What to do if you are unhappy with veterinary treatmentSometimes people feel unhappy or dissatisfied with some aspect of the veterinary care which their pet is receiving. In this situation it is incredibly important that you make your feelings known since communication is the key to sorting out these problems.
There are many unforeseen events and problems that may arise in veterinary medicine and occasionally you may feel worried or upset about some aspects of veterinary care. Vets do take extreme care when providing treatment for your pets and we do our best to keep their owners happy too. However it is an unfortunate fact that sometimes mistakes will be made, or treatments will not go as planned. It is not at all unknown for vets to go home worrying about a particular case and wondering if they have done everything right for a particular animal. This is because medicine is an art as well as a science and each individual case will require individually tailored treatment and sometimes through no fault of our own things do not go as well as expected. It is natural that owners sometimes feel worried too.
Of course there may sometimes be more serious problems which are of concern, but I do believe that the vast majority of vets care very much about your pets and are always endeavouring to do their absolute best for you and your animals.
In veterinary practice the main complaints seem to be about treatments which go wrong or were ineffective or the cost of treatments. In the vast majority of cases the problem is caused by a breakdown of communication between vet and client. (Or sometimes unfortunately between vets and colleagues or nursing staff).
If you feel that treatments are not going well or you are concerned about the cost of treatment, or have any other complaint, make sure you communicate this dissatisfaction early. When you complain try to be very clear about your reason for dissatisfaction. For example it is much clearer to say that you felt a vet didn't explain a procedure well enough, rather than just to say that you did not like that vet.
Initially try to speak to the actual veterinary surgeon concerned. You will most likely find that any vet will work very hard to put any mistakes right or to allay your fears and explain things better if they believe that things are still going to plan. In some cases if the vet believes that treatments are going to plan but you are still concerned, you might be able to see another vet, either in the same or another practice for a second opinion if you wish. Do not hesitate to ask for a second opinion if you feel you need one. Most vets would much rather that you sought out another opinion on the case rather than take the complaint any further, so do try this route if you would feel better by doing this.
If this does not work and you are still unhappy talk to the senior partner of the practice. This will often result in a resolution of the problem. If however you are still not satisfied that enough has been done you may register an official complaint with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. They have a duty to investigate any complaints and ensure that veterinary surgeons abide by a code of professional conduct.
Of course it is much better if you do not ever have any problems with your veterinary surgeon, so do always try to keep the lines of communication open and discuss any worries sooner rather than later so that they do not escalate into a complaint. © Samantha Coe. All rights reserved. Further information, news and pet-related healthcare articles are available at vetbase.co.uk
Questions Answered
|
Non union of bone in cat (cat) (09-Feb-07 02:05PM)
Deb asks:
I would like to enquire, by way of a second opinion, on best treatment for my cat's non-union of bone in his back leg (2 metatarsals). Our vet has mentioned ... view
|
|
hair loss (dog) (31-May-07 06:16PM)
Edward asks:
My 20 month old staffordshire bull terrier has over a number of months lost just about all the hair on his stomach, chest, tops of inside of all legs and behind ... view
|
|
Keiko sick (dog) (23-Sep-07 05:55PM)
Randy asks:
I have a 3 year old Boston Terrier. Yesterday morning she broke out in bumps all over her body; they went away a few hours later. She still has some visible ... view
|
|
Keeps going to toilet (na) (09-Feb-07 01:12PM)
 Tony asks:
Our cat has just had a blood test and his white cells are a little low. He has just been treated for
pet urinating a lot, having a difficult time using ... view
|
|
Don't know what's wrong with my dog (dog) (17-Aug-07 09:40AM)
 Gemma asks:
Hi,
I have an (almost) 2 year old Yorkshire Terrier named Stanley who has had the runs for about 4 days now, I went out yesterday and when I came back he ... view
|
|
chronic kidney failure (cat) (19-Oct-07 09:17PM)
Marquessa asks:
Please can you tell me if it's okay for me to give my cat Dioralyte, the lost water and body salts replacement? He is very dehydrated and on the box it ... view
|
|
pining (cat) (05-Jun-07 11:16PM)
Carole asks:
Following death of other cat (aged 20) George is refusing food, although his weight has not been affected. It has now been 2 months. Is this usual and what ... view
|
|
acts aggressive towards vet (na) (04-May-07 04:56AM)
Betsey asks:
I have a stray dog who apparently before being rescued was abused badly. She is a very sweet dog. She gets along with all of her family, including two cats and ... view
|
|
