The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons has published new guidance on how vets and veterinary nurses can best use their skills and experience to help in the covid-19 pandemic – but it does not believe helping the NHS on the frontline is necessarily the best way.
The guidance highlights certain areas of ‘critical national importance’ in which veterinary professionals nurses can use their skills, particularly around keeping the food supply chain operational during the lockdown period. This includes supporting the livestock industry and the animal product export/import industry.
Other areas where they can contribute are through donating veterinary equipment that can be ‘re-purposed’ for use by the NHS, for example, ventilators, anaesthetic equipment/gases, and personal protective equipment, and signing up to the NHS ‘volunteer army’.
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A spokesman said: “One of the most common queries received by the RCVS regarding how veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses can help, is around whether they could use their skills and expertise in frontline clinical roles within the National Health Service. We are also aware that some NHS Trusts are already advertising for assistance or approaching veterinary professionals directly.”
But the RCVS is cautious on the subject of veterinary professionals helping on the NHS frontline, with Regsitrar Eleanor Ferguson saying: “There are also many ways in which veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses can indirectly aid the National Health Service as well, without necessarily being in the frontline of medical provision.”
And she added: “To this end, we would encourage veterinary professionals to first consider what assistance they might be able to provide to the livestock production, meat hygiene and food import/export industries, before volunteering to assist directly with local NHS Trusts.”
