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Welcome to the British Veterinary Hospitals Association's
WebSite. When you love your pet or horse (as most of us owners do) one of the
most important decisions that you can make about the health and well-being of
your pet is in the choice of your veterinary practice.
Not all
Vets are the Same
There are many things to consider when making
this choice, personal recommendation, convenience of access etc. However it is
important to remember that not all veterinary practices are the same.
Veterinary Hospitals represent the highest standard of veterinary practice in
the UK. One certain way of recognising a Veterinary Hospital is by seeing the
BVHA membership logo being displayed.
Independent
Inspection
BVHA Hospital members have voluntarily agreed to have
an intensive examination and inspection of their practices. This inspection is
carried out by independent inspectors appointed by the Royal College of
Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS), our governing body. The inspection covers a whole
range of issues relating to the care of patients - for example the continuing
education of staff, the provision of anaesthetic monitoring and laboratory
equipment, the quality of radiographic (X-ray) facilities and the quality of
the case records. It also covers the physical aspects of the buildings - for
example the provision of suitable padded stables for anaesthetising horses in
Equine Veterinary Hospitals and isolation facilities to prevent the spread of
disease from infectious patients.
One of the most important aspects of a
Veterinary Hospital is that they have members of staff on the premises 24 hours
a day. These members of the veterinary team are specifically responsible for
the care of any in-patients. In most veterinary practices there is no-one on
the premises after the end of evening surgery or over weekends. This means that
there is no-one on the premises to look after any patients that are kept in
overnight. No-one to notice that an i/v drip line has become blocked, a patient
has started to vomit or is showing pain.
If your pet has to be admitted for
veterinary treatment - we are sure that most caring owners would like to know
that there is someone there to look after them. The ability to provide 24 hour
nursing care is a major cost for Veterinary Hospitals, their prices may have to
reflect this. However it is one of the strongest reasons to choose a BVHA
member Veterinary Hospital to look after your animals, not just for
emergencies, but for routine care and vaccinations as well.
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