Abvma council guidelines on alternative & complementary practices
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The document outlines the Alberta Veterinary Medical Association's guidelines for the practice of complementary and alternative veterinary medicine, defining its scope and the roles of veterinarians in integrating these practices responsibly into animal care. It emphasizes that only licensed veterinarians can offer such services within a veterinarian-client-patient relationship and stresses the need for proper training, supervision, and informed consent when employing these modalities. Additionally, it clarifies the consequences for non-veterinarians offering unauthorized treatments and the importance of ongoing communication between veterinarians and clients regarding animal health care options.
Abvma council guidelines on alternative & complementary practices
- 1. COUNCIL GUIDELINES FOR THE PRACTICE OF COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE VETERINARY MEDICINE Purpose The purpose of this Council Guideline is to define complementary and alternative veterinary medicine in accordance with the provisions of the Veterinary Profession Act, and to clarify the position of the ABVMA regarding the rights and responsibilities of providing such services to animals of clients who are members of the public. Definitions The Veterinary Profession Act defines “veterinary medicine” to mean a medical service performed with respect to an animal and includes the following: surgery, obstetrics and ova and embryo collection, prescribing, compounding, dispensing and selling drugs. For clarity, the ABVMA further embraces the definition of veterinary medicine proposed by the American Association of State Board’s “Veterinary Medicine and Veterinary Technology Practice Act Model”. The Practice of Veterinary Medicine means that any person practices veterinary medicine with respect to animals when such person performs any one or more of the following: (a) Directly or indirectly consults, diagnoses, prognoses, corrects, supervises, or recommends treatment of an animal, for the prevention, cure or relief of a wound, fracture, bodily injury, disease, physical or mental condition; (b) Prescribes, dispenses or administers a drug, medicine, biologic, appliance, application or treatment of whatever nature; (c) Performs upon an animal a surgical or dental operation or a Complementary or Alternative Veterinary Medical procedure; (d) Performs upon an animal any manual procedure for the diagnoses and /or treatment of pregnancy, sterility, or infertility; (e) Determines the health, fitness, or soundness of an animal; (f) Represents oneself directly or indirectly, as engaging in the practice of veterinary medicine; or (g) Uses any words, letters or titles under such circumstance as to induce the belief that the person using them is qualified to engage in the practice of veterinary medicine, as defined. Such use shall be prima facie evidence of the intention to represent oneself as engaged in the practice of veterinary medicine. “Complementary and Alternative Veterinary Medicine” (CAVM) is an inclusive term that describes treatments, therapies, and/or modalities that are not accepted as components of mainstream veterinary education or practice, but that are performed on animals by some practitioners. While these treatments, therapies and/or modalities often form part of veterinary post-graduation education, they are generally viewed as alternatives or complementary to more universally accepted treatments, therapies and modalities. Veterinary treatments, therapies, and/or modalities that are currently April 21, 2010
- 2. considered complementary and/or alternative include (but are not limited to) the following: chiropractic care; physical therapy; rehabilitation therapy; massage therapy; homeopathy; acupuncture; nutraceutical therapy; botanical and herbal medicine; and phytotherapy. Other names commonly used for these modalities include holistic or integrative veterinary therapies or therapy options. (Integrative veterinary medicine is the complete synthesis of conventional and CAVM diagnostic and therapeutic modalities). Scope This Council Guideline applies to all veterinarians in Alberta who wish to practice or offer complementary and alternative veterinary medicine. It does not apply to non veterinarians illegally practicing these modalities outside a veterinarian-client-patient relationship, or the rehabilitation of wildlife. Background This position statement replaces the ABVMA’s former Council Guidelines “Council Guideline for the Responsible Use of Complementary and Alternative Veterinary Modalities” and “Council Guidelines for Associating with Non-Veterinarians Practicing Veterinary Medicine”. This Council Guideline establishes a single position of the ABVMA with regard to treatments, therapies, and/or modalities that are currently considered to be “complementary” and/or “alternative.” In human health care, these services are available to patients from a number of regulated health professions, many of which do not require referrals from primary-care physicians. In Alberta, these professionals are governed by the Health Professions Act and each is differentiated from the others in profession-specific enabling legislation by way of defined “scopes of practice” and “controlled acts.” However, all of veterinary medicine is considered “controlled” and the scope of practice for animal health care is attributed exclusively to veterinarians through the Veterinary Profession Act. As a result, it is illegal for anyone other than a veterinarian to engage in independent veterinary practice without the appropriate supervision by a veterinarian within a certified Veterinary Practice Entity. It is important to note that even individuals who are licensed to practice on humans under the HPA (and who are accountable to their own College for their practice) are not licensed to practice independently on animals under the legislation that governs their own profession. The only way for these professionals to provide complementary/alternative services to animals (assuming they have the appropriate training and skill to do so) is through the direction and supervision of a veterinarian. Public access to the complaints avenue at HPA Colleges in cases involving animals treated by non-veterinarians is limited to nonexistent. The ABVMA is the only body responsible for overseeing veterinarians’ actions and/or pursuing allegations of unauthorized veterinary practice by non-veterinarians in Alberta. This Council Guideline therefore considers the mechanisms for authorizing and legitimatizing such activity within the scope of the current legislation, which requires that veterinary medicine only be practiced by individuals registered under the act. April 21, 2010
