In the typical veterinary ER, when dogs and cats are admitted into hospital, they have an IV cannula placed and STAT blood work run, a venous blood gas and electrolytes and a PCV and TP. Did you know that you can use these tests to really narrow down disease processes your patient may have? Extracting this information will improve your patient care by shaping your specific stabilisation plan and allowing you to sculpt a more specific plan for additional diagnostics and treatment beyond stabilisation. An improved level of understanding from the outset will also allow you to have better informed discussions with owners about costs of work up and ongoing care. In this webinar, I will help you learn to group results of STAT blood tests to understand many aspects of your patients, from their blood volume status, to whether they may need intensive support for their lung disease, to whether they require a specific intervention for their acid-base derangements, and more.
Recording from 19 October 2023
Speaker:
Melissa Claus
Melissa Claus, DVM, Diplomate ACVECC
I’ve been involved in the veterinary industry for most of my life, first as a vet nurse and later as a veterinarian. I became a boarded specialist in Emergency and Critical Care in 2010. Shortly thereafter, I left the United States for Australia to begin a career in academia at Murdoch University to fulfill my passion for teaching veterinary students, nurses, residents, and interns. Since 2020, I have been a part time teleconsultant for VetCT, where I am part of a global support network of specialists who provide clinical guidance to veterinarians with challenging cases. In 2022, I left academia and joined a private practice specialty hospital in Perth, Australia, where I have been building a brand new small animal ECC service. My primary research interests are circulatory shock and transfusion medicine. Other interests include fluid balance, electrolytes, acid-base, pulmonary physiology, physiology of fever, and extracorporeal therapies.
Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my husband and 3 kiddos, and small menagerie of 2 dogs, 1 cat, 1 rabbit, 1 goat, and 6 chooks.
