Encouraging Vaccines and Wellness Exams Post-COVID-19

Pet parents are increasingly worried that their cat could potentially contract COVID-19 when visiting their veterinarian for exams and vaccinations. Now is the time for veterinary professionals to create practical strategies and policies to keep our pet patients safe from potential SARS-CoV-2 exposure within our clinics.

It’s time to think beyond curbside service and accept this “new abnormal” as the “new normal,” at least until we have a COVID-19 vaccine or treatment. The fact is that even after we have a human coronavirus vaccine, we’ll still need to take precautions to protect animals, especially cats and ferrets, from contracting or serving as potential reservoirs of SARS-CoV-2. Let’s discuss some steps many of our colleagues are already implementing and how to comfort clients concerned about visiting for annual exams and vaccines. 

Curbside Care

Without a doubt, the most common tactic veterinarians are currently using to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission is simply not allowing clients into their clinics except when deemed absolutely necessary, such as euthanasia procedures. 

In general terms, a client makes an appointment, calls or texts when they arrive, and a staff member takes the pet from them in the parking lot. The pet is taken inside and a veterinarian often calls, texts, or videoconferences their findings or exam while the client remains in their vehicle. 

While this service has worked well during this initial pandemic phase, I don’t see this as a practical long term solution.

Inclement weather, rainstorms, heat waves, and the lack of interpersonal communication and worries that their “fur baby” is alone and scared, hurting, or frightened will likely result in pet parents seeking other forms of care.

For many cat owners, the stress and anxiety about curbside service is even worse, leading many to skip well visits for now. 

I believe it’s essential for veterinary care to be provided in the direct presence of the pet parent, pet patient, and pet doctor as often as possible, and, especially during this pandemic, as safely as possible. Let’s extend our solutions beyond curbside care.

Staggered Schedules

Many human parents fear their child will pick up an infection from a sick child when visiting their pediatrician. The CDC recently released data that an alarming number of toddlers are missing essential childhood immunizations during the pandemic due to these fears. 

Many pet parents share the same worry. Some cat owners are beginning to say they’re more worried about their cat getting COVID-19 when visiting their veterinarian than themselves.

While it’s easy to dismiss these questions as illogical or uniformed, I believe we’re going to see some pet parents skip vaccines due to these coronavirus concerns. 

Perhaps the most obvious strategy to help allay these fears is staggered schedules. In simplest terms, this means the veterinarian schedules well visits in the morning and sick patients in the afternoon. The rationale is that the clinic environment will be most aseptic in the morning after cleaning the evening before and the fact that the virus only lives for hours on many surfaces.

By reserving periods before any potentially sick patients enter the building, we potentially reduce the risk of environmental contamination. This protocol is utilized in many human medical facilities, especially pediatric practices.  

While I understand that staggered scheduling has significant challenges and drawbacks, this simple step will make many pet parents feel more comfortable when booking wellness visits.   

Separate Spaces

Another simple strategy is to spatially separate sick patients from well visits, especially if you suspect an infectious or upper respiratory condition. If your lobby and space allow, have each pet be accompanied by only one person, and escort them immediately into designated exam rooms.

Ideally, one side and movement flow of your entryway would be used for potentially infectious patients, and the other direction for wellness visits. 

I’ve had tremendous success in the past with feline-only appointment hours and separate dog and cat exam rooms and entryways. Many of those principles apply today. Be sure to have clear signage designating these areas to not only inform clients, but to educate them on steps you’re taking to keep their pets safe. 

Movement Flows and Distance Markers

Many of you have seen grocery stores using directional arrows on their floors and at checkout to guide shoppers and encourage safe social distancing. Consider applying this tactic in your clinic whenever possible.

Blue arrows direct healthy pets where to go, red arrows guide those with sick pets, and black lines indicate where to wait and checkout.

Plexiglass Barriers, Touchless Transactions, and Self Checkout

I believe we’ll continue to see innovation in protective plexiglass barriers for use in lobbies and exam rooms in a wide variety of businesses. In addition veterinary clinics should be actively pursuing touchless payment options and self checkout. 

Mobile Services, In-home Diagnostics, and Telemedicine

While you can’t immunize pets over the internet, you can offer virtual consultations and evaluations. Many minor medical visits can be safely and effectively transferred to telemedicine, and I encourage my colleagues to continue improving these services. 

The demand for mobile, on-demand and in-home veterinary services will grow, especially in multi-cat households.

In addition, many biotech companies are developing a number of in-home diagnostic tests and devices that will broaden laboratory test access and biometrical data, ushering in an exciting era in preventive medicine and transforming the management of chronic medical diseases. These tests will only require a dog or cat owner to collect a fecal, urine, hair, or saliva sample and drop it in the mail for analysis. 

I know you’re probably saying, “Ernie, you’ve been telling us for years this was coming and it still isn’t here.” Fair enough, but I believe the coronavirus catalyst is about to ignite a diagnostic upheaval around the world in both human and animal testing.

Proximity to care will soon be a thing of the past as in-home diagnostics coupled with sophisticated biometric monitors and telemedicine come online.  

Post-Covid-19 Veterinary Practice

After 9/11, many Americans believed that most of the security changes would be temporary. Nineteen years later, many of those measures remain. No one knows what the long term effects of the current pandemic will be, but many of these protocols will become permanent because they actually make public safety and scientific sense. 

My best advice is to brainstorm around a simple question, “How can I protect my staff, clients, and patients if the pandemic lasts another year?”

For the bravest (and most paranoid) among us, how would you answer, “How will I practice veterinary medicine if infected cats (or other companion animals) become a reservoir for SARS-CoV-2?” 

The greatest scientific and social breakthroughs occur whenever the most daring and bold questions are asked and answered.

It’s time we start asking the most challenging COVID-19 questions and developing viable solutions to protect our patients and profession.