The Savvy VetTech

We have recently been reviewing lots of resumes at our clinic. Many resumes come with no cover letter. I like a cover letter because it tells a little more about the person that is applying and what they are looking for, rather than just the list of qualifications on the resume.

Nervous about starting your first job as a vet tech? You will do great! Here are a few tips to help you make a smooth transition into your new position.

The VTNE will have several questions for which you will need to perform calculations. We will be having several blog posts on how to do different types of calculations. It is good review for in-clinic use as well as studying for the VTNE. Here is a quick review of how to calculate a dose of injectable medication. We want you to know how to calculate pet drug dosage.

ECG leads (or electrocardiographic leads) record the electrical potential at the different points on the body. Where the leads are placed determines a specific pattern we are looking for on our recording.

I recently read a heartbreaking story about a dog at the lake that was playing with his family, chasing balls and sticks into the water and retrieving them over and over until he became extremely tired.

But he wasn't just worn out. He had ingested enough fresh water to cause his sodium levels to drop, known as hyponatremia. The main risk with acute hyponatremia like this is brain swelling. 

Intubating dogs and cats is not only an important task and something we do almost every day, but it is critical that it is performed correctly. Here is a step-by-step description regarding intubation. 

There is an epidemic of Lyme disease in our country, and it continues to get worse. It is on the rise in humans, which means it is also on the rise in our pet patients.

We all know that grapes and raisins can be toxic to dogs. But why? How should we treat grape ingestion in order to prevent toxicity, and what should we do if toxicity occurs?

There have been many recent natural disasters around the globe. Wildfires, hurricanes, tornadoes, and earthquakes. People may be prepared for the disasters that are more common in their region, but disasters can affect all of us in more ways than you think.

Even if you aren't directly impacted, a disaster somewhere else in the nation could affect gas and transportation, supply of water, food, and mail delivery. The things were are used to having every day may not always be readily available when disaster strikes. #NatlPrep

Veterinary technicians are often tasked with close monitoring of patients post-operatively, and during anesthesia. It is important to monitor for Ventricular Premature Complexes so that you may notify the doctor (especially after and during procedures such as GDV and splenectomy where they are commonly seen).

Veterinarians have many, many thoughts throughout the day that they should make time to share with their veterinary nurses. When we get busy we just never say them, or it seems cheesy to say it out loud.

There have been several articles published this week regarding a very rare infection from a bacterium called Capnocytophaga, which a man contracted resulting in multiple limb amputation. (How does dog saliva turn into a life-threatening infection?)

The articles state that he likely contracted the organism from his dog's mouth. Before you panic about your daily dose of dog kisses, let's review some facts about this bacterium.

While these seem like very obvious things, complacency is unfortunately something that leads to medical mistakes being made. In a busy practice, people are rushing around and multitasking.

These are some things that you must always do to avoid mistakes. These are to be reminders for you. Always be in the moment when you are performing a task at hand. Don’t be thinking about something else, as this will lead to errors and could even result in patient death.

I follow Firstline Magazine on Twitter and they posted a "Personal Stress Test Straight Outta Fetch," which is referring to a publication by DVM360.