Welcome to the BVHA
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.
We are delighted to again be running the Practice Design Awards in association with The Veterinary Edge. The awards are open to any practice that is a new build, a conversion, has undertaken a refurbishment, or even that has just converted an area of the practice into something new and innovative. For details on how to enter the 2023 awards, click here.
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.