West Kootenay veterinarians clinics are making a change to after-hours care they say will better support pets as well as the people who care for them.
Six vet clinics — Nelson's Selkirk Veterinary Hospital and Nelson Animal Hospital, Trail's West Kootenay Animal Hospital, Fruitvale's Beaver Valley Animal Clinic, and Castlegar's Arrow Lake Veterinary Hospital and Castlegar Veterinary Hospital — have agreed to share emergency duties with the West Kootenay Call Share.
Under the current system, when a pet owner calls their clinic for after-hours care they are transferred to a triage service. If it is decided the animal needs emergent care, the local vet is contacted and they travel to the clinic.
But Dr. Christina Meyer, who works at Selkirk Veterinary Hospital, says that system is leading to burnout among vets. Beaver Valley's physician is on call every day, while a vet in Castlegar is on call four days weekly plus every third weekend.
The hours are demanding for vets. Meyer says Nelson clinics receive one or two calls on weeknights and on average six-to-eight calls on weekends. It also leads to early retirements — Meyers estimated most veterinarian careers only last about seven years.
“That's exhausting, and people want work-life balance. I want a family, and I want to be present for my kids. And so that's not sustainable, and a lot of people leave the profession because of that.”
When the new system begins Feb. 28, patients will still call their clinic for after-hours care and speak with the triage service. But now each clinic in the West Kootenay will share on-call responses, and animal owners will travel to that vet's clinic.
The program splits up on-call duties based on the number of full-time vets at each clinic. Nelson's two clinics have the most vets and will be responsible for the majority of on-call shifts, but the number of shifts per vet will also decrease. Nelson's clinics, which are both open seven days per week, will also handle day-time emergencies on days when the other clinics are closed.
The trade-off is a scenario in which owners must travel outside their community for care, and the on-call vet will receive more patients per night. But vets will also have to be on call less. Meyer, who has two young children, will see her on-call shifts decreased from four per month to just one.
“It's just really going to help improve the vets and the technicians in the area’s quality of life so that they can do this sustainably. It's a tough profession on a good day, and then adding being on call on top of it is hard.”
The call share program is inspired by a similar arrangement in the East Kootenay, where Meyer says clinics have noted improved service as well positive quality-of-life changes for physicians.
After-hours care is typically difficult on vets, patients and families. Meyer said the majority of cases usually are for euthanasia.
“They know their pet is coming to the end of their life, and they just felt like it's now that they're suffering and they need to have that pain relieved. So it's often emotionally charged. These are tough things that we're having to do in the night.”
The new on-call change may also help clinics recruit new physicians. Canada has a shortage of vets, and Meyer says she's interviewed job applicants who say they don't want to be on call.
She understands why. After-hours care has a human cost, which she thinks the West Kootenay program will alleviate.
“It's important to support the community, and I don't want pets to be suffering, but I also want to be able to sleep and be with my kids.”
