Abstract and Introduction
Community care is a creative way of thinking about health care that mobilizes resources within a community and consists of four core principles: recognition of the urgency of access-to-care for the veterinary profession, collaboration within community networks, family-centered health care, and redefining the gold standard of care.
Abstract
The AAHA Community Care Guidelines for Small Animal Practice offer strategies to help busy veterinary practitioners increase access to care within their practice and community by optimizing collaborative networks. While these guidelines do not claim to provide exhaustive solutions to access-to-care issues, they propose a starting point from which private practices can explore and implement workable solutions for their community and their practice. Broadening the scope of care to reach all people with pets requires multimodal, collaborative, and creative solutions both within and outside of the veterinary profession. These solutions can begin with greater communication and collaboration between private veterinary practices and nonprofit veterinary practices, with the goal of keeping pets in their homes with their loving families as much as reasonably possible. (J Am Anim Hosp Assoc 2024; 60:–. DOI 10.5326/JAAHA-MS-7464)
Introduction
Veterinary small animal practice is anchored in the human-animal bond and recognizes the important role that pets play in families. However, millions of pet caregivers find veterinary care inaccessible for many reasons that are out of their control. Lack of access to veterinary care results in mental and emotional distress for the family member(s), unmet health needs for the pet, and even surrender, rehoming, or euthanasia of the pet. For the veterinary team working in small animal practice, being unable to provide care for all animals that come through the door can create moral distress and contribute to burnout, turnover, and pursuit of careers outside of veterinary medicine.
Many veterinarians want to provide expanded access to care but may not know how to get started. Others may already be implementing spectrum-of-care approaches in their practice but would benefit from guidance on taking those strategies even further to better serve their communities. Although these guidelines do not claim to provide exhaustive solutions to access-to-care issues, they offer options to increase access to care within a practice and community. These guidelines provide context for the current access-to-care issues facing the veterinary profession by examining the systemic barriers that clients and members of the veterinary profession face and how certain biases and attitudes within the veterinary profession also present obstacles to increasing access.
Although the veterinary profession is not solely responsible for the societal challenges pet-loving families face, the private veterinary practitioner can be empowered to begin to address these issues. The goal of these guidelines is to provide a starting point from which private practices can explore and implement workable solutions for their community and their practice. AAHA recognizes that there is not a one-size-fits-all solution, and these guidelines seek to equip practices and veterinarians with tools and strategies to expand health care access in their communities. Functional solutions call for shifts in the veterinary care paradigm, new strategies and practice models, and connections with existing and/or new community resources. Broadening the scope of care to reach all people with pets requires multimodal, collaborative, and creative solutions both within and outside of the veterinary profession. The solution can begin with greater communication and collaboration between private and nonprofit veterinary practices, with the goal of keeping pets in their homes with their families as much as reasonably possible.
Section 1: Community Care Guidelines Overview
Broadening the scope of who we serve
Section 2: The Challenge Defined
Understanding the need for community care
Section 3: Family-Centered Practice as a Framework
Shifting the paradigm to increase access to veterinary care
Section 4: Family-Centered Practice in Action
Implementing new ways of helping pets and their families
Section 5: Real-World Collaboration
Finding common ground to effect real change
Section 6: Community Care Networks in Action
Connecting access-to-care solutions
The 2024 AAHA Community Care Guidelines for Small Animal Practice are generously supported by CareCredit, Hill’s Pet Nutrition, IDEXX, Merck Animal Health, and Pawlicy Advisor.
