The Impact of COVID-19 on Veterinary Care

As with most things in our life, the process of obtaining veterinary care for our pets has dramatically changed.  In the past, veterinary clients would be present throughout the examination process and communicate face-to-face with the veterinarian involved in caring for their pet. Since the pandemic, in most veterinary practices, close contact between the doctor and the client is no longer possible.

Out of necessity, the once standard client and doctor exam relationship and communication has become more distanced and less personal.  Clients are asked to remain outside the hospital while their pets are brought in for examinations. Pre-examination communication is generally between the client and a trained veterinary assistant. Subsequent to the examination by the doctor, the client is called on the telephone and the findings, suggested diagnostic work, medication, and treatment are discussed.  Following completion of the agreed upon treatment protocol, the pet is returned to the client with any medication and instructions.

This is far from what any veterinarian would desire in a client-doctor relationship. This protocol is time consuming, labor intensive, and less than efficient, but it is absolutely necessary considering the pandemic environment that we are facing. Some pet owners are quite uncomfortable with the separation during the examination of their pet, but the potential risk for them and for our staff is far too great.

In March of this year, prior to implementing this procedure, we received a call from the Health Department that an asymptomatic client tested positive for COVID.  Thankfully, none of our staff contracted the disease, but it required us to quarantine almost one fourth of our staff, including one doctor, for 14 days. This had a major impact on our clients and the number of patients we were able to see during that time. Recently, one of the largest animal hospitals in northern New Jersey had several staff members test positive for COVID.  This resulted in the complete closing of the Internal Medicine and Surgical departments and severe restrictions in access to their Oncology, Dental, Cardiology, and Neurology departments.  Additionally, their ER department could not accept any patients.  The impact on veterinary care in the surrounding northern New Jersey area was significant and unfortunately resulted in a lack of necessary care to pets in the area.

Our hospital, along with other area veterinary hospitals, is taking this risk seriously. The cumbersome COVID protocol already limits the number of patients that can be seen in a day, and as with human hospitals, it has caused major stress on veterinary staff.  Most veterinarians in the area are doing everything possible to keep their staff COVID free.  We trust that pet owners throughout our area understand the risk and will take proper precautions to help prevent the spread of this pandemic.


Should you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please don't hesitate to contact us by phone at 845-876-6008, or by e-mail at [email protected].

Thank you for choosing us to be part of your pet's healthcare team!

With warmest regards,
Your friends at Rhinebeck Animal Hospital

Location

Find us on the map

Office Hours

Monday:

8:00 am-6:00 pm

Tuesday:

8:00 am-6:00 pm

Wednesday:

8:00 am-6:00 pm

Thursday:

8:00 am-6:00 pm

Friday:

8:00 am-12:00 pm

2:00 pm-6:00 pm

Saturday:

8:00 am-4:00 pm

Sunday:

Closed