary team and deserve full recognition for their roles. By protecting the title it not only recognises the skills of qualified veterinary nurses, but also gives clients confidence that their animals are receiving the highest standard of care possible.”
 
Those who wish to sign the petition can do so on the UK Government and Parliament petition website https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/106153  
 
To find out more about the campaign, download a template letter to an MP and view the College's animated video about protecting the title, visit www.rcvs.org.uk/vntitle

The RCVS has announced that it is carrying out an audit of continuing professional development (CPD) for vets in order to monitor compliance and gauge what type of activities they are engaging in.

Under the RCVS Code of Professional Conduct, introduced in 2012, veterinary surgeons are expected to undertake 105 hours of CPD over a rolling three-year period in order to demonstrate that they are maintaining and advancing their knowledge and skills.

Nearly 5,000 vets - made up of three cohorts - have been asked to share their CPD records. The first cohort comprises 4,425 UK-practising vets who registered before 1 April 2012 but who did not confirm their CPD compliance upon renewing their registration this year. The second cohort comprises a random sample of 400 vets who did confirm their compliance upon renewing their registration this year. The third cohort comprises 84 vets who graduated before 2012 but have not yet completed their post-graduation Professional Development Phase.

Christine Warman, RCVS Head of Education, said: "Since it is coming up to three years since we introduced the Code we thought that now is a good time to take stock of the proportion of veterinary surgeons that are fulfilling the requirement and how they are doing so.

"It is also a good time to remind members of the profession of the importance of CPD and that it is not just a tick-box exercise but vital for everyday practice. Engaging in CPD is a personal obligation for all veterinary surgeons and demonstrates to both the profession and public that they are continually advancing their capability and competence.

"This year we will be providing some guidance on what constitutes CPD and how to undertake it to those who are non-compliant. However, from 2015, we may also refer those who repeatedly fail to comply, or respond to requests to submit their records, to our Professional Conduct Department for further investigation."

Vets who have been selected to take part in the audit will have received letters in early November and will have until Monday 1 December to respond. They can do so by either allowing the RCVS to view their online Professional Development Record (PDR) profile or by submitting their paper CPD record by post or by sending the College a scanned copy by email.

For further advice and to submit a CPD record by email, contact cpd@rcvs.org.uk. Those who have not yet registered for the PDR can do so by visiting www.rcvs-pdr.org.uk

The RCVS has announced that Dot Creighton has been given its Veterinary Nursing Golden Jubilee Award for her pioneering work to raise awareness of the role that nurses play.

Dot, who was President of the BVNA from 2003 to 2004, devised the concept of VN Awareness Day as a way of making animal owners and local communities more aware of veterinary nurses and what they do. This subsequently developed into an awareness week and now National VN Awareness Month, which takes place every May. This legacy was one of the main reasons Dot, who was also a member of VN Council from 2004 to 2011, was chosen to win the Award.

Kathy Kissick, Chair of VN Council, said: “Dot has worked tirelessly to raise awareness of the veterinary nurse both within the profession and with the general public. She has always supported the student veterinary nurse in training and leads by example at all times inspiring nurses to stay in or return to practice even when life changes their circumstances.

“Dot is an inspiration to many, many nurses and always commits 100% to the welfare of the animals in her care and to her clients. I congratulate her on achieving this award.”

The VN Golden Jubilee Award was launched in 2011 to celebrate the 50^th anniversary of the first RCVS veterinary nurse training scheme and nominees can be veterinary nurses, veterinary surgeons or lay people who have made an outstanding contribution to the profession.

Dot was nominated for the Award by fellow veterinary nurse Lindsey Raven-Emrich who praised her “enthusiasm and input” to the profession, adding that she really “couldn’t think of a better member of the nursing community to receive this award.”

Dot, who is currently working in practice in Essex, said she was delighted to win the Award at such a crucial time for the profession. She said: “It couldn’t be a more exciting time to train to be a veterinary nurse – we have a robust training scheme, we are pushing and advancing the boundaries of veterinary nursing practice, we are seeing veterinary nurses branch out into different fields of clinical practice and, most importantly, the new Royal Charter officially recognises veterinary nursing as a regulated profession.”

The Award will be given to Dot at this year’s RCVS Day – the College’s Annual General Meeting and Awards Day – which takes place on Friday 10 July at One Great George Street in Westminster.

