Patient Care

​​Patient Care 2

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Patient Handling and Restraint

 

A written protocol for team member training in patient handling and restraint is utilized.

Purpose: The safety of people and patients

Goal: To ensure team members are properly trained in humane handling and restraint of patients, preventing or minimizing injury to both people and patients.

Oversight Responsibility: The office manager will be responsible for each new team member. The office manager will review all acceptable restraint equipment, indentify, and demonstrate where its use might be appropriate.

Performance Responsibility: All employees of County Seat Animal Hospital.

Welcome to County Seat Animal Hospital. Our philosophy is that all patients deserve to be handled with

kindness and in a humane manner. Our goal is the safety of patients and practice team members. To

ensure this, we require all new team members to complete a week long training program in patient handling

and restraint.

The office manager or veterinarian on staff will monitor and train you in proper technique.

A video will be provided for you to watch that informs you of proper and humane restraint and handling.

After reviewing this video, your office manager or veterinarian will allow you to practice your newly learned techniques on house animals before moving on to patients. This will ensure your safety as well as the patients.

Upon approval, you may start to work with other animals of all sizes and ailments. Experience is the best knowledge. We will do our best to make sure that your safety and the safety of the patients are our primary. goals.

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Patient Care 3

 

Drying and Cooling of Patients

 

Using the Drver for Grooming purposes:

We do not groom and therefore don’t use Cage dryers on  pets.   We have determined that cage dryers are too dangerous.  

 

On the off chance that a dryer is warranted, the following will be used as safety protocol.

 

All grooming patients that do not require a medicated bath will have the option to be dried in their cages using a cage dryer. Technicians in charge of the pet's grooming will check with the veterinarian before applying the dryer to the animal for any health risks.

All small dogs will get low heat and low blow fan speed. All large dogs will get high heat and high fan speed.

 

These standards are assuming the veterinarian as approved the animal health wise of a dryer and the cage the animal is maintained in is large enough for air circulation. All animals on dryers need to be checked on every ten minutes.

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Patient Care 4

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Adverse/Sentinel Event

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A sentinel event is an unexpected occurrence involving serious patient injury, death, or risk thereof, should the circumstances associated with the even recur. And adverse event is an unexpected and significant deterioration in the physical condition of a patient or risk thereof should the circumstances associated with the event recur. Such events signal the need for immediate recognition, investigation, and response.

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GOAL: To focus attention of the practice on understanding the fundamental reasons for the event and to make changes necessary to prevent recurrence. To increase general knowledge about sentinel and adverse events so that strategies for prevention might be developed. To improve patient care through attention to practice processes without focusing on mistakes of individuals.

OVERSIGHT: The veterinarian on staff is responsible for oversight of investigation and response to sentinel and adverse events.

RECOGNITION: Sentinel and adverse events requiring investigation and response include:

Surgery or medical therapies done on the wrong patient

Surgery performed on the wrong body part

Patient death, illness, or injury associated with inappropriate therapy or delayed therapy

Serious adverse reactions to appropriate medications and therapies Practice policy encourages the reporting of sentinel and adverse events by any member of the practice team without fear of consequence stemming from the act of reporting such event.

 

INVESTIGATION: The veterinarian will receive, without judgement, reports of sentinel and adverse events. The veterinarian will give immediate critical direction needed to ensure patient safety while a sentinel or adverse event is undergoing investigation.

The Veterinarian will initiate a thorough collection of pertinent information relating to the event. 

 

RESPONSE: The veterinarian will report the results of the review to the practice team members as to make understanding of the vent sufficient. This report will not disclose specific details. The veterinarian will put in place an action plan to correct the situation. A new protocol will be reviewed and implemented to discourage this event from reoccurring.

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Patient Care 5

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Client Visitation

 

Clients will be allowed to visit their pets during regular business hours. All clients will be allowed to visit their pets in the treatment area or in any open exam room.

Patients that are here for routine surgeries will not be allowed visitation before the surgical procedure takes place. This prevents the animal from getting overexcited before sedation.

Any practice team member can approve client visitation as long as they relay this appointment with the office manager or veterinarian.

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Patient Care 6

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Euthanasia

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All requests for euthanasia must come directly from the owner of the animal. All requests must be verbally communicated directly to the attending veterinarian.

No one will be allowed to bring in an animal to be terminated for someone else. The owner must communicate directly with the doctor.

No practice team member is to admit a euthanasia patient until the attending veterinarian has communicated directly with the owner.

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All euthanasia cases need to aware of a few thing:

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Do they want to be present when the procedure takes place?

Do the owners want County Seat staff to oversee the remains or do they want to bury their

pet at home?

We do not charge for Euthanasia services (typically) as we find it to be the compassionate thing to do.

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Cremation service is provided through Dixie Memorial.

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Upon euthanasia, the practice team member involved with the admittance of the patient will need to mark the patient deceased in the computer so no more correspondence will be sent to the owner about that pet.