Companion Care Vets Launch Advanced Diagnostic Imaging Service In Partnership With VIS, Burgess Diagnostics And VetCT

Finn Seydewitz the Joint Venture Partner & Vet CCV Winchester Companion Care Vets has announced it is working in partnership with three imaging service providers to offer an integrated advanced diagnostic imaging service (MRI and CT). The service has been set up and is co-ordinated by Veterinary Imaging Services. Burgess Diagnostics provide the dedicated mobile MRI and CT scanning services and specialist radiologists from VetCT, Consultants in Telemedicine assess the case, offer advice to vets and provide image reports. The partnership has been put together to increase the range of services that Companion Care Vets can offer its clients and the group becomes the first primary care veterinary group to provide an outpatient CT and MRI scanning service. Companion Care currently has two 'hubs' in the trial, Winchester and Romford, and each is benefitting from a Burgess Diagnostics mobile scanner visit every two weeks. The CT and MRI scanner trailers alternate their visits. The partnership works with Companion Care vets submitting a case to VetCT, a group of expert radiologists for pre-imaging assessment and selection. Should the case be suitable for outpatient CT or MRI, then it is booked into the next appropriate session at the nearest 'hub' surgery. The ‘hub’ Companion Care team anaesthetise and manage the case for the day, and the scanning is carried out by a veterinary radiographer with specialist training in CT and MRI from Burgess Diagnostics. Immediately after scan completion, the digital images are uploaded at the ‘hub’ surgery and VetCT issue a comprehensive report to the referring vet within 24 hours. Images are provided in the report and case discussion is encouraged at all times. Simon Hester, Managing Director of Veterinary Imaging Services, says, “This is a proactive partnership working together to enhance the range of outpatient veterinary services offered to animal owners. We are changing the face of primary veterinary care in order to enable the more accurate and timely diagnosis of both routine ad potentially life-threatening conditions. One of our key objectives is to promote the wider use of MR/CT in the veterinary profession by making it affordable and accessible. All veterinary practices are welcome to join us on this journey." Huw Stacey, Head of Clinical Services at Companion Care Vets says, “We are always looking for ways to enrich the offering we have for our clients and this service provides increased convenience, ease of access to Companion Care hub sites and rapid case turnaround.” Huw concludes, “We are using the trial with Winchester and Romford to gauge uptake and demand but projections suggest that as a group we could support up to 20 hub sites at this time.”

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