Working with euthanasia-reluctant clientsSeptember 6, 2017When an animal begins to fail due to age or disease and its quality of life diminishes, the inevitable and unpleasant discussion about euthanasia may become necessary.
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AVMA passes proposals on end-of-life care, SAVMA, allied groupsSeptember 5, 2017 The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) House of Delegates (HOD) approved a policy on end-of-life care for companion animals and approved bylaws amendments regarding the Student AVMA and allied veterinary organizations. The AVMA board of directors had submitted a revised version of the existing "Policy on Veterinary Hospice Care" to the HOD; delegates renamed the policy as "Veterinary End-of-Life Care" and made corresponding changes in the text of the policy. On recommendation of the AVMA steering committee on human-animal interactions, the policy now states that the AVMA endorses the 2016 guidelines on end-of-life care from the American Animal Hospital Association and the International Association for Animal Hospice and Palliative Care. The revised policy outlines the concept of veterinary end-of-life care as "the provision of palliative care (including medications) for the remainder of a pet's life followed by humane euthanasia if an acceptable quality of life can no longer be maintained." The policy specifies that advice on veterinary care should be provided only by veterinary professionals, and that veterinarians should be empowered as animal advocates in end-of-life care facilities for animals. The HOD approved a bylaws amendment paving the way for transfer of the student chapters …
When to shift from veterinary clinician to counselorMarch 29, 2017Loyalty is a firm and consistent allegiance and a lasting faithfulness. That is what we all want with our valued clients. Because end-of-life circumstances are supercharged with emotions, almost everything you do or say at this time either deepens client loyalty or causes the opposite reaction—which you certainly do not want.
How to help clients when pets are diagnosed with life-ending diseaseMarch 1, 2017Sadly, the veterinary medical care team often is faced with patients that have been diagnosed with a life-ending disease. With pets having such a high rate of severe osteoarthritis, cancer, renal disease and heart failure, care teams frequently will be confronted with clients who must come to grips with the news that their beloved pet has limited time left.
How to talk about end-of-life care for petsFebruary 13, 2017Helping a client decide when it is time to euthanize their pet may appear to be straightforward. As medical professionals, we often view end-of-life cases from a purely clinical standpoint, but we may not take into account many nonmedical factors such as emotions, social issues, financial pressures or physical limitations.
