Veterinary Health Care Assistant

In this core course of the Veterinary Health Care Assistant program, students are guided to an understanding of the veterinary Industry including health and safety factors that must be recognized and respected in any environment that provides animal care services. Facility cleanliness and safety are the most obvious of these. The many other topics in this course include:

• Educational requirements of veterinary team members and their appropriate responsibilities.
• An overview of relevant legislation and regulatory organizations is also given.
• Emergency protocols, biologic, chemical, and physical hazards, fire prevention, and practices that contribute to the health of the animal care worker.

An overview of relevant legislation and regulatory organizations is also given.

Canadian law requires that any person exposed to hazardous materials in the workplace must be trained in the Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS). This course has been developed to meet and exceed the Canadian Occupational Health and Safety Regulations. WHMIS 2015 training includes the new Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling for chemicals (GHS), as well as WHMIS legislation introduced in 1988.

This 2-day course suited for the general public and workplace and meets first aid requirements for Canada Labour Code Standard First Aid, and Licenced Child and Adult Care Facilities. This course is suited for police, first responders, lifeguards, ski patrollers, caring citizens and families with children. 

This course is designed to teach you the knowledge and skills to deal with a sick or injured dog until veterinary care is available. What you do between when an injury happens and when veterinary care is available will greatly affect a dog’s chances of a full recovery. The topics are covered in-depth so that students have a thorough understanding of the principles of canine first aid. Since this is a very comprehensive course, the student’s full attention is necessary and dogs do not come to class

This course develops and strengthens interpersonal communications skills that contribute to success in workplace environments. These are essential skills that are practised throughout the course of each day and contribute to the smooth, effective functioning of the animal care practice. Students develop a practical- and vocation-oriented approach to effective and professional communication. In addition to verbal practice, the many communications skills that are addressed here include the use of technology to communicate professionally, careful listening, accurate writing, as well as locating and documenting information. The focus of this course is to give the student the basis on how to present themselves in a professional setting and conduct themselves with appropriate and ethical behavior. The student will learn about the ethical issues and guidelines relevant to the veterinary profession and how to resolve disagreements that may arise due to ethical belief.

The student will also learn how to resolve conflict in the workplace, handle complaints and deal with the destructive nature of work place gossip and bullying. Students will be assigned tasks to create marketing materials for a veterinary business and client education.

This course provides the foundational knowledge for students to be able to identify the various breeds of cats and dogs. Additionally, it provides an overview of how breeding happens in animal breeding environments: consideration of all factors and procedures that will produce a genetically healthy and well-conformed animal that represents the best standard of the breed.

One of the foundations of the successful veterinary clinic is employees who are able to manage a variety of tasks that are associated with the requirements of a number of breeds and species. This must be done in ways that are both effective and safe. The course focuses upon the types of animal behaviour for common species, common animal behaviour problems, and the potential for behaviour counseling to address the problems. Students begin an understanding of an animal’s territorial behaviour, its aggressive and defensive behaviours, as well as social and reproductive behaviours. During this course, students observe and understand animal behaviours to ensure the effectiveness of animal care and safety for facility staff as well as the animals. Good quality skills in animal handling and restraint promote safety for the animal care professional and equally important, reduces the level of stress for the animal patient. The student will learn the handling, restraint and transport of dogs, cats and other small animals with the emphasis on personal safety and for the purpose of recognizing and preventing aggression. Students will come to understand the types of restraint including verbal, physical, leash and other methods. Learn why the least restraint is sometimes the best restraint, and why the goal of restraint is to maintain control of the animal

Note: Hands-on practice may be introduced during this course. Lab times and days may vary from normal classroom hours.

As integral members of the nursing team, assistants provide quality compassionate care while providing basic nursing skills, including documenting medical history, performing therapeutic bathing and grooming, cleaning and disinfecting kennels and cages, and recognizing normal and abnormal small animal behaviour. Included in the basics is the understanding of how various practices will operate in practicum and work: taking the medical history; determining and recording the vital signs; and conducting the physical examination. Students learn about blood pressure and its monitoring, TPRs [temperature, pulse, and respiration], medication administration, ear and eye cleaning and treatments, syringe feeding, animal husbandry, patient observation, and kennel care. The basics of observation and interpretation are a large component of this course. Quality grooming skills is an important contribution that the veterinary assistant makes to the animal care clinic and it promotes the health and comfort of the animal. Basic grooming refers to such procedures as bathing, brushing, applying non-therapeutic leg and tail wraps, de-matting, , shaving, and trimming nails.

