In April, our Birkenhead surgery began a trial of vaccination clinics, run by two nurses and a vet. The clinics are designed purely for well animals requiring a booster or a second jab (kittens and puppies) – much like a Covid clinic for humans.
The vet will do a ‘nose to tail’ examination when a patient arrives, with the nurse charting all the information. If the animal is fit and well, the nurse will then do the vaccination, whilst the vet moves on to the second room to do the ‘nose to tail’ examination on the next patient – and so on.
Phil, Practice Manager at Birkenhead, commented: “Before introducing the vaccination clinics, we carried out four vaccinations per hour. Now we can do 10 an hour, which means we have freed up four appointments to see sick pets who really need us.
“Not only that, but it’s a different way of working for both vets and nurses, and they love it. The nurses have greater autonomy and in addition, it frees up time for the vets to spend more time with other patients who may have more complex ailments,” he added.
The trial started in April and has proved a great success to date. Vaccination clinics take place on Wednesdays and Thursdays each week and clients are sent reminders about when their pet’s vaccination is due – something that’s been very well received with lots of positive feedback. In addition, the vaccination clinic has a clearly designated waiting area (see right), so clients know where to go when they arrive.
Founder and CEO Owen commented: “Sharing this workload with nurses is an essential step towards helping with the shortage of vets and the unprecedented number of pets in the UK. In addition, it enriches and empowers nurses, allows vets to focus on what they need to do, and delivers access to care for pets – so a win all round. Well done to everyone involved – I’m looking forward to hearing more of your successes and to seeing this initiative rolled out company-wide.”
Vaccination clinics will be rolled out in all the remaining surgeries in the coming weeks.
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