Locum David John Porter has been struck off by the RCVS Disciplinary Committee for rude and aggressive behaviour, deficient clinical standards and obstructing the Committee's investigation into the complaints against him.

Three charges were found against Mr Porter.

The first charge (charge A) concerned failure to communicate courteously and respectfully with colleagues. This charge related to four incidents as follows:

• A1: On 3 November 2011, whilst on duty at the Seadown Veterinary Hospital in Southampton, he was rude and/or threatening and/or aggressive to two veterinary surgeon colleagues.
• A2: On 11 June 2012, whilst on duty at Clent Hills Veterinary Group, Worcestershire, he said to an assistant practice manager and receptionist that British veterinary surgeons and practice managers were untrustworthy.
• A3: On 12 June 2012, when on the telephone with the practice manager of Clent Hills, he was rude and/or used inappropriate language; and stated that a lot of British vets were “bloody awful”, liars and cheats.
• A4: In January 2013, during the course of an Employment Tribunal hearing in relation to his time as a locum at Clent Hills Veterinary Group in June 2012, he raised his voice aggressively and/or shouted at the Clent Hills practice manager.

In finding him guilty of this charge the Committee referred to his “wholly unacceptable exchanges with other veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses and ancillary practice staff members with whom he was working on the dates in question.”

The second charge for which he was found guilty (charge C) concerned what the Committee called “his seriously deficient clinical standards when treating animals under his care”, in particular that:

• C1: Between 31 October 2011 and 4 November 2011 at Seadown Veterinary Hospital he used inadequate levels of hygiene when conducting surgery by failing to scrub up and/or wash his hands before surgery, including abdominal surgery.
• C2: On 26 April 2013 at the Stanhope Park Veterinary Practice he used surgical spirit to clean the ear canal of a dog.
• C3: On 27 April 2013 at the same practice, he unreasonably refused to euthanase a dog.
• C4: On 28 April 2013, at the same practice, he used a ratchet gag on a rabbit without having first administered sedation or anaesthesia.

Within charge C he was cleared of two further parts of the charge – first, that he failed to discuss euthanasia with a client in relation to a kitten and failed to provide the client with sufficient advice and instructions regarding after-care; and, second, that he prescribed steroids to treat a kitten for muscle strain at a time when it was recovering from surgery.

The third charge for which he was found guilty (charge D) relates to Mr Porter’s failure, between 7 February 2013 and 31 October 2014, to respond adequately to communications from the RCVS. In particular that:

• D(i): Between 7 February and 21 December 2013 he failed to respond constructively or at all to correspondence from the College.
• D(ii): From July 2014 he failed to respond to specific requests for details regarding his qualifications and experience.

As to the conduct found proved in relation to charge D, the Committee set out its findings of fact and declared: “What Mr Porter chose to do was to attempt to obstruct the College in its attempts to investigate the complaints laid against him and, thereafter, its attempts to bring him before the Committee to answer the charges preferred against him. In short, he has directly questioned, and then disregarded and thwarted, the legitimate role of his professional regulatory body.” 

The Committee’s reasons for taking a serious view of such conduct were expressed in the following words: “Both the public and other members of the profession must be entitled to rely on the expectation that all veterinary surgeons, as responsible professional persons, will co-operate fully and promptly to all proper enquiries made of them by the College. This is the wider public interest factor which means that deliberate attempts to thwart the College’s enquiries into complaints must, in our judgment, come at the top end of the spectrum of gravity of disgraceful conduct in a professional respect.” 

During the course of the hearing, which began in June 2015 and was adjourned three times, Mr Porter was cleared of charge B against him which concerned alleged refusal to undertake out-of-hours work for the Clent Hills Veterinary Group having previously indicated he would undertake such work.

In making the decision on the sanction in this case, Judith Webb, chairing the Disciplinary Committee and speaking on its behalf, said: “In reaching our conclusion as to the sanction which is merited in this case we have taken into account the totality of Mr Porter’s conduct and failings. We consider that the conduct pertaining to Charges D(i) and (ii), even when viewed separately, demand the imposition of a direction for the removal of Mr Porter’s name from the Register.

“When that conduct is considered in conjunction with the other misconduct found proved in relation to Charges C1 to C4, which identify his clinical failings, and Charges A1 to A4, which demonstrate unprofessional behaviour in the workplace, we unhesitatingly conclude that there is no other sanction that could be considered sufficient, other than that of erasure.”

