Review of 'under care' and 24/7 emergency cover (stage 3)

A long journey

The journey of reviewing 'under care’ and provision of 24-hour emergency first-aid and pain relief has been a long one, its origins dating back to the Vet Futures initiative in 2016.

“The proposed guidance seeks to protect animal health and welfare and maintain public trust by ensuring that decision-making remains firmly in the hands of individual veterinary surgeons”

Relating as it does to a fundamental aspect of veterinary practice, this review has generated considerable discussion and debate in recent years, with strongly held views presented on all sides during all stages, including evidence-gathering, analysis and feedback.

As ever, it is the College’s responsibility, through the work of our Standards Committee and Council, to consider in detail the views and experience of all our stakeholders along with, in this case, formal legal advice and commissioned independent research, and to propose a way forward.

The pandemic effect

A significant contributor to the length of this journey, of course, has been the Covid-19 pandemic, which has delayed the review’s progress by around two years. Nevertheless, numerous lockdowns have afforded us the chance to explore our long-held understanding of what ‘under care’ means in principle, and to learn how new guidance could best work in practice, across all species types.

Along with many things, the past two years have demonstrated that the veterinary professions are highly capable of adapting to changing societal needs. As veterinary professionals, we cannot, and should not, expect established ways of practice to go unchallenged and remain unchanged, particularly in the face of shifting public expectations and advancements in technology. However, it is our collective responsibility to ensure that any changes continue to allow us to provide safe and effective care for our patients, and meet the appropriate expectations of our clients.

The need for change

Whilst therefore recognising and reflecting this need for change, the proposed guidance seeks to protect animal health and welfare and maintain public trust by ensuring that decision-making remains firmly in the hands of individual veterinary surgeons, as to what they, in their professional judgement, consider appropriate in a specific situation.

This consultation, then, whilst not a referendum on whether RCVS guidance on ‘under care’ and 24-hour emergency first-aid and pain relief should change – that decision having been made by Standards Committee and approved by Council based on the evidence gathered, including the views of the profession and objective evidence, and legal advice – is a crucial opportunity for you to tell us whether we have got the draft guidance right, or if there is anything we might have missed.

Animal health and welfare

In the online survey you can provide feedback on each individual element of the proposed guidance. We are particularly keen to know if there are any factors we may have overlooked that could impact on animal health and welfare, and/or public trust.

Before answering the questions, however, I would urge you to read the background and detail of the proposal set out on the following pages. This will help to explain the journey to this point and the challenges we have met along the way.

Full details on how to respond are set out below, together with a timeline of what will happen next, but please make sure to send us your feedback by 5pm on Monday, 26 September 2022.

Thank you in advance for your time and consideration.

Dr Melissa Donald BVMS MRCVS
Former Chair, RCVS Standards Committee