Paraveterinary workers

Paraveterinary workers are those people who assist a veterinary physician in the performance of their duties, or carry out animal health procedures autonomously as part of a veterinary care system. The job role varies throughout the world, and common titles include veterinary nurse, veterinary technician, veterinary assistant and veterinary technologist, and variants with the prefix of 'animal health'.

The scope of practice varies between countries, with some countries allowing suitably qualified paraveterinary workers a scope of autonomous practice, including minor surgery, whilst others restrict their workers to simple assisting of the veterinarian.

In the majority of anglophone countries, paraveterinary workers with a formal scope of practice, and a degree of autonomy in their role, are known as a veterinary nurses. The primary exception to this is in North America, where both the United States and Canada refer to these workers as veterinary (or animal health) technicians or technologists.

Human nursing associations have often claimed rights over the term 'nurse' and in some countries, this is protected by law. This was the case in the United Kingdom until 1984, where veterinary nurses were referred to as 'registered animal nursing auxiliaries', in line with the naming convention at the time for less qualified assistants in human nursing, called 'nursing auxiliaries'.

This is still the case in the United States, where the American Nursing Association and some state nursing associations have claimed proprietary rights to the term 'nurse'. Some veterinary technicians argue that as they spend approximately 90% of their time performing nursing tasks, they should be allowed to use the title of veterinary nurse, like their counterparts in other countries. Some argue that this is especially valid as their skill set is often greater than their human nursing counterparts, with the addition of skills such as radiology, laboratory work, pharmacy and more. Unofficially, many people (including vets and technicians) refer to these workers as veterinary nurses in conversation, as it is a succinct description of the role.

In most countries, a veterinary assistant is a person with fewer or no formal animal health qualifications, who has no autonomous practice, but who is designated to assist a vet and act under their direct instruction.

Training programs are often workplace-based, and no formal licence or certification is required to perform the role.

Local laws may restrict what activities a veterinary assistant may perform, as some procedures may only be legally completed by a registered practitioner, such as a vet or a veterinary nurse.

Veterinarians have had assistance from staff throughout their existence of the profession, but the first organised paraveterinary workers were the canine nurses trained by the Canine Nurses Institute in 1908, and announced in the magazine 'The Veterinary Student'. According to the founder they would "carry out directions of the veterinary surgeon, meet a genuine need on the part of the dog owners, and at the same time provide a reasonably paid occupation for young women with a real liking for animals".

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Wikipedia