Animal nutrition is an integral part of veterinary medicine. In this course, students will learn about the connections between illness, disease and nutrition. As part of the veterinary team, the assistant must be knowledgeable about healthy pet nutrition, specific dietary requirements, and recovering patient nutrition. The veterinary assistant must understand the principles of nutrition for the small animal’s life stages, the importance of good nutrition, and the major nutrient components of the list of ingredients. Students learn to communicate basic nutritional and nutritional life-stage counselling, as well as methods of feeding and the link between nutrition and therapy

The focus of this one-week course is the proper handling of client records to ensure accurate and efficient billing of services, records management, and ultimately, the success of the business due to proper patient care. Students acquire knowledge and understanding in many skill areas, largely focused on the administrative front end of the practice. This includes reception, appointment scheduling and correspondence, medical and financial procedures and record keeping. The veterinary assistant sometimes requires some measures of grief management; the student will be coached on the core skills required at particularly difficult times. The course provides guidance in ways that the veterinary assistant can manage the difficult client and provide counseling to clients who experience the loss of a pet.

This course provides an advanced focus on nursing care and emergency protocols in clinical settings. Basics of emergency monitoring are also covered in this course; protocols often involve wound management (learning about triage and emergency readiness, common emergency preparations, chemical/physical disorders, types of wounds, including caring and healing). Students will further their knowledge of bandages, casts, and slings; use of fluid of therapy; and other vital therapeutic techniques generally performed in veterinary settings.

This course focuses on developing skills to assist in dentistry. Students will become familiar with the anatomy and basic terminology pertaining to the oral cavity. Students will learn basic dental pathology, prevention and treatment options.

Various equipment and tools are using in diagnosing various illnesses and injuries in animals. Students learn the various types of diagnostic imaging occurring in the profession, including the basic procedures and practice with x-ray equipment, ultrasonography, MRIs, and others. The radiological component focuses on methods and positioning for taking x-rays, the chemicals used to develop images.

This course focuses on the safe handling and organization of pharmaceutical products, an indispensable function of the veterinary clinic. Students are introduced to the organization of a pharmacy and its inventory maintenance. Students become familiar with the terminology associated with common veterinary pharmaceuticals, the classifications of drugs, indications and contra-indications, and routes of administration. It is important that students are able to identify accurate information, perform logistical services, and to practice safe hazardous waste and biomedical protocols.

This course is focused on the surgery unit in the veterinary clinic or hospital. Students learn patient preparation, support anesthetic monitoring, and nursing care in the surgical environment. Students also acquire knowledge of operating room sanitation and care, including: autoclave operation, instrument sterilization, and how to position patients. Students develop knowledge of instrument identification, including: gloving, aseptic prepping of the surgeon. Veterinary anesthesia, including sedation, induction, maintenance, and monitoring is also included. A field trip to a surgical facility is an important element of this course.

This course is focused on the laboratory located either in the veterinary clinic or other specialized labs. The course includes instruction for the safe handling and preparation of biological samples for laboratory analysis by the technician or veterinarian. A field trip to an animal diagnostic lab may be given to enhance students’ learning.

This course describes the pathology practiced in veterinary medicine, allowing students to recognize the common diseases and conditions inflicted upon pets and other animals. Students also are shown how to recognize these conditions, including comparative study with healthy animals and distinguishing them from the unhealthy. Client education and animal wellness programs are also discussed and students are given assignments to develop programs and literature. During this course, students will learn some of the causes of illness and disease, clinical signs, their treatment, and prevention. In addition, students are taught to identify the different types of vaccines and to understand the need for vaccine schedules. The course also introduces the causes of illness and disease. It explores the differentiation among bacteria, viruses, protozoa and fungi – as well as the modes of disease transmission.

This course emphasizes the most common parasites and other internal/external viruses and bacteria. Students identify various specimens both using diagrams and under a microscope.

Issues surrounding animal abuse are addressed in this course. Field trips to animal shelters and refuges will enhance understanding for the student. Guest speakers may also be utilized to present content on food and nutrition and other animal care products. Community events such as nutrition education information sessions for the public and pet visitation activities to various groups may also occur during this course. Topics surrounding alternative and complementary medicine will also be introduced, such as acupuncture, herbology, and aromatherapy.

This course builds on the skills learned in the Student Success Strategies course or its equivalent. It provides information on how to use the communication skills learned in order to make a successful presentation to a prospective employer. Students also learn how to uncover the hidden job market and identify employment opportunities. Self-assessment during this course allows students to identify their personal skills that are transferable to the workplace and to describe these skills to a prospective employer. Students may be videotaped during a mock interview and will participate in the analysis of their performance in the “interview”.

Following completion of all of the classroom courses in the program, the student is ready to complete the program in a veterinary environment. This practicum course allows the veterinary sciences profession to confirm the skills and competencies of the student.