Spoštovani.
V imenu predsednika Veterinarske zbornice Slovenije izr. prof. dr. Ožbalta Podpečana, dr. vet. med., vam posredujemo obvestilo in dokument, ki ga je pripravila Federation of Veterinarians of Europe (FVE). Predsednik VZbSi vas vabi k pregledu spremnega besedila in priloge, ki sta v angleškem jeziku.
Ostanite zdravi!
Z lepimi pozdravi,
Uprava VZbSi
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CM Research Coronavirus Survey – Wave 1
What is the impact of COVID-19 on veterinary professionals and their practices?
18th March 2020, By CM Research
Get in touch at: Contact-us@cm-research.com
***
Dear Colleagues,
With the number of infections and hospitalisations increasing in most countries, hereby some more resources that could be interesting for you regarding COVID.
• Covid and animals
We get information that in some countries people want to abandon their pets or let them be euthanised. Please keep on spreading the word that at this moment, there is no evidence that animals can become ill and spread the virus further. IDEXX and other companies already tested thousands of dogs and cats on COVID, and all cases were negative. Two dogs so far in Hong Kong tested weak positive without being sick (both owners had COVID). Further tests showed that there was no evidence that COVID made the dogs sick or that the dogs could spread the virus. Pet owners should always maintain good hygiene practices (including handwashing before and after being around or handling animals, their food, or supplies, as well as avoiding kissing them) and under no circumstances should they abandon their pets. If an owner has COVID, close contact with family members, including pets, should be avoided.
• Impact of COVID on veterinary practices
CM Research did surveys amongst vet practitioners in 7 countries on the impact of COVID on their practice. In the pdf attached you can find the results. The will repeat this survey every 2/3 weeks so further updates will follow. The survey looked at changes in client behaviour, what the practices are doing themselves, the impact on the practices and support receiving & requesting. As expected, countries in “lock down” have the largest impact of Covid-19, with a large number of clients cancellations. Some clients also stock up food for their pets and medication. Most practices have implemented additional policies around personal hygiene, disinfecting and social distancing at the practice. Financial implications are expected to be significant. Do not hesitate to also call on your government to include veterinary practices in support plans for businesses affected by Covid-19 (see example BVA press release).
More updates will follow in the next week. In the meantime, ‘keep calm, keep safe and carry-on’.
Nancy
FVE
PS thank you for all who already answered the questions in our previous COVID mail. We will make provide a summary to all next week.
Ulrike Tewes
Office Manager
Federation of Veterinarians of Europe (FVE)
Avenue de Tervueren 12
B - 1040 Brussels
Tel.: +32 2 533 70 20
ulrike@fve.org
