This is a rather extraordinary case of a general practitioner, Dr Liz Dawson, who dabbled in a little bit of veterinary work which as it happens in the UK is illegal because according to the General Medical Council (GMC) only veterinary surgeons registered with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons are allowed to medically treat animals.
Dr Dawson (photo above) prescribed insulin, needles and chemotherapy drugs for her sister's pet cat. Apparently, it was common knowledge in her general practice that she prescribed for her sister's cat. She wanted to help out her sister because of the expense of veterinary treatment.
Dr Dawson practices at Horsefair Surgery in Banbury, Oxfordshire. She submitted five private prescriptions for needles, insulin and chemotherapy tablets to a pharmacy, Cox and Robinson, in the town.
The prescriptions were made out for “use in my practice". A whistleblower, we don't know the person's name, complained to the GMC. As mentioned, the GMC stated that Dr Dawson had broken the law but had decided not to take any further action.
Dr Dawson had, in fact, telephoned the GMC to inform them that she had consulted with a veterinarian. She justified the prescriptions on the basis that the vet's bills were too expensive.
It is, in fact, a bit of a non-story but interesting nonetheless. I will now await another story in which a veterinarian medically treats a human. That would be a bit more interesting.
I don't find this practice unacceptable at all. There are multiple medications for animals and humans that are identical. Plus, this doc even consulted with a vet.
ReplyDeleteSome GP's in my area will prescribe meds for their patient, upon request, knowing that they are using them to treat their animals. It's not done in a haphazard way, nor is it a common practice. But, the doc has to have confidence that the patient making the request knows what they're doing and is capable of calculating dosages.
Amoxillin, for instance, is a free antibiotic at many pharmacies and a human dose of 250 mg ( a month's worth) would be a 5 month supply for a cat or would treat 5 cats at once for a month.
The savings is enormous.
Neat comment Dee. Interesting. I think you are right. A bit of give and take makes sense. And as you say there is an overlap with feline and human illnesses and treatments.
DeleteI wonder when all of you are going to grow-up beyond a prepubescent phase in your lives?
ReplyDeleteEvery last feed-mill and grain-store in the USA also sells every antibiotic and medication needed to treat any domesticated animals. (And yes, many of them are the very same ones you get as prescriptions from "doctors" with the very same degree of quality-control -- which can save you shitloads of money for your own medical-needs if you know what you are doing. Pay a "doctor" $400 for an emergency office visit due to an allergic reaction to some poison-oak for their prescription and then pay a pharmacist $138 for some anti-inflammatory steroid, or pick up the very same compound from a feed-mill for $0.20 per dose because you've played that game before. I had a friend who went through this many times, until I turned him onto the wonders of livestock medical supplies.)
They even sell all the syringes needed to administer those medications. When I kept a lot of unwanted, abandoned, abused, stray, and injured dogs at one time; the local vet even set me up with an emergency-care kit of "left overs" she had, which included silver-nitrate cauterizing sticks to stop dangerous bleeding from injuries, as well as a few bottles of important vaccines.
Isn't it about time that you all grew-up from your "Oh, that mommy and daddy authority will solve all my problems for me!! Someone ELSE must take care of me and my animals! Because I'm too stupid and negligent to know how!"
Get a grip, you useless and incompetent imbecilic children.
I don't think you have read the article. In the UK it is illegal for a doctor to provided veterinary care. So all your rude ranting seem to be for nought.
DeleteGood grief, Jimbo.
DeleteFollow the story line. It's about a GP moving out of her scope of practice and dabbling in veterinarian medicine. Do you need pictures to get it?
It's not about treating animals ourselves. But, I am very aware of meds and other treatments available outside a vet office and use them often.
N.A. doesn't appear to have read the article, which is here for general interest, not because the site author and readers necessarily agree with the regulations.
DeletePerhaps N.A. doesn't understand the term of general practitioner. The term "GP" is common in the Republic of Ireland, the United Kingdom and several Commonwealth countries, including Canada. In the US they might be called a family doctor or physician. Rules about selling, providing or prescribing medications for animals varies from place to place, usually overseen by a veterinary association.
The nasty comments are bizarre and uncalled for.
Cee, thank you. "Nature Advocate" is a well-known internet cat hating troll who is certifiably insane ;) I am used to him. Although mad he is harmless. Thanks anyway for your welcome comment.
Delete