Two Minutes with NVMA Board President Shane Pedersen, DVM

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Buddhist Monk Blesses Ailing Pets

Lama Karma Namgyel Rinpoche, left, blesses a dog named Monkey Business, who is held by owner Clay Blatt, of Napa, California. (Napa Valley Register Photo).

"It doesn't matter if you believe or not, it works," said dog owner Cheryl Sagat of Vallejo, California.

Sagat was talking about the healing blessings offered for ailing pets by a Buddhist monk at a park in Napa, California. The monk, Lama Karma Namgyel Rinpoche, delivered the blessings as a part of the May 21 celebration of the birth of Buddha.

Pet owners gathered in the park and brought their animals to Rinpoche, who splashed them with water and draped blue prayer cords around their necks.

Sagat said her dog Sparkles had been sick for months with a severe skin infection, so they turned to natural healing. A combination of blessings from Rinpoche, skin baths, and organic food helped her heal, Sagat told the Napa Valley Register. Read the full story.

October Dates Set for 2016 AVMA Economic Summit

(Excerpted from the AVMA@Work blog)

If you’re interested in the economic future of the veterinary profession—and in gathering information and tools to help you operate your business more successfully—set aside the dates October 24-25 to attend this year’s AVMA Economic Summit.

Our economics team convenes the summit every year to help practice owners and other business-focused veterinarians understand the veterinary economic markets and get tools to operate in business successfully. This year’s meeting will be held Oct. 24-25 outside Chicago, in Schaumburg, Illinois. Learn more.

Register Now for the Summer Meeting

Join Us in North Platte!

Register now for the Summer Meeting in North Platte, June 9 - 11.

Links to information and registration materials will be found here.

A video featuring your friends and colleagues who attended the 2015 Summer Meeting is here.

Board of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery Shares Responses to Questions

Nebraska Board of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery 

At the board’s last meeting we had two questions posed and we wanted to express our opinion to the Nebraska Veterinarians.

First question: Can an unlicensed tech read fecal exams? The board’s response is no, because the regulations only allow an assistant to collect fecal specimens. Reading a fecal exam requires professional judgment which only a licensed veterinarian is permitted to do under state statutes and regulations.

Second question: Can an unlicensed tech administer medication via a catheter that is already in place? The board's answer is no, the statutes and regulations permit an assistant to administer crystalloid fluid therapy through an established IV catheter under the direct supervision of a veterinarian. Other administration of medications through a catheter can only be performed by an assistant under emergency conditions for the purpose of life-saving aid and treatment. Such administration can only be performed after direct communication with a licensed veterinarian and if the veterinarian is either present or en route to the location of the animal.

Another topic the board would like to have the Nebraska Veterinarians be aware of is the use of consent documents, such as anesthetic releases, and procedure releases. Such documents must be signed by the client and are helpful when dealing with complaints from clients, as they should document what is happening or going to happen and in a round about way help clarify the diagnosis. 

Chairman 

James F. Unwin

Preventing Dog Bites: Educational Tools to Help Veterinarians

(Reposted from the AVMA@Work blog)

Did you know that nearly 4.5 million Americans are bitten by dogs each year, and that 20 percent of the victims require medical attention?

Veterinarians realize that while even the gentlest dog can bite, most bites can be prevented.  This is National Dog Bite Prevention Week®, and the AVMA has resources to help you educate your clients and make your community a safer place to live.

As the founding sponsor of National Dog Bite Prevention Week®, the AVMA is committed to reducing the number of dog bites and helping dog owners maintain the loving bonds they have with their dogs. The AVMA offers resources to help you teach clients about socialization, responsible dog ownership, why dogs bite, and recognizing risky situations, among other topics. A client-ready brochure on dog bite prevention is available in the AVMA's online store in both English and Spanish. And the AVMA YouTube channel has a complete playlist of fun, kid-friendly videos about dog bite prevention; play them on a loop in your clinic or embed the playlist on your website.

The AVMA also can help you celebrate National Dog Bite Prevention Week® on social media. Download any of three National Dog Bite Prevention Week® cover photos, and use them as your own to customize your profile. (Yes, it’s really OK!) For AVMA members, there are pre-written social media posts that you can copy and paste, plus ideas for writing your own if you prefer. Follow the AVMA’s social media accounts – especially Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter – where the AVMA will share dog bite prevention materials throughout the week.

While you educate clients locally about dog bite prevention, the AVMA represents veterinarians nationally as sponsor of the National Dog Bite Prevention Week® Coalition. AVMA Board of Directors member Dr. Lori Teller spoke at a news conference to kick off the week-long event, emphasizing the important role veterinarians can play in assessing, monitoring and improving dogs’ behavior.

“Pet owners should talk to their veterinarian regarding any behavioral concerns they may have,” said Dr. Teller, a veterinarian at the Meyerland Animal Clinic in Houston. “Their family veterinarian can assist in determining if there is a medical component; which medication, if any, would be most appropriate as part of an integrated treatment program; and whether or not a referral to a behavior specialist is warranted.”

For a more complete account of the news conference, read the press release.

Wrapping Up the Intro to the New Website

This is the last in our series of posts previewing the new NVMA website, tentatively scheduled for launch later this month.

The final three main navigation links will be CAREERS, FOUNDATION and NEWS.

The CAREERS section will be home to an NVMA-exclusive job board in addition to the affiliated Veterinary Career Network tools. Various online professional resources will be aggregated here as well.

The FOUNDATION section is essentially the current site's NVMA Foundation pages, including links to scholarship application forms. The new site, however, gives the Foundation an online fundraising app which can be used to create customized online resource development campaigns.

Finally, the NEWS section hosts links to the NVMA Vision YouTube Channel and to the NVMA Blog, which will be rebranded as the NVMA@Work Blog when the new site launches.

When the site launches, you will receive an email prompting you to log in and complete your membership profile.