The introduction of the new Level 3 Diploma in Veterinary Nursing has seen an increase in numbers of both students and training practices, according to statistics released today by the RCVS.

Since January, the RCVS has approved over 30 more Training and Auxiliary Training Practices, bringing to a total of 1,559 the number of practices approved for veterinary nurse (VN) training. Scope for practices to train student VNs is increased through the emphasis on Auxiliary Training Practices (aTPs), an option for practices without the full facilities or caseload needed for student training.  Students at aTPs complete their in-practice training at other aTPs or full Training Practices. Of the 31 new practices approved since January for student training, eight are aTPs.

The number of VN students enrolling with the RCVS has also increased, with almost double the number enrolling in January 2011, compared with January 2010. There were a total of 1,168 student enrolments in the 12 months from 1 February 2010, compared with 1,121 enrolments in the same period from 1 February 2009.

Libby Earle, Head of the RCVS Veterinary Nursing Department said: "The Level 3 Diploma has been in place for little more than six months, yet VN student numbers are already up. This bodes well for the supply of qualified, competent registered veterinary nurses demanded by veterinary practices, and for those keen to enter the veterinary nursing profession."

The qualification was introduced when the government abolished the National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) system last summer, forcing a change in the vocational qualifications for VNs. The resulting Level 3 Diploma is designed to better meet the needs of practices, colleges, and students themselves. 

The RCVS has launched Mind Matters, a new initiative to help address mental health and wellbeing issues within the veterinary profession.

Neil Smith, RCVS Vice-President and Chair of the Mind Matters Initiative said: “Mental Health is a significant issue for the veterinary profession. Most of us have experience of colleagues or ourselves having problems. The Mind Matters Initiative is a pan-profession project, and I am very pleased that there is active engagement from across the various veterinary associations and stakeholders.”

“The RCVS already contributes through our Health Protocol and support of the Veterinary Benevolent Fund. The Mind Matters Initiative seeks to work more proactively by increasing the accessibility and acceptance of support, encouraging a culture that is better equipped to talk and deal with stress and related mental health issues, and, ultimately, by helping to reduce such triggers within the profession.”

The first Mind Matters Initiative action is providing funding to ensure that callers to Vet Helpline, a completely confidential support service which is part of the Veterinary Benevolent Fund and run by volunteers, are put directly through to a person, rather than having to leave a message.

Rosie Allister, Chair of Vet Helpline said: “We are able to offer confidential, non-judgemental support to many vets, VNs, vet students and members of their families who call us in distress, but we know there are more who are put off by the prospect of leaving a message.

“It takes real courage to reach out for help when you’re struggling, and we know it can be especially tough for vets. Although we respond to calls quickly, callers need to speak to someone immediately, and not a message system, when they are in crisis. Through the Mind Matters Initiative funding we are able to put in place a service that connects a caller directly to a human being, which could make a real difference for people who call.”

The new Vet Helpline system will be in place on 22 December, in time for Christmas, which can be a difficult time for many people. The Vet Helpline number is 07659 811 118 and there is also a confidential email service, accessible via www.vetlife.org.uk. 

The Mind Matters Initiative will be sustained over an initial three-year period, and will include five streams of activity:

• Learning and understanding best practice – research within the veterinary profession, for example, into occupational stress factors; and among other related professions and private and public sector organisations that have successfully tackled similar issues
• Changing the culture – a programme of communications activities to help generate a positive environment for discussion, reduce stigma, increase awareness and the ability to identify risks, and encourage help-seeking behaviour
• Intervention: personal level – financial and other support for existing services, such as Vet Helpline and Veterinary Surgeons Health Support Programme, together with an investigation into what more may be required to support those in need
• Intervention: supporting the supporters – training and guidance for those who may be working or living with someone who needs assistance, in order to help supporters spot and understand signs of stress and mental illness, and help the person seek expert help
• Making changes – working closely with the joint RCVS/British Veterinary Association Vet Futures project (www.vetfutures.org.uk) to help identify aspects of how the profession is structured and run (from student to retirement) that exacerbate stress and mental health problems – and consider how they may be addressed

The Mind Matters Initiative is supported by a group comprising the Veterinary Benevolent Fund, the British Veterinary Association, the British Veterinary Nursing Association, the Veterinary Practice Management Association, the Veterinary Schools Council, the Veterinary Defence Society and the Association of Veterinary Students.

The RCVS has announced it can now accredit international veterinary nursing courses and qualifications, following a decision by the Veterinary Nursing Education Subcommittee.

