COLLEAGUES at Donview Veterinary Centrehave scaled new heights to lend support to a suicide prevention charity.
Vets and vet nurses from our practice in Inverurie have handed over £2,505 after their 30km hike in the Scottish Highlands received a final boost to hit their target.
Their two-day trek was in aid of The Canmore Trust, set up in memory of their friend Cameron Gibson, a 24-year-old farm vet at Clyde Vets in Lanark who took his own life in 2019.
Cameron’s family founded the charity to help prevent more suicides and support those affected when someone dies by suicide.
The hikers attracted sponsorship from clients, family and friends as well as a £430 donation from VetPartners, the large family of trusted veterinary practices, including Donview Vets in Inverurie. VetPartners’ employees can apply for part or match funding from its £120,000 charitable pot to boost their fundraising for worthy causes.
As well as raising money, the group set out to increase awareness of the mental health pressures for people in the profession and the support available to anyone affected.
Suicide rates are three to four times higher within the veterinary community than the general population, and the number of people struggling with issues like depression and anxiety is also disproportionately high.
The group walked across the high-level Jock’s Road to Braemar in Aberdeenshire and scaled two Munros – Mayar (928m) and Driesh (947m) – while carrying all their essentials, from tents to food.
Vets and vet nurses from our practice in Inverurie have handed over £2,505 after their 30km hike in the Scottish Highlands received a final boost to hit their target.
Their two-day trek was in aid of The Canmore Trust, set up in memory of their friend Cameron Gibson, a 24-year-old farm vet at Clyde Vets in Lanark who took his own life in 2019.
Cameron’s family founded the charity to help prevent more suicides and support those affected when someone dies by suicide.
The hikers attracted sponsorship from clients, family and friends as well as a £430 donation from VetPartners, the large family of trusted veterinary practices, including Donview Vets in Inverurie. VetPartners’ employees can apply for part or match funding from its £120,000 charitable pot to boost their fundraising for worthy causes.
As well as raising money, the group set out to increase awareness of the mental health pressures for people in the profession and the support available to anyone affected.
Suicide rates are three to four times higher within the veterinary community than the general population, and the number of people struggling with issues like depression and anxiety is also disproportionately high.
The group walked across the high-level Jock’s Road to Braemar in Aberdeenshire and scaled two Munros – Mayar (928m) and Driesh (947m) – while carrying all their essentials, from tents to food.
For media enquiries, please contact Nadia Jefferson-Brown, VetPartners PR and Communications Manager (North). Email nadia.jeffersonbrown@vetpartners.co.uk
The ISFM Cat Friendly Clinic accreditation is an internationally-recognised award. It means that we have met criteria to help minimise stress to your cat in our clinic.
What does it mean for my cat and me?
A Cat Friendly Clinic gives you peace of mind and reassurance, letting you know that:
The clinic has achieved certain minimum accreditation standards
The clinic and clinic staff have thought about the specific needs of cats
The staff will be happy to talk with you, show you what they do, and show you around the clinic
The staff will explain your cat’s treatment and recovery clearly and sensitively so that you have a full understand of what is going on
We are pleased to announce we are the proud winners of a significant award by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons; our governing body.
Each year the RCVS run their knowledge awards, which awards practices that have demonstrated a high level of clinical quality improvement. The RCVS Knowledge Awards for Quality Improvement showcase the implementation of Quality Improvement (QI) techniques which drive improvement in the profession.
Its important that practices work hard to improve their clinical standards; as a rapidly progressing industry with ever increasing standards of care, its an honour to be recognised for the significant changes we have made at Donview to fulfil our aim to offer the highest level of care for your pets that we can.
An improvement study undertaken at the practice, led by our head nurse Jennifer O’Connor who has worked at the practice for 16 years won the practice the RCVS quality improvement award. This had been undertaken alongside regular clinical improvement studies undertaken at the practice on an ongoing basis.
The judges commented that ‘Donview Veterinary Centre demonstrated a strong learning culture through an initiative aimed at improving post-op temperatures. Working together, the team performed an audit, and used the results to assess where they could improve. Suggestions from the team were successfully implemented across the practice, and investments in new equipment were made. The audit showed a robust dedication to improvement, with the whole team working together to identify gaps in care.’
Jennifer was invited to London to attend an award ceremony on behalf of the practice.
We are pleased to announce that we are now opening our Kintore Branch on a Thursday afternoon from 1pm – 3.30pm. This is in addition to 9am-12pm Monday-Friday.
Over the past two years we have been undertaking a substantial building and facilities development which is soon coming to an end.
This development is up-grading our facilities to the highest level achievable by a non-specialist/referral centre and will supply a comfortable environment for our staff to work in and our clients to experience.
We wanted to share some teaser photos and let you know what is happening behind the scenes!
