24/7 Emergency
Most job titles at a specialty hospital tell you what doctors do. A cardiologist works with hearts. An ophthalmologist specializes in the eyes. An oncologist treats cancer. However, CARE is also the only animal hospital in the Charlotte region that not only employs a hospitalist but has three of them: Leonie Bertram, a critical care specialist; Heather Rosenberg; and me, Debra James. So, what is a hospitalist?
Having a pet hospitalized can be scary and unleash negative emotions in owners and animals. A hospitalist balances efficiency and empathy to ensure that your pet receives the right kind of ongoing attention. These three veterinarians and their technical team work with the emergency staff and intensive care unit technicians to arrange the best possible experience.
What Makes CARE’s Hospitalists Special?
Animal hospitals often ask emergency room doctors to both manage incoming patients and oversee ongoing care. But a hospitalist provides comprehensive medical care to animals who’ve already been admitted to the intensive care unit. That way, emergency doctors can focus only on incoming emergencies. Emergency room wait times go down and the level of care goes up.
Which Cases Require a Hospitalist’s Attention?
Hospitalists focus on diagnosis, specialized treatment and critical care of a variety of conditions. When your pet comes through CARE’s emergency department and gets admitted, he’s transferred for continued hospitalization to a vet in a specialty field (such as cardiology or internal medicine) or a hospitalist. Hospitalists most frequently handle conditions such as these:
- Gastroenteritis/acute hemorrhagic diarrhea;
- Pneumonia;
- Immune-mediated diseases, where the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks its own healthy tissues and organs;
- Pancreatitis;
- Post-operative care of gastrointestinal obstruction and/or a splenectomy, in which the spleen is removed;
- Parvovirus enteritis;
- Urethral obstruction;
- Certain seizure disorders.
Incorporating Technology in a Treatment Plan
Hospitalists take special care to keep up with technology. Some cases require oxygen therapy, where a pet receives oxygen through an oxygen cage, nasal oxygen line or CARE’s new high-flow oxygen unit, which provides warmed, humidified oxygen to patients with severe respiratory illnesses.
Animals may require blood transfusions for several reasons. The hospitalist team helps determine the type of blood product your pet needs, how to administer it and how to monitor your pet during the transfusion, while treating the underlying illness. The team knows how to place nasogastric tubes to manage vomiting and regurgitation and provide early administration of nutrition to patients who are unable or unwilling to eat.
Hospitalists evaluate your pet at multiple increments each day, performing diagnostics such as Point of Care Ultrasounds (POCUS), blood work and radiographs. These allow adjustments in treatment and diagnostic plans as needed. The hand-held Clarius ultrasound scanner permits cage-side ultrasounds for quick assessment and extra patient comfort.
The hospitalist also collaborates with other healthcare providers at CARE to make specialty procedures such as abdominal ultrasounds and other consultations go smoothly.
Hospitalists Give Compassionate Care
The team of hospitalists helps you navigate decisions for pets hospitalized at CARE. Morning updates by our technical staff and daily updates by your hospitalist keep you informed about your pet’s progress and explain recommended diagnostics and procedures. Hospitalists can help you make decisions about long-term quality of life or hospice care, if those are indicated.
Plans curated by hospitalists extend beyond the treatment of your pet at CARE. Once the team clears your animal for discharge, doctors work with you to ease the transition to home care. They make sure you and your primary care veterinarian are informed of changes to medical history and medications, and they supply a recommended timeline for follow-up attention.
Charlotte Animal Referral and Emergency runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, functioning the same way as a medical center for people. CARE offers all sorts of treatment, from emergency attention to board-certified specialty work that’s available after you get a referral from your primary care veterinarian. You can take a visual tour of the practice at carecharlotte.com/tour.