At its March meeting the Subcommittee agreed a framework for accrediting awarding organisations and higher education institutions delivering veterinary nursing qualifications wholly or partially outside of the United Kingdom. The changes had already been approved in principle by VN Council members at a meeting in February 2015.

Julie Dugmore, Head of Veterinary Nursing at the RCVS, said: “Although international VN training providers can now apply for accreditation, it would be dependent on them meeting the same stringent criteria as their UK counterparts.

“For example, they would be subject to many visitations to monitor the standards of teaching and the curriculum; their students would need to have a requisite amount of time gaining first-hand clinical experience in training practices; and we would need to be satisfied that their graduates meet the set of skills and competences we expect from all newly-qualified veterinary nurses.”

At the same meeting the VN Education Subcommittee also clarified and formalised the registration rules for veterinary nurses who wish to join the UK Register but who qualified outside both the European Union (EU) and European Economic Area (EEA).

Veterinary nurses trained outside the UK will continue to have their qualifications assessed against UK standards. From now on, all non-EU/EEA trained veterinary nurses and some EU/EEA trained veterinary nurses will have to pass pre-registration theory and practical examinations.

Furthermore, all registrants trained outside the UK (including those from EU/EEA countries) will have to come to the RCVS to have their documentation checked and will have the main tenets of the Code of Professional Conduct for Veterinary Nurses explained to them. Registration will not be confirmed until staff members from the Veterinary Nursing Department are satisfied that the Code has been understood.

The full details of the international qualification accreditation requirements and application process as well as information for international registrants will be included in an upcoming Awarding Organisation and Higher Education Institution Handbook which is due to be published at the end of April 2015. Once published this will be made available at www.rcvs.org.uk/publications

The RCVS has announced the launch of a consultation on the new proposed list of 'day-one' clinical skills needed by veterinary nurses when they first enter practice.

The College says it welcomes comments on the new list from veterinary nurses, veterinary surgeons and all those involved in veterinary nurse training and education.

The current Day-One Skills document was developed by RCVS Awards, the College's awarding body, in 2010 and provides a list of those skills student veterinary nurses are expected to have gained by the end of their training, and to be competent and confident in when they first go into practice.

As RCVS Awards will be closed by the end of this year, the RCVS is taking the opportunity to review the Day One Skills to bring them closer into line with our recently revised Day One Competences, and to reduce the number of required skills in order to make it more relevant to clinical practice.

Julie Dugmore, Head of Veterinary Nursing, said: "The current document was developed from an awarding body perspective and not that of the regulator, so it specifies a large number of non-clinical skills, for example, handling and moving equipment safely, which, while important, are somewhat out of our regulatory remit.

"Given the wide variety of veterinary practice settings to which student veterinary nurses are exposed, it is important that we, as the industry regulator, define the required day-one skills and ensure that these align with the required day-one competences. We need to review the skills list to ensure consistency, that it reflects current practice, and that it only includes those skills deemed necessary for registration purposes. A clearer focus on safe and effective clinical skills would support our primary regulatory role: that of protecting animal welfare and the public interest."

The consultation sets out the proposed Day-One Skills, grouped according to the corresponding day-one competences, and asks for feedback on their relevance, accuracy and completeness. Comments would be welcomed from higher education institutions, awarding organisations, centres, and training practices, as well as veterinary nurses and veterinary surgeons.

The consultation is available via the RCVS website at www.rcvs.org.uk/consultations and the deadline for responses is 5pm on 29 July 2015.

The RCVS has published a series of case studies designed to help veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses in gaining properly informed consent from clients for procedures and treatments.

The case studies were developed by the RCVS Standards Committee and use a variety of examples of where miscommunication between a client and the veterinary practice can lead to an inadequate level of consent being gained for procedures and treatment, including euthanasia.

Examples include damaged teeth being removed during a clean and polish dental procedure without the owner’s express permission and not giving the full range of options available in the case of a dog with an osteosarcoma.

The case studies follow the Standards Committee approving changes to chapter 11 (‘Communication and consent’) of the supporting guidance to the RCVS Code of Professional Conduct in January 2018 to give further advice on how to discuss informed consent with clients, who can be responsible for gaining consent for a procedure and additional guidance on consent forms.

Dr Kate Richards MRCVS, Chair of the RCVS Standards Committee, said: "We hope these case studies will prove useful to practitioners who are having to deal with the complexities around making sure that procedures are fully explained to ensure informed consent is gained.

