What follows below is a short guide for what you can expect while your pet is an inpatient at our hospital.
What to Expect When your Pet has been Admitted
Specialty Consults and Appointments
Patients are generally referred to Premier by their family veterinarian. Typically, your primary care veterinarian will send us a referral form. The form will describe your pet’s condition and identify the appropriate specialty department to see your pet.
Please contact us to schedule an appointment or if you have questions regarding an existing appointment.
Upon arrival, you will check in with our client care specialists. While you wait, you can relax in our reception area. Please ask one of our team members if you need help finding a good spot for you and your pet. A technician will collect you from the reception area and bring you into an exam room. They will begin the appointment by asking for a complete history and obtaining vitals on your pet.
If Your Pet is Admitted to the Hospital
You will receive information from the medical team about your pet’s specific condition and treatment plan before we admit your pet. These instructions may involve changes in feeding schedules or medications. Please ask if anything remains unclear following this conversation. Our team’s goal is to ensure that all your questions are answered. We will always go through an itemized treatment plan with you.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Our medical team will contact you during your pet’s hospitalization with updates on your pet’s condition. Please provide our Client Care Specialists with your preferred telephone number if you have not done so already.
During Your Pet’s Hospitalization:
MEDICAL UPDATES
Our doctors will call you with an update on your hospitalized pet at least once daily. Our doctors are in rounds from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. Doctors will not be available to take phone calls during this time.
- We will call if there are significant changes in your pet’s status. You may call for information about your pet at other times, but please understand that you may not be able to talk to a medical team member directly. If you are asked to leave a voicemail, a team member will return that call in a timely manner.
- To streamline all communications, we ask that you designate one family member for all medical updates and ask that they relay information to the rest of your family.
- We treat each patient’s medical condition as confidential. We will not discuss your pet’s condition with anyone but you or the person you have designated on the patient information sheet. We will also keep your family veterinarian updated on your pet’s condition.
When Your Pet is Ready to Leave the Hospital
Please be prepared to spend up to one hour during the discharge process for your pet. It is important that enough time is available to review important information regarding your pet’s care and that you have time to ask any questions.
Once your doctor feels that your pet is well enough to be sent home, a member of our medical team will contact you. At this time, they will discuss the following:
- Your pet’s current medical condition
- Briefly review the discharge instructions and discuss any rechecks that may need to occur
- Update you on your balance
THE DISCHARGE PROCESS:
Upon discharge, you will be given a copy of your pet’s discharge instructions for your review. If questions arise, now is a great time to note them down.
Your pet’s technician or doctor will review this material with you. You will receive any necessary medications for your pet and discuss instructions for administering them. The doctor or technician will review the current treatment plan and discuss home and follow-up care with you.
A lot of information is conveyed during this conversation, and to reduce distractions, we prefer to have this conversation without your pet in the room. This allows us to focus on answering your questions but also allows you to (later) have some dedicated time for reuniting with your pet. Both processes are extremely important, and we respect your relationship with your pet enough to ensure that reunion is also free of distractions.
Once you feel comfortable with the at-home instructions, you will be directed to a member of our client care team to complete the financial part of your discharge and to schedule any recheck appointments that may be required. The technician or doctor will leave to retrieve your pet during this time.
- Please ask if you need help getting your pet into your vehicle.
- Our policy is to remove all bandages from IV catheters or blood draws before your pet is discharged; however, in some cases, it may be necessary to leave a bandage on until they get home. The medical staff will instruct you on the removal of the dressing.
- If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask before you leave.