The RCVS has published the results of its third survey on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on veterinary businesses, finding a marked improvement in the veterinary business climate since last month. 

The survey was held in mid-June and gathered 196 responses from UK practices. That compared with the 532 responses to the initial survey conducted early in April and 251 responses to the second survey conducted at the start of May.

One of the main findings was a marked increase in the number of practices running a near-normal caseload, from 3% in May to 32% in June. Practice turnover data similarly reflected a shift back towards normality, with 46% now reporting a reduction of less than 25%, compared with 19% last month.

Other findings included: 

• Fewer staff are self-isolating, with around 15% of practices having veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses self-isolating/or with Covid-19, compared with 30% in the first survey and 20% in the second survey.
• Fewer practices have staff on furlough. The most frequent response for the percentage of staff furloughed was 11-25% for both veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses in this survey. This compares with the previous two surveys where the most frequent response was 26-50%.

Lizzie Lockett, RCVS CEO, said: "This latest survey has demonstrated a continuation of the previous survey’s positive trends including an increase in practice turnover with more practices approaching a ‘near normal caseload’ and with a reduction in the number of practices impacted by staff self-isolating or with confirmed cases of Covid-19.

“In this survey we also asked about what difficulties practices may be experiencing with EMS placements for vet students and VN training placements as a result of Covid-19, and this will help us to understand how we can better support students and practices in these areas.

“We will continue to monitor the situation via these regular surveys, with the next one planned for later this summer. I would urge as many practices as possible to continue to complete them, so that we can build up a stronger evidence-base on how veterinary businesses have been affected and how they are recovering.

"This information is not only vital for our own policy decisions but also allows us to present a stronger case to the Government and other public bodies where we wish to influence the decisions they make that will impact the veterinary professions and businesses.”

The survey results can be read in full at www.rcvs.org.uk/coronavirus-resources.

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