Dear Reader
August traditionally brings the long, hot, dog days of summer and by the law of averages, we should expect a week or two of balmy weather. However, I suspect that we will be lumbered with more of what the weather forecasters refer to as precipitation and we refer to in more prosaic terms!
When you read this the Olympics should be in full flow and it would be nice if the weather played ball after all the planning and preparation but, as we all know, the one thing that we cannot control in this country is the weather! Actually we have to add security to the list now don’t we, so let’s cross our fingers on both counts!
Wimbledon has also been and gone along with the hopes of the nation! As one of the BVNA Council members said at our last meeting, Murray is British if he wins and Scottish if he loses! I think that in spite of his vain attempt to take the ultimate tennis accolade he won the admiration of everyone just by demonstrating how much it meant to him!
We are suckers for displays of emotion and why not? Tears are one emotion that it is very difficult to fake, unless you are a celebrity, and furthermore they have a tendency to be infectious. Think back to the last time that you supported a client during euthanasia of their much-loved pet, most of us will have at least felt a lump in our throat whilst others will be unable to prevent the tears, especially if we have known the pet and the client for many years.
As nurses, we have a unique relationship with our clients and we should be aware of the responsibility that we have to them as well as to their pets.
This month we examine aspects of that relationship with articles by Loni Loftus on client compliance and Johanna Page on the potential for the RVN to add an additional strand to the existing nurse clinics that are commonplace in today’s veterinary practice. Sian Anderson also provides an insight into the effect of the recession on the work of the RSPCA, where the increase in demand for their services has gone hand in hand with reductions in administrative staff. I do admire veterinary nurses that work in this difficult environment and whilst I appreciate there are many calls on our increasingly limited funds I would ask that you remember the work that the RSPCA does for the less fortunate and their pets.
Finally I would like to mention Caroline Calder’s article on wound management, another important aspect of the veterinary nurses’ role and one that has great potential for development. Once again the relationship between the nurse and the client is critical to -a successful outcome as owner compliance is an integral part of wound management, particularly when managing the cat in tights scenario! An excellent use of a readily available resource but I have just one question – how does the client prevent ladders!
Author
Sue Badger MEd CertEd VN Executive Editor
To cite this editorial use either
DOI: 10.1111/j.2045-0648.2012.00197.x or Veterinary Nursing Journal Vol 27 pp 278
• VOL 27 • August 2012 • Veterinary Nursing Journal