coughing and gasping (dog) (06-Aug-07 08:24PM)
Danny asks:
Murray has a gasping for air once to twice a day and a cough off and on daily. Maybe a reverse sneeze I heard. I have spent 600.00 and special vet ... view
|
|
Lous keeps biting and chewing on her inner legs (dog) (02-May-07 02:22PM)
Terri asks:
Can I put Benadryl cream on her legs for the itch? ... view
|
|
Protocol for subcutaneous fluids (cat) (20-Mar-07 11:05PM)
Gwen asks:
My 13+ year old cat must receive SQ Lactated Ringer's daily for renal failure secondary to diabetes. Since my vet told me I could reuse his insulin needles once or twice, ... view
|
|
broken paw (dog) (03-Oct-07 04:21AM)
Rachel asks:
Spike jumped off the bed and when he landed his paw went under him. He started howling, we were able to calm him and straighten the leg. We splinted it and ... view
|
|
White Gums and Dark Stool (dog) (02-Nov-07 01:41PM)
Leslie asks:
My 8 week old American Bulldog has really white gums, around the eyes is also white. She has dark stool. What can the problem be? ... view
|
|
sedation (dog) (30-Jan-07 11:26AM)
Paul asks:
Is your animal supposed to be weighed before an operation especially if they haven't been weighed recently? ... view
|
|
Urinating In The House (cat) (01-Feb-07 09:04PM)
Sacha asks:
Spike has suddenly started to urinate all around the house. He is just under 10 years old and has never done this before. He has access to a cat flap. It ... view
|
|
One of my cats pooped on the carpet (cat) (28-Mar-07 03:26PM)
kittiei asks:
My cats are both almost 3 and yesterday one of them pooped on the carpet in front of my door. I live in an apartment and have been there for almost ... view
|
|
Pregnant kitten problems (cat) (03-Feb-07 11:32PM)
Denise asks:
Toffee is 8 months old. We took her to get spayed and found out she is pregnant. She is approximately 4 weeks. She cannot settle, she is meowing all the ... view
|
|
Buying a non hip-scored pup (dog) (04-Feb-07 12:08PM)
Anna asks:
We have been searching for a Spanish Water dog for some time now, and I have recently been in contact with a breeder who will have a litter available in March. ... view
|
|
Blood and discharge at anus of cat (cat) (25-Jan-07 08:49PM)
Karen asks:
Can you please confirm what may have caused this problem? ... view
|
|
Ronin lethargic, off food, very quiet. (dog) (04-Feb-07 11:01AM)
Colin asks:
For the past 2 days he's been lethargic and now he's off his food, yawning a lot and seems very quiet. Could this be a worm problem or something more serious? ... view
|
|
|  |
Your Questions Answered
|
Injured Wild Owl 30-Nov-07
Kelly asks:
I found an owl this morning, very small but adult. It flew into a power line. It's still alive. ... view
|
|
swollen hind leg 20-Nov-07
 Zshai asks:
I have a 6-day-old bunny who has a swollen hind leg. I saw her mama step on her but ... view
|
|
Sick syrian hamster 08-Nov-07
Sara asks:
Hi. My syrian hamster is 2 and half yrs. old. The last 24 hrs I have noticed a big ... view
|
|
lack of sleep 07-Nov-07
Bill asks:
We have a 14 month old Yorkshire terrier, which goes to bed at around 6.30pm, because I have MS ... view
|
|
wet tail 06-Nov-07
Evelyn asks:
Can a young hamster be successfully treated for wet tail and what would it roughly cost? ... view
|
|
Alfie 06-Nov-07
Elaine asks:
Hi Sam
Thank you. Alfie has no feeding time he just has food in his bowl when he wants it ... view
|
|
Guarding problem 05-Nov-07
 Elaine asks:
Alfie is a terrible guarder and will take your hand off if you try and retrieve an object he ... view
|
|
White Gums and Dark Stool 02-Nov-07
Leslie asks:
My 8 week old American Bulldog has really white gums, around the eyes is also white. She has dark ... view
|
|
Dog's Health 01-Nov-07
William asks:
My dog is around 11 years old, possibly older (we received her as she was taken from a bad ... view
|
|
behaviour 31-Oct-07
Debby asks:
Hi Max is very lively of course but he seems to get very excited and bites the children, not ... view
|
|
Blood in dog's stools 31-Oct-07
Lee asks:
Hi. We recently got a 3 year old Labrador from a friend. From what we can see she has ... view
|
|
upset stomach 30-Oct-07
kat asks:
About three days ago my dog started acting like she was sick; diarrhoea and vomiting along with excessive sneezing ... view
|
|
Blood in Poo 28-Oct-07
Mandy asks:
Treacle is now 9 wks old and had her first vaccination two days ago. I have noticed that at ... view
|
|
neutering 27-Oct-07
 ashen1956 asks:
3 days ago Molly-Mae gave birth to 5 kittens. How long should I wait before having her neutered and ... view
|
|
Ordering Insulin Online 26-Oct-07
Purdie asks:
Purdie is diabetic and I'm keen to find a way of reducing the cost of the treatment. Currently ... view
|
|
Fleas and skin problem 26-Oct-07
Joanne asks:
I have two cats, a neutered tom and his sister. They are 6 and a half yrs. old. They ... view
|
|
My cat has a hole in its stomach! 23-Oct-07
Sarah asks:
My cat has a hole the size of a dime in its stomach. He doesn't seem to be ... view
|
|
labrador vomiting bile and nearly passing out 22-Oct-07
Paul asks:
Hi there - our five year old male labrador is generally in very good health - excellent appetite, plenty ... view
|
|
Guinea pig fits 22-Oct-07
Renate asks:
My guinea pig is acting strange. I've only had him around a week and he's running as if spooked ... view
|
|
feeding 22-Oct-07
Terry asks:
Is it safe to feed my GSD raw chicken wings, he is 16 months old and is 37 kg? ... view
|
|
|
