Veterinarian: Changes mean fewer appointments, better care

By Capt. Janas L. Gray, Fort Rucker Veterinarian Treatment FacilityMarch 14, 2014

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FORT RUCKER, Ala. (March 14, 2014) -- Thank you all for allowing the Fort Rucker Veterinarian Treatment Facility to take care of your four legged furry friends' needs. We understand they are members of your Family and we want to make sure they receive the proper care necessary to stay healthy.

We have recently converted over to Wellness No. 3, mandated policies from higher headquarters, to better assist the needs of your pets. Due to the recent changes implemented by higher headquarters of the Wellness No. 3 and a recent change with our computer system, we have been required to reduce our number of appointments.

The Wellness No. 3 has taken away all veterinary technicians' ability to see clients without the presence of a veterinarian, thus allowing fewer appointments to be seen per day. However, this requirement of having a veterinarian examine every animal affords an opportunity to communicate more with the client and more contact with the patient for early detection of health problems that could possibly go undetected.

In addition to the Wellness No. 3, we have a new system nationwide -- Remote Online Veterinary Records -- that allows your pets' records to be accessed at any of the VTFs nationwide. This will be a convenience for Soldiers during a PCS move. The start of this new system has resulted in further reduction of our appointments due to employee training and familiarization of ROVR.

A decrease in available appointments will more than likely extend through the month of March. Currently, due to the decrease in appointment availability, we are requiring clients to schedule appointments for no more than two pets at a time.

With ROVR, all patients are required to have a prescription generated in the system for refills to be honored. For your convenience and to decrease your wait time at the VTF for a prescription refill, we are requesting that you call in the refill at least 72 hours in advance.

This will give us the opportunity to add you and your pet in the new system. It will also give us time to generate a script to refill the requested medication ensuring it's ready at the time of pick-up. This pertains to all medication and prescription items dispensed at the VTF: monthly heart worm prevention, monthly flea and tick control, medicated shampoos, ear medication, antibiotics, pain medication, thyroid medication, wormer for intestinal parasites, etc.

I understand these changes may be frustrating, but I can assure you that we are doing all we can to honor as many appointments as we can while this transition takes place. In advance, we thank you for your patience and consideration and look forward to serving you in the near future.

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