If you find rules of exposure confusing, then a simple tip is to think of it like toast…
Nurses are usually great at radiographic technique, with the flip side that vets are often poor… if you find rules of exposure confusing, then a simple tip is to think of it like toast: overcooked toast burns and goes black.
If your KV is set too high for the area being imaged, the film will be over exposed (dark) and demonstrate a flat, grey background. That is, of course, if you have not pushed it to far so as to black out (burn out) the image. If the KV is too low, the dense areas being imaged will not be penetrated. The film, or parts of it, will be white.
If the MAS is too high, the film will be over exposed (dark) demonstrating a black background. If the MAS is too low, the film will be white and washed out.
Lastly, if you change one factor (MAS or KV) you may need to change the other so as to balance the film density.
So:
If your films are dark and grey reduce the KV.
If your films are dark and black reduce the MAS.
If your films are light with no bony outlines clearly seen, increase the KV.
If your films are light but the bony outline is there, increase the MAS.
A tie-over dressing. Image source: VNT:CPD, Sept 2008 – “Wound care and management” by Alison Young DipAVN(Surgery), RVN.
One of my colleagues showed me a technique we found to be a really useful aid to wound management.
We all know open wounds can take ages to heal by second intention, depending on wound size, infection, blood supply and a patient’s health. My colleague recommends tie-over bandages are used until the wound is no longer infected and can then be closed without tension.
Tie-over bandages provide a method for stretching and lengthening the local skin to facilitate wound closure. The amount of skin relaxation obtained depends on the location of the wound and the local skin character. Maximal stretch is usually noted within 2 to 3 days after placement of tension on the skin.
Tie-over bandages are also useful for securing bandages in areas that are difficult to incorporate into a regular bandage, or to reduce tension on primarily closed wounds (mast cell tumours, for example).
I also came across an article (Tobias, 2015) on just this subject that stated: “The laces are tightened 2 to 3 times a day to gradually increase tension on the skin. Most animals require sedation and analgesics during bandage changes for the first 3 to 5 days. If wounds are effusive or the laces are tight, the lacing material usually must be cut to change the bandage.”
I have limited experience of this technique, but it is definitely one worth considering in cases with difficult areas to bandage.
Last Saturday I had a “walk in” – a very cute spaniel that was limping slightly and had a cut pad. The owner thought she might have trodden on something.
A good palpation didn’t seem to suggest the presence of any foreign body and the dog was very stoical. My previous experiences suggest any foreign material produces a lot of pain that is exacerbated by palpation – sometimes with dramatic effect!
However, the insistence of the owner made me look closer and I could just see a glint of a firm object deeply embedded in the pad. A pair of rat toothed forceps later and I extracted a 5mm slither of glass from the pad.
The result was a happy dog and owner, but oh – I could so easily have sent that poor dog away!
…unless you’re a member of the veterinary professions according to the latest edition of the SPVS Salaries Survey, which has revealed “an overall dip” in vets’ pay packets.
The figures – which cover the whole salary package, including accommodation, company cars and CPD (when provided) – are particularly disappointing for small animal practitioners, revealing that the only vets to see any increase in wage since 2012 are those in mixed and large animal practice. However, salaries for these vets are still lower overall than they were in 2010.
Veterinary nurses fared slightly better, with the average RVN salary continuing to rise over the past year, in marked contrast to veterinary surgeon wages. However, the average RVN salary – now at £20,208 – is still more than £6,000 behind the national UK average of £26,500.
Commenting on the incongruity of the results, SPVS spokesman Peter Brown speculated that demographic differences in the two professions (more vets entering the UK market, compared to a paucity of RVNs) could be behind the stronger nursing trend – something the profession should be particularly aware of with new vet schools set to open.
The Doctor’s TARDIS. Based on an image by Sceptre at en.wikipedia [CC-BY-SA-2.5], from Wikimedia CommonsTwo years on from the Royal College reporting a huge drop in voting figures, we at Vetsonline were pleased to hear that this year’s RCVS council and VN council elections have seen the biggest turnout for 10 years.
Results showed 4,661 vets (18.8% of the profession) casting their vote – not to mention the fantastic 1,329 veterinary nurses (12.5%) who voted, which is almost double the number who took part in 2012 and is officially the highest turnout ever.
Such a remarkable result is no doubt particularly welcome at a time when the RCVS is going through a very public period of considerable change, and one can’t help but assume this renewed interest in the college and its elected representatives is a result of that change rather than despite it.
RCVS registrarGordon Hockey said he was unable to pinpoint reasons for the increased interest, but hopes it is because vets and nurses are “feeling more engaged with the college”, aided by extra communications activities undertaken this year, such as the online hustings event.
Whatever the reasons, if the college continues along its intended path of improvement and transparency,imagine what voter turnout could be like in 2014.
As vet students, welfare is always being rammed down our throats – and rightly so (even after only two weeks of first year). As future veterinary professionals it will be part of our job to ensure the welfare of the animals entrusted to our care.
Deciding what is “the right thing” to do can often be tricky, as there is never a straight black and white answer. Knowing whether an animal’s welfare is at risk is often down to individual opinion and, therefore, relies on experience.
There is a famous quotation: “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.”
I believe this applies to evaluating welfare. Often, from the outside, without understanding the reasons behind particular procedures or practices, it’s easy to think from a first impression that something is cruel or unnecessary. But, in reality, there is usually a good reason for these practices, particularly in the production industry.
In one welfare lecture, we were made to believe that keeping sows in farrowing crates was cruel. The sow has little room to lie down, she can’t turn round and may bite the bars of the crate in frustration, resulting in mouth sores. But what about the piglets she is about to farrow? It is their welfare that is protected by keeping her in the crate. The crate prevents her rolling on them, allowing them to suckle without the danger of getting squashed. What good is giving a sow more room if it results in half a litter of dead piglets?
A humane twitch: a useful aid for difficult horses, especially when clipping around horse’s head and performing other ‘frightening’ tasks.
On the same note, coming from a pig farming background, I have seen pigs kept in pens of about five, instead of staying in the open pen, opting themselves to lie in the feeding crates if they’ve been left open (not at feeding time). Confining a pig to a small space may seem cruel from the outside, but is it really, when the pigs will lie in feeding crates out of choice, probably to keep cool and avoid fighting with the others in the pen?
Another example of a misunderstood practice is twitching a horse. Twitches may be made of rope or metal, and can look horrific when being used, since they are twisted tightly around the horse’s muzzle.
An outsider would not understand that the twitch is designed to pinpoint a pressure point that induces release of endorphins. Consequently, this calms the horse and is a very useful technique when the horse is being difficult to handle during clipping or other veterinary procedures, and avoids the use of sedatives.
Assessment of welfare is very much based on individual opinion. Personally, I have had little experience with dairy farming so might at first think that some procedures are cruel when I set out on EMS in the summer. But it’s important to remember to stand back and understand the reasoning behind the actions of those who handle the animals every day before prejudging an establishment based on what you see or think you are seeing to begin with.
