07/08/2023
https://www.thestar.com.my/opinion/letters/2023/08/07/a-toast-to-busy-vets-everywhere
When we are sick, we go to a clinic. Despite long queues, despite tardy specialists, we wait patiently. We have no choice.
In the consultation room, we have a mere handful of minutes to talk to the doctor. “You have a fever, probably due to viral infection. Take these medications.” If it’s a busy specialist, we probably have only a few words with him. “How are you feeling? Good? Ok, I’ll see you then.”
We go home, we follow instructions and take medications without knowing what they are and do to our body. If we don’t get better, we visit the clinic again.
When a dog or cat is sick, its owner takes it to a veterinary clinic. If the queue is long, the receptionist gets the blame.
In the examination room, the veterinarian spends 30 to 60 minutes per consultation and is expected to answer every single question like a walking Wikipedia. The vet may need to pause the consultation when owner is busy messaging or answering phone calls.
The vet is obliged to recount every clinical finding, trivial to serious, with proof and evidence to the owner. “Differentials for low red cells are….” “Causes of the cough are….”
Then he prescribes medications and, naturally, states all their indications and side effects: “Theophylline is prescribed to reduce coughing and may cause restlessness and tachycardia.”
That’s not the end.
The veterinarian is expected to answer questions texted to him or her for free, round the clock. At times the messages come in at 10pm or 11pm. “Why is my Suki not eating/vomiting/coughing?” “Is this a supplement or diet recommended?” The busy vet also answers questions when he is chewing his lunch, with photos of slimy puke or watery stools to spice up his repast.
If the vet is slow to reply or even - gasp! - ignores messages, he gets a lengthy bad review on social media. Some pet owners may even lodge a complaint with the Malaysian Veterinary Council.
Companion veterinarian are sturdy, aren’t they?
DR ANTHONY LEONG ZI PING
DVM (Doctor of Veterinary Medicine) & PhD
Kuala Lumpur
FROM DVM (Doctor of Veterinary Medicine) & PhD Kuala Lumpur