"We understand the difficulties that are encountered and so these case studies, based on real-life scenarios, highlight where things may go wrong and how these incidents can be avoided by being thorough and ensuring that good communication is at the heart of all we do."

To view the case studies, visit www.rcvs.org.uk/informed-consent.

Chapter 11 of the RCVS supporting guidance on communication and consent is available to view at www.rcvs.org.uk/consent

The RCVS has released the photograph of a man apprehended by Wiltshire police whilst working as a bogus veterinary surgeon at a practice in Swindon.

Peter Keniry, who had been practising under the name of a properly qualified and legitimately registered veterinary surgeon Shaun Kehoe, was arrested on 23 August and appeared in Swindon Magistrates' Court on charges of fraud and practising veterinary surgery unlawfully.  He was released on bail.

Mr Keniry is no stranger to the College or the police, and has already been dealt with in 1998, 2001 and 2005 for similar offences. On each occasion, Mr Keniry has impersonated a member of the College whose name is legitimately on the Register, which makes it difficult even for practices that do check the credentials of prospective employees.

Gordon Hockey, Head of Professional Conduct and Assistant Registrar at the RCVS said: "We were alerted to the potential fraud on 23 August and immediately liaised with the police to facilitate Mr Keniry's arrest that same day. The next day, RCVS Council member Dr Bob Moore and I visited Swindon police station to assist the police.

"It appears that Mr Keniry has continued his pattern of re-offending, and we hope that by publicising his photograph any other practice that has employed him recently will recognise him and contact the RCVS Professional Conduct Department, and potential employers and locum agencies will keep his photograph to reduce the chances of this happening again."

The RCVS Professional Conduct Department can be contacted on: profcon@rcvs.org.uk or 020 7202 0789.

The RCVS has announced it will be launching a new nine-month alternative dispute resolution (ADR) trial this autumn which will be administered by the law firm that runs the General Optical Council’s ADR scheme.

Nockolds Solicitors was approved as the new administrator of the ADR trial by RCVS Council at its June 2016 meeting at Cardiff City Hall. The company was identified and approved by the RCVS Operational Board as meeting its requirements, a decision which the RCVS says has been welcomed by the Veterinary Defence Society and the British Veterinary Association, as well as receiving lay and consumer support.

The current trial, which was launched in November 2014 and is administered by Ombudsman Services, will come to a close by 1 October, when the new trial with Nockolds will start.

Nick Stace, RCVS Chief Executive and Secretary, said: "In order to be able to make an informed choice about how we wish to design and implement a permanent ADR scheme we wanted to ensure that we have as many different options and as much data as possible. It is very important that we get the permanent scheme right and this is why Operational Board made the decision to have a second trial. It was also clear that satisfaction levels from consumers for the previous trial were lower than we would have liked and that we therefore need to explore other options.

"It is important to note that this will not just be a re-run of the first trial with a different administrator – there will be some significant differences between this and our first trial with Ombudsman Services.

"First, this will be a truly alternative process as consumers will be able to access the trial directly rather than having to go through the College’s concerns process first.

"Second, this will be a process of mediation meaning that expert advisors from Nockolds will facilitate communication between the complainant and the veterinary surgeon to try and find a satisfactory solution to the concern."

The trial will be promoted to both the public and the profession as an alternative to the College’s formal concerns investigation process and participation in the trial will be voluntary. There will also still be a panel of veterinary advisors overseeing the trial and helping staff at Nockolds with any clinical queries they may have.

Jennie Jones is a Partner at Nockolds and will head up the trial. She said: "We are committed to providing a service that mediates complaints to find a fair, efficient and proportionate resolution. We are looking forward to working with everyone involved in veterinary profession to develop an effective mediation service that can be accessed by both the public and members of the profession.

"The service will focus on finding effective and practical resolutions. Understanding the root cause of the complaint and re-establishing effective communication are the crucial first steps in mediation and helping the parties to find a solution they can both accept. Over the coming months, we will be working with the RCVS, representative bodies for the profession and consumers to launch the service.

"In addition to mediating complaints, we will share insight in mediation and complaint resolution to inform practitioners and stakeholders and to enhance standards at veterinary practices. This enables complaint analysis to be used to help improve client care, avoid complaints and maintain trust and confidence in the profession."

A bespoke website for the trial will be set up in time for the launch on 1 October 2016.