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  Public Area Resources

Hospital Inspections

Hospital inspections are carried out by the RCVS, the contact point there is Eleanor Ferguson, phone 0207 222 2001.

For established Veterinary Hospitals inspections are carried out every four years. For all new Veterinary Hospitals the first main re-inspection is carried out after two years, only then is the normal four year inspection cycle started.

For new practices a “pre-trading” inspection can be carried out. This inspection is carried out prior to the completion of work, so allowances will be made for cabinetry not being installed etc. However the inspector must be convinced, by your plans, equipment on site, invoices and delivery schedules etc that the practice will meet veterinary hospital standards upon completion. This pre-trading inspection will allow the practice to commence trading from day one as a veterinary hospital (if successful). Obviously this has implications as far as producing signage, stationery, letterheads etc. A second inspection is then carried out within six months of the pre-trading inspection. The practice must pass this inspection or all use of the name “Veterinary Hospital” will have to cease immediately.

The RCVS gives hospitals plenty of notice of the inspection and sends a form to be completed and returned to them. The RCVS then allocates an inspector to carry out the inspection. The veterinary hospital can request a different inspector, but the RCVS has usually already taken care to make sure that the inspector is not involved in a competitor practice.

The Inspector will then contact the hospital directly to arrange a mutually convenient date for the inspection. Usually allow half a day for the inspection. Different inspectors approach the inspection in different ways, however it is common to do the paperwork first and then to carry out the physical inspection. There is a considerable amount of paperwork to be checked. It makes the inspector’s life a lot easier if you have organised your paperwork in the same order as that required by the RCVS. Cups of coffee and biscuits (preferably chocolate) help ease the process.

The Inspector’s report is submitted to the RCVS Advisory Committee. The Advisory Committee meets six times a year. It is the decision of the Advisory Committee as to whether a Hospital is approved or not. Practices may be passed as a Veterinary Hospital subject to certain conditions within set time frames. Depending upon the requirements the Hospital may be required to certify that the work has been undertaken (perhaps supporting this with photographic evidence), or a re-inspection may be required.

On confirmation of Veterinary Hospital status a certificate is issued by the RCVS.

Quality Assurance of the Inspection Process

BVHA is convinced that it is important to encourage a consistent approach to inspections. To this end it has helped the RCVS establish "training days" for the inspectors. The first of these was held at the Royal Veterinary College where the inspectors assessed both the Equine and Small Animal Hospitals. The results of the individual inspections were compared and discussed. BVHA has also helped to prepare a further training day where a "virtual" inspection is to be held, using various images of a range of veterinary premises. It is hoped that discussion of problem areas will create a uniform approach.

BVHA has also encouraged the RCVS to establish an email loop so that the inspectors can discuss contentious issues as they arise, to further encourage a consistent approach. The email loop also acts to provide feedback to the inspectors from the Advisory Committee regarding the inspections they have submitted.

BVHA has also produced a feedback form for veterinary hospitals to complete after they have been inspected. These forms are returned to the BVHA Secretariat and made anonymous. These returns allow the BVHA to determine if there is significant variation between inspectors and to see if there are areas that require further training. Click here to download a form.

The Veterinary Hospital Standard

The RCVS introduced their three tier Practice Standards Scheme in January 2005. The Veterinary Hospital standard has been incorporated into this scheme as Tier Three.

Click here to download a copy of the Standard and here for a copy of the rules of the scheme. Please note that although all efforts are made to ensure that this copy is up to date, the definitive version of the Standard at any time is the one to be found on the RCVS web site.