Program Overview

Who is this course designed for?

This course has been designed for delegates at all levels of experience and involvement with triage, diagnostic procedures, and nursing care of canine and feline cardiorespiratory patients. Whether you are actively involved with the care of cardiorespiratory patients, or are less familiar and wish to learn more, this course is perfect for you. This course will cover some of the underlying conditions encountered by RVNs in practice. The ultimate goal is to provide RVNs with the knowledge and skills to most effectively assist with diagnosis, patient monitoring, and delivery of nursing care.

Course content:

The course covers various cardiorespiratory conditions and presentations, associated pathophysiology, triage, diagnostic techniques, and nursing care. To include:

• Acute respiratory distress
• Chronic respiratory conditions
• Congenital cardiac diseases – PDA, pulmonary stenosis, aortic stenosis
• Acquired cardiac diseases – mitral valve disease, DCM, HCM
• Heart failure

The pathophysiology behind each condition will be discussed, including presentation and clinical signs. For each condition the diagnostic testing and process, and the RVNs role within this, general nursing care and specific requirements of each condition will be delivered through lectures, case based discussions, interactive sessions, and practical techniques.

Benefits of the course:

By the end of the course, delegates should be able to:

• Apply the pathophysiology of each condition
• Be able to confidently triage the cardiorespiratory patient, and understand the principles of associated emergency veterinary care
• Understand and maximise their involvement with the diagnostic process
• Provide optimal nursing medical and in-patient care

Course format: Non-accredited, CPD short course (approximately 8 hours)