A new modality for Pet point
In this 2020 like the rest of the people, our company was affected by Covid-19, and we immediately set about creating different strategies and protocols, in order to continue providing quality veterinary medical care in a responsible way both for the tutors of our patients as well as for the clinic staff.
For me, some of the first questions were: Can we carry out telemedicine for our patients through virtual consultations? Is it possible that this has benefits for your health? Will there be a good acceptance of the service? and Can this practice be permanent at Pet point?
Fortunately, as the days went by, the responses were more and more satisfactory and these doubts were left behind after seeing the results for the candidate patients for this new service.
Benefits for follow-up appointments
Routinely in my practice it becomes necessary to follow up with dogs or cats in the very short term. That is, I need to know how my patients are 2 or 3 days after having visited the clinic, with the intention of solving doubts that arise in the tutors after the visit and to know things such as: if the medicine is having the desired effect, if there are adverse effects, if we want to modify the dose or even if we want to suspend the drug and do more tests, hospitalize, etc.
This is why virtual consultations become a very valuable tool, since:
They allow for more formal communication than a rush call or text message between the doctor and the dog or cat guardian
Prevents the tutor from having to move from home and having to face the traffic of a big city (especially useful in this time of Covid-19)
It avoids the need to ask again for some special permission to be absent from work again, which is not always possible for everyone.
In cases where the pet suffers aversion to the vet
In addition, we must not forget the families that have a dog or cat that suffers from vet aversion, since it makes the guardians feel that going to the clinic can make the patient worse, which is the reason why they avoid follow-up visits and with it all communication with the doctor, which unfortunately, in some cases results in the general deterioration of the patient.
For them, having the option of an online appointment is undoubtedly a plus, since it avoids the stress of the visit and promotes better planned and designed future visits, because in the online consultation not only medical follow-up is given, but also receive invaluable tools on stress management techniques on future vet visits.
Benefits of video calls in telemedicine
Being able to see the treating physician through the camera and being able to share the current status of the dog or cat allows the guardian to feel more and better cared for, while also giving the physician the opportunity to ask specific questions about the patient in a more intimate setting. This, in my experience, results in effective communication.
Decreasing visits during the red light
In addition to this information, it is worth noting that while in Mexico City we were at a red traffic light due to the Covid-19 contingency, having this tool for many of our tutors was very valuable, since we were able to do telemedicine successfully and decrease the level of visits to the clinic, which directly impacted the exposure rate of all the staff in the clinic and of course the pet's guardian and his family.
We will continue with this modality!
It is for all these previous reasons that in Pet point online consultations are and will always be available to the tutors of our patients, to whom we always provide assistance in case of being their first time on our platform, either in person or by phone. or written (precise step-by-step instruction).