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RCVS Knowledge survey to explore contextualised care
The survey will close on the 17th April.
The initiative aims to build a ‘roadmap’ to support veterinary teams.

RCVS Knowledge has launched a survey to investigate the use of contextualised care in small animal practice.

The charity is calling on veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses to share their opinions of contextualised care in practice, including insights into how they can be better supported to deliver this care.

The project is part of an initiative to help veterinary professionals to adapt their care to the individual circumstances of each animal and their owner. RCVS Knowledge seeks to create a roadmap to set out what needs to be done to help veterinary professionals to deliver contextualised care and share their decision-making.

The results of the survey will be used alongside in-depth interviews with people in other roles in the veterinary sector, including veterinary receptionists and practice managers. Pet owners will also be surveyed and invited to focus groups, where they’ll be asked what matters most when making decisions about their pets’ health and what would help them feel better supported by a veterinary team.

Using their findings, RCVS Knowledge hopes to develop insights into the challenges faced when attempting to deliver contextualised care and discover how they can support practices in delivering the services.

Sally Everitt, clinical lead of evidence at RCVS Knowledge, said: “Although the term contextualised care is now being widely used, and a requirement to practise contextualised care is included in the RCVS Guidance for veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses, there is little information available on how contextualised care is most effectively delivered in practice.

“Our research aims to address a gap in the evidence about what the barriers and enablers are and what needs to change to support veterinary teams to deliver contextualised care.”

The survey is open for veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses currently in clinical practice in the UK and working with dogs and cats. It will close on 17 April.

The survey can be found here.

Image © Shutterstock

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