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New RCVS guidance on clinical and ethical judgements
The concept of CVR is not new, however, it is the first time that the RCVS has provided specific guidance on the area.
Guidance to cover RVP, CVR and ethics review.

The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) has announced that it will publish new guidance to support the profession to make clinical and ethical judgements.

New guidance, which will replace Chapter 25 of the Supporting Guidance to the Code of Professional Conduct, will be introduced to empower veterinary surgeons to make judgements on routine veterinary practice (RVP) – formerly known as recognised veterinary practice – and clinical veterinary research (CVR).

Dr Melissa Donald, Chair of the Standards Committee and incoming RCVS president, said: “The revised guidance on RVP is an important development. 

“The process for reviewing the guidance has been thorough and involved input from academics and researchers throughout the veterinary industry.”  

Having been approved by the RCVS Standards Committee, the guidance will assist the profession in determining whether a procedure, series of procedures or study is RVP, CVR or is experimental, therefore requiring regulation from the Home Office under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act. 

Set to be published on 1 July, the guidance will also introduce an obligation to obtain ethics review for studies where consent would be obtain from the owner of an animal prior to being enrolled, or when consent of required for the use of previously collected data or samples. This will come into effect on 1 September 2022.

Dr Donald continued: “We hope that the guidance will inspire confidence in our veterinary colleagues at all levels to undertake treatment routes which develop veterinary knowledge as a whole, while still being for the benefit of the animal being treated.”

Alongside the guidance, the RCVS is providing comprehensive FAQs to provide extra guidance on areas such as informed consent, ethics review and CVR, among others.

When available from 1 July onwards, the new guidance will be available to read on the RCVS website

Any veterinary surgeons requiring advice or further information on RVP or CVR, and whether a proposed procedure would be covered under the guidance should contact advice@rcvs.org.uk for assistance.

Members of the profession can also contact ethics@rcvs.org.uk for further information relating to ethics review of proposed veterinary clinical research studies.

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Practices urged to audit neutering data

News Story 1
 RCVS Knowledge has called on vet practices to audit their post-operative neutering outcomes.

It follows the release of the 2024 NASAN benchmarking report, which collates data from neutering procedures performed on dogs, cats and rabbits.

The benchmarking report enables practices in the UK and Ireland to compare their post-operative outcomes to the national average. This includes the rate of patients lost to follow-up, which in 2024 increased to 23 per cent.

Anyone from the practice can submit the data using a free template. The deadline for next report is February 2026.

Visit the RCVS Knowledge website to complete an audit. 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
New guidance for antibiotic use in rabbits

New best practice guidance on the responsible use of antibiotics in rabbits has been published by the BSAVA in collaboration with the Rabbit Welfare Association & Fund (RWA&F).

The guidance is free and has been produced to help veterinary practitioners select the most appropriate antibiotic for rabbits. It covers active substance, dose and route of administration all of which are crucial factors when treating rabbits owing to the risk of enterotoxaemia.

For more information and to access the guide, visit the BSAVALibrary.