RCVS Knowledge has produced a series of free contextualised care discussion guides designed to help communication between veterinary professionals and clients.

The guides have been developed for vet teams to share with their clients and work through together, so that both sides are on the same page about owner values, pet welfare and behaviour, and diagnosis and treatment options.

A member of the veterinary team and the client can then work together to make decisions and provide quality care. 

One of the pet owners who helped develop the guides said: “I always get so worked up with vet consultations that I forget half of what they say, or feel like I didn’t tell them enough about my pet’s history.

"If the vet used these guides at my next consult, they would make me feel very at ease indeed!”

Pam Mosedale, Clinical Lead at RCVS Knowledge, said: “These guides offer a simple, actionable way to help deliver contextualised care in practice.

"To get started, run through the questions in the guide with a client, and see how this can help you devise a treatment plan with the information you’ve discovered.

"This helps you gain a fuller understanding of your patient’s care and wellbeing needs and your client’s circumstances and expectations.

"Ultimately, this will assist you in delivering quality care that aligns with the needs and expectations of your clients.”

There are three contextualised care discussion guides:

• The pre-consultation conversation guide for owners, which is designed to help pet owners prepare for a veterinary consultation and help the veterinary team identify any support areas they may need.
• Your pet’s wellbeing during treatment, which will help pet owners and the veterinary team identify how pets may react to certain treatments, and guide overall decisions on treatment plans.
• Conversation guide for delivering contextualised care, which  can be used to discuss treatment options with the owner, allowing for an in-depth discussion on what treatment will entail, and how this might impact both the owner and the patient. 

RCVS Knowledge is encouraging veterinary teams to adapt the guides to meet their individual needs. 

https://rcvsknowledge.org/contextualisedcare

COMMENT

Anything which helps clear communication between the owner and vet is surely to be applauded, and if owners are prepared to spend the time completing the pre-consultation guide, it would surely leave less room for error. 

However, arguably the greatest cause of friction between owners and vets is cost, and that is something only mentioned fleetingly, in the context of: 'Are there any other factors that may impact on the care of your pet? e.g planned holidays or financial concerns'.

Isn't it time to stop beating around the bush?

Isn't there an opportunity here for greater clarity over the level of spending a client is happy with?

Is there an acceptable form of words here to ascertain whether - regardless of whether they have financial concerns or not - the client is one of those who wants the cheapest solution to the problem, one for whom money is no object, or someone who sits somewhere in the middle?

Wouldn't that be more instructive than almost anything else?

PS: Whilst you're here, take a moment to see our latest job opportunities for vet nurses.