- 3. ABVMA Position General It is the position of the ABVMA that only veterinarians have the education, knowledge, skills, and judgment to evaluate and integrate complementary and alternative veterinary medicine into a rational treatment plan for animals. Therefore performing alternative and complementary veterinary treatments, therapies and/or modalities on animals constitutes the practice of veterinary medicine such that these procedures may only be performed by a veterinarian or potentially by a non-veterinarian who is directed and supervised by the veterinarian, within the context of a valid veterinarian-client-patient relationship. The ABVMA acknowledges that specific training opportunities in some complementary and alternative veterinary medicine treatments, therapies and modalities are available to non-veterinarians who wish to work with animals (examples include chiropractic animal care, animal rehabilitation, and animal massage therapy). Although such training, when undertaken by non-veterinarians, may potentially qualify these individuals to provide specific services to animals under the supervision of a veterinarian who chooses to provide this type of veterinary service by way of such an arrangement, it is the veterinarian who remains fully responsible for monitoring all such treatments, therapies or modalities and assessing related outcomes for their patients. Clients who employ non- veterinarians to provide alternative or complementary treatments, therapies or modalities to their animals outside of the veterinarian-client- patient relationship do so at their own risk. The provision of any unsupervised and/or undirected and therefore uncoordinated service by non-veterinarians will be considered the unauthorized practice of veterinary medicine by the ABVMA. Individuals who offer such services may be subject to an ABVMA investigation and prosecution (as well as a complaint to their own regulatory body, if they are licensed in another profession), particularly if those services include medical assessment, diagnostic and/or prescriptive components. Training Requirements Veterinarians who utilize complementary and/or alternative treatments, therapies, and/or modalities as part of the treatment plans developed for their clients’ animals must ensure they are sufficiently educated and trained (with appropriate knowledge, skills, and judgment) in the indications, risks, and implementation of such approaches. It is the position of the ABVMA that such training undertaken by veterinarians would complement their credentials and prior training and may therefore qualify them for providing complementary or alternative services to animals. For veterinarians without this training, the performance of complementary and/or alternative treatments, therapies, and/or modalities would fall outside of his/her personal competence; however, with adequate knowledge of indications, risks and benefits, veterinarians may choose to refer clients to qualified veterinarians or to delegate and supervise their performance by appropriately trained non-veterinarians. The ABVMA considers the successful completion of a post-graduate certificate program in treating animals to be the appropriate educational standard for those who wish to perform complementary and/or alternative procedures on animals. Such programs may be open to both veterinarians and to regulated (human) health professionals (e.g., Programs certified through the American Veterinary Chiropractic Association). April 21, 2010
- 4. Delegation, Supervision, and Coordinated Care The Veterinary Profession Act grants, with few exceptions, veterinarians the exclusive right to engage in the practice of veterinary medicine. Despite legislated limitations, the ABVMA recognizes a need for our members to access other occupational groups and use the expertise of those groups in the practice of veterinary medicine for the betterment of animal health and welfare. The overriding principle of delegation is that it must occur within the context of a veterinarian-client-patient relationship and within a certified Veterinary Practice Entity. Delegation can only occur after the veterinarian has performed a conventional patient assessment, made recommendations, obtained the informed consent of the owner and developed a specific treatment plan that has been clearly communicated to the non-veterinarian auxiliary. This requirement for assessment and ongoing communication between the veterinarian and non-veterinarian— which is also required for inter-veterinary transfers and referrals—is based on the need for coordinated care for the sake of the animals’ health, welfare and the protection of the public. The veterinarian must also ensure that an appropriate and reasonable level of supervision is provided to all non-veterinarians who are to provide delegated complementary or alternative services. Ultimately the responsibility for the health care of the animal remains with the veterinarian. The level of supervision may vary in each case 1 and may change as the animal’s condition progresses. Ideally all veterinary medicine that is delegated would be to registered personnel working within a certified Veterinary Practice Entity. However, delegation to qualified off-site non-veterinarians for the provision of complementary or alternative veterinary medical therapies, treatments, or modalities may constitute an acceptable form of indirect supervision of the case, but only if the veterinarian has first performed a patient assessment, with periodic re-evaluation. (Indirect supervision would also include periodic contact with the veterinarian to discuss the case.) If a veterinarian is confident that delegation to a non-veterinarian with appropriate training in alternative and/or complementary treatments, therapies or modalities would benefit his/her patient, and if the client gives full informed consent, then—in order to meet professional standards— written direction must be issued that includes: a) copies of relevant medical records / information; b) specific record-keeping and follow-up requirements for the non-veterinarian to follow; and c) a mechanism for the veterinarian to monitor the patient’s treatment and outcome, including communication expectations and the provision of records (such as initial assessment, progress notes, and discharge forms) kept by the non- veterinarian to the veterinarian. 1 Some of the considerations would be as follows: a. The nature of the services; b. The degree and nature of the risks and side-effects associated with the services; c. The location, facilities and supports available to the auxiliary when performing the services; d. The veterinarian’s awareness of the knowledge, skills, training and judgment of the auxiliary; e. The safeguards in place (e.g., whether the auxiliary participates in on-going education and certification, whether the auxiliary is independently accountable to a self-regulatory body, whether there are resources immediately available to intervene in the case of complications). April 21, 2010
