Become a Certified Emergency and Critical Care Vet Tech
The Academy of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Technicians (AVECT) is the recognized organization that sets the standards and requirements for obtaining this particular Veterinary Technician Specialty (VTS) designation. Vet techs who meet the strict requirements and pass a national examination are recognized by having this designation listed after the name, for example: John Smith VTS (ECC).
General Requirements for Qualification
Veterinary technicians must meet a set of general requirements to qualify for this special designation. These requirements include:
• Graduation from an American Veterinary Medicine Association (AVMA) approved veterinary technician school and be legally licensed to practice as a veterinary technician in one state in the United States or one province in Canada or another country.
• Although not mandatory, it is highly recommended that candidates be members of a local, state, provincial or North American Veterinary Technician Association. It is also highly recommended that candidates be members of the Veterinary Emergency Critical Care Society.
• Experience working in a film of veterinary technology must be fulfilled which includes three years of full-time work on equivalent 5760 hours in the field of veterinary emergency and critical care medicine. This work experience must have been completed within five years of application for this designation.
Emergency and Critical Care Definition
The definition for critical care is taken from the veterinary Emergency Critical Care Society and reads as follows:
Emergency Care – is action taken in response to an emergency. The term emergency care takes into account the assessment, treatment, and in any stabilization procedures performed upon a patient who is sustaining an urgent medical problem.
Critical Care – is the treatment or care required to be given in the response to a crisis. Medically speaking, this is the treatment given to a patient with the life-threatening or potentially life-threatening injury or illness whose condition is likely to change from one moment to the next or from one hour to another hour. His critical care is typically intense and requires constant monitoring, we assessment and treatment.
Course Study Required
Candidates for this designation of emergency and critical care technician must have obtained a minimum of 25 hours of continuing education strictly related to emergency and critical care. This continuing education must have been completed within the immediate five years prior to submitting an application for this designation. Furthermore, this continuing education must have been obtained from a nationally recognized program and proof of successful completion must be submitted. Additionally, candidates must provide evidence of advanced competence in emergency and critical care setting completed a clinical setting. Documentation representing the acquisition of these critical care nursing skills must be submitted on an Advanced Veterinary Emergency Critical Care Nursing Skills Form. This form will pull lists and documents all the specific nursing skills that the candidate has mastered an unnecessary when practicing emergency critical care. The list of nursing skills that are necessary is provided by the Credentials Approval Committee.
Case Record Logs Kept
Candidates must keep a full calendar year case log year immediately preceding submission of an application for this designation. A minimum of 50 cases must be represented in the log the requirements for case log in entry include reference to management and other critically ill patient and what skill sets were used for treatment. Additionally, a requirement dictates the submission of four case reports with specific information that are no longer than five pages long with each double spaced. These case reports must demonstrate candidate’ expertise in the nursing management of a variety of veterinary patients presenting critical care needs. Obviously, for case reports must be selected from the entire case law presented. Additionally, the case reports must be original work performed by the candidate him or herself.
Recommendation Needed
Each candidate also must admit two letters of recommendation from any AVECT member, a Veterinary Emergency Critical Care Veterinarian or a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care. If letters cannot be obtained from the above general lack of numbers, they may be submitted from non-VECCS clinical veterinarians, board-certified veterinarians in anesthesia, internal medicine and surgery. The originators of what is recommendation can and should be former or present employers.
Once a candidate meets all the requirements and submits all the necessary documents while passing a national exam, the sought after and procedures designation of a veterinarian technician specialist (Emergency and Critical Care) will be awarded.