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Blue Cross donates ventilators to the NHS
The two ventilators have been sent to NHS hospitals in London and Surrey.

Vital equipment to be used in the fight against COVID-19

Pet charity Blue Cross has provided support to NHS hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic, by donating two of its mechanical ventilators.

The two ventilators, which are typically used on pets under anaesthetic and in surgery at the charity’s animal hospitals in London, have now been sent to NHS hospitals in London and Surrey.

The charity’s donation follows countrywide calls from Defra, the Department for Health and Social Care and NHS England for veterinary practices and other organisations to donate any ventilators they can spare in order to prepare for an expected increase in patients suffering from severe respiratory problems during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nadine Lock, chief veterinary surgeon at the Blue Cross hospital in Hammersmith, commented: “We wanted to offer our help and we understand ventilators are critically important in supporting the recovery of human patients in hospital being treated for the virus. Blue Cross teams can manually ventilate pets in surgery at our hospital in Victoria, should this be necessary.”

In its call to action for UK practices, Defra said: “We are aware that many veterinary practices across the country may have NHS compatible - human ventilators that they are not using for emergency animal care. To be clear we are not asking for ventilators only suitable for animals.

“We are also cognisant of animal welfare, and that you will need to set aside ventilators for emergency veterinary care. We are therefore only asking you to contribute what you can, acknowledging the difficult balance involved.”

If you think your practice may be able to assist the NHS, please click here to register your interest.

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Vets to run marathon for World Animal Protection

News Story 1
 Two recently graduated veterinary surgeons will be running the London Marathon in April to raise money for the charity World Animal Protection.

Alex Bartlett and Maeve O'Neill plan to run the race together if they are given the same start times.

Dr O'Neill said: "You're always limited in what you can do to help animals, so it is nice to raise money for a charity that helps animals around the world."

Dr Bartlett added: "I have never run a marathon before and am excited to run my first one for such a good cause!"

Both Dr Bartlett and Dr O'Neill have fundraising pages online. 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
BSAVA releases new Guide to Procedures

The British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) has published a new edition of its Guide to Procedures for Small Animal Practice.

It has added four new procedures; cystostomy tube placement, endotracheal intubation, point-of-care ultrasound and wet-to-dry dressings.

BSAVA says that it is an essential step-by-step guide to diagnostic and therapeutic procedures performed in practice. The textbook includes new images and illustrations, as well as high-definition videos for use prior to procedures.

Nick Bexfield and Julia Riggs, editors of the new edition, said: "We have built upon the success of the previous editions by responding to the feedback received from the BSAVA readership, and hope this new guide helps to further increase the confidence and accuracy with which these procedures are performed."

Print copies are available in the BSAVA store, with a digital version in the BSAVA library.