1) Our upstairs area was not developed when the building was originally built – this will now house a large staff room and kitchen, two rest rooms for on call vets, a shower room, a meeting room, a conference room with space for 35 chairs for client education events, a vet’s office/continual professional development area, a receptionist/administrator office and various storage areas.
2) Three surgical theatres with a new scrub area and upgraded theatre lighting.
3) A redesigned preparation area where pets are prepped for surgery.
4) A separate dental suite with separate dental digital radiography.
5) An upgraded imaging suite with DR digital radiography, video-endoscopy, and diagnostic ultrasonography.
6) An instrument room for the sterilization and preparation of surgical instruments.
7) Separate dog and cat wards with state of the art accommodation and upgraded critical care and monitoring equipment.
8) Clinical areas temperature controlled with air conditioning.
9) A large animal pharmacy with a pharmacy controller ensuring continued supplies of medical stock (for both large and small animal – this is a challenge in the current environment!) and to prepare pharmacy orders for farmers and horse owners
Donview Veterinary Centre are a mixed animal practice serving Inverurie and surrounding areas, we are looking to strengthen our existing team and services offered with the introduction of a new role.
The role of the Pharmacy Controller will be to develop, implement and manage effective stock control for both the large animal and small animal departments.
The role holder will work in conjunction with the management and clinical team to manage and control incoming stock and will be the first point of contact for our clients to order medications for farms, pets and horses.
The ideal candidate will be SQP qualified or willing to qualify and have experience working in stock control. It would be desirable for this to have been in a pharmacy, veterinary practice or an agricultural merchant environment.
The role holder will strive to demonstrate VetPartners’ and Donview Vets’ core values; being respectful, collaborative, supportive, dedicated & approachable. They will have great attention to detail, with proven organisational, project management, communication skills and excellent customer care skills across a diverse range of clients.
To request a copy of the job description and to apply please email the practice manager Libby Smart – libby.smart@donviewvets.co.uk. Closing date 3/12/21
Inverurie, Aberdeenshire , Scotland, Friday, 1 October 2021
Donview Veterinary Centre in Inverurie is set to go under major refurbishment.
Pictured is the clinical director Charlie Carnochan holding plans of the revamp with vet nurse Josie McBride and Alfie the dog.
Picture by Michal Wachucik/Abermedia
We will soon undergo a major internal renovation to expand our facilities and increase our patient footfall.
As a multi-award winning practice, we currently employs 16 vets, seven veterinary nurses and 10 receptionists and office staff.
The extensive renovation, the largest of its kind for the practice, will see the number of consult rooms increase from three to five with an investment in new technology.
The project will be the biggest investment in the practice and has been made possible with funding from VetPartners, a veterinary group which owns some of the UK’s most respected and trusted small animal, mixed, farm and equine practices.
Expanding facilities will enable Donview Vets to provide wider specialist services, including a higher level of surgery, as well as having visiting specialists to treat pets.
‘This investment will put us as the top of the game’
Donview Vets clinical director Charlie Carnochan said: “The practice already had excellent facilities, but this investment will put us as the top of the game and really enhance what we do for clients and their pets.
“It will create a great environment to work in, which is so important for our team members.
“We want it to be a place where people really want to come to work and have the best available equipment and technology so they can provide a great service for our clients and their pets.”
Overhaul of patient facilities
The expansion will see the creation of a third theatre to facilitate more specialised operations and referrals.
Improvements will also be made to a number of facilities including a dental room with radiography, the refurbishment of our imaging room with upgraded x-ray machines and separate instruments room for sterilisation of surgical kits.
Inverurie, Aberdeenshire , Scotland, Friday, 1 October 2021
Donview Veterinary Centre in Inverurie is set to go under major refurbishment.
Pictured is the clinical director Charlie Carnochan holding plans of the revamp with vet nurse Josie McBride and Alfie the dog.
Picture by Michal Wachucik/Abermedia
The revamp will also see an increase in specialist veterinary services and physiotherapy, acupuncture and veterinary nurse clinics.
We are also planning to create a large room upstairs so they can host client evenings and education events about pet health.
Staff will also benefit from the transformation with the creation of a large open plan office for team members.
Vets and nurses will also be able to enjoy revamped facilities, including two bedrooms for on-call vets working overnight, a kitchen, shower room, relaxation area with lockers and a training room for team members to advance their skills and learning.
Mr Carnochan added: “Our clinical facilities and equipment, including critical care equipment, have been massively upgraded in advance of this work being carried out, and we will be able to offer extra specialised services.
“We have always been a practice that has invested, but having VetPartners’ backing has taken what we can do to a new level. They work in collaboration with their practice teams and support them to provide the best possible service for clients and best possible care of patients.”