- 5. To avoid conflict of interest concerns, billing for services performed by off-site non- veterinarians (unless they are employed by the veterinarian) must be done independently by the non-veterinarian and all financial transactions so carried out must be completely separate from the client’s account with the veterinarian. The veterinarian who delegates to a non-veterinarian is fully responsible for his or her patients receiving services from any and all non-veterinarians under supervision/direction. Veterinarians who delegate to non-veterinarians for alternative and/or complementary therapy, treatment, or modalities for their patients without providing an appropriate level of supervision could be considered to be assisting a non-veterinarian to practice veterinary medicine, an act that constitutes professional misconduct. They may also, in some cases, be exposed to civil liability for any harm that results in these circumstances. If the veterinarian advises a client against pursuing alternative and/or complementary therapies, treatments, or modalities and he/she chooses to pursue them anyhow, the veterinarian should note the discussion and declined advice in the medical record of the animal in question. Records must still be provided to the client on request as this is the general professional expectation and is required (with very rare exceptions) under privacy legislation. The veterinarian will not be considered to be assisting an unauthorized practice by providing records to the client even if the veterinarian suspects or knows that the records will be used by other persons. A veterinarian who encounters a client wishing to pursue complementary or alternative veterinary medical therapies, treatments, or modalities, and who does not feel comfortable delegating to a non-veterinarian who offers the service(s) should recognize that the client has the right to choose services; clarify for the client that the veterinarian will not be responsible for the outcome; advise the client that he/she does so at his/her own risk; record the discussion and decision in the medical record; and encourage ongoing communication between the veterinarian, client, and service provider. The ABVMA recognizes and upholds the following: 1. Complementary and alternative veterinary modalities constitute the practice of veterinary medicine (as defined above) when performed on animals. 2. Only veterinarians have the education and background to evaluate and integrate complementary and alternative veterinary modalities into a treatment regime for animals. 3. There is demand for the use of complementary and alternative veterinary modalities on animals. 4. Some complementary and alternative veterinary modalities have not been endorsed by the scientific community. 5. A scientific evaluation of the merits of each complementary and alternative veterinary modality by the ABVMA prior to its implementation is impractical. 6. Certain requirements must be met by any veterinarian or veterinary practice entity wishing to use a complementary or alternative modality, in order to protect the public. April 21, 2010
- 6. ABVMA Requirements 1. Any member who wishes to use a complementary and alternative modality does so with the recognition that current accepted standards of both conventional and complementary & alternative modalities will prevail in the event of a peer review. When a particular complementary/alternative modality is in question, the peer review may consult with veterinary colleagues who are knowledgeable in that particular modality. 2. An important consideration in a peer review will be the appropriate integration of that modality with conventional therapy. A complementary and alternative modality must not be offered to the exclusion of a conventional therapy, which has known, demonstrable benefit to the patient. 3. The practitioner is advised to obtain informed client consent 2 by discussing the known facts and relative merits of all treatments, and procedures appropriate to a given case. Members are strongly encouraged to use the Complementary and Alternative Veterinary Modality(s) Consent Form, because evidence of informed client consent should form a significant component of a peer review. 2 The ABVMA endorses the AAVSB definition of Informed Consent to indicate that the veterinarian has informed the client or the client’s authorized representative, in a manner understood by the client or representative, of the diagnostic and treatment options, risk assessment, and prognosis, and has provided the client with an estimate of the charges for veterinary services to be rendered and the client has consented to the recommended treatment. April 21, 2010
- 7. -Clinic Letterhead- COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE VETERINARY MODALITY(S) CLIENT CONSENT FORM 1. OWNER IDENTIFICATION: Date______________ Name___________________________________ Address__________________________________________________________ 2. ANIMAL’S DESCRIPTION: Animal’s Name or Identification No.___________________________________ Species____________________ Breed______________________ Age_______ 3. INFORMATION PROVIDED: I have been advised by Dr(s).__________________________________ of the conventional, complementary and alternative veterinary options for diagnosis and therapy for my animal, and their associated risks, costs and prognosis. I am aware that the following complementary and alternative modalities to be used in the treatment of my animal are not considered conventional veterinary medicine. ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ 4. I AGREE THAT: I have read and fully understand this Client Consent Form. I am the owner of, or the authorized agent of, the animal described above and I am of legal age (18 years or older). I consent to the provision of the above listed complementary and alternative modalities for my animal by the above-mentioned doctor(s). I am seeking complementary or alternative services without involvement of my veterinary practitioner. __________________________________________________ Client Signature __________________________________________________ Veterinarian Signature __________________________________________________ Witness Signature April 21, 2010