Swanbourne Dashboard Spring 2021

At the risk of repeating myself Covid has swept to the forefront yet again with Melbourne and Sydney under lockdown and seemingly racing to the tape with the goal of at least 80% vaccination before they start to lift the restrictions.

Meanwhile WA vaccinations are still lagging and the thought of continued closed borders for the foreseeable future is a dim prospect for the WA Tourist Industry at least.

Hopefully this will not be the case for much longer with the one bright spot being the holding of the AFL Grand Final here in Perth for the first time but it seems high time WA planned to rejoin the rest of Australia in the near future.

Since the last Dashboard there have been changes in the structure of the practice with Dr Tony Vigano stepping back as a Director and whilst still involved has dropped his hours and engagement with the practice but refusing to use the term retired….

Dr Michelle Harrison and Dr Melanie Criddle have assumed the ownership and management role and it is business as usual at the Swanbourne Veterinary Centre. Congratulations to long term nurse and office manager Kristy who now steps up to the practice manager role.

Tony still does the 6PR stint on Thursdays with Mel, has a hand in writing the Newsletters, Spearheading Pets at the Park (which will be held in late March in 2022), and consults with old friends and clients as required. So make sure you say Hi if and when you see him around the place.

Amongst other improvements, the practice has recently purchased a state of the art cautery unit to be used in very vascular surgeries such as the debulking of tumours, and in sites where it is not possible to tie off small bleeders using traditional methods (such as ligation). Very useful also in cauterizing small bleeders in ventral areas that would lead to haematomas (accumulation of blood under suture lines in ventral areas, under the belly and so on, as these haematomas can be difficult to deal with post operatively).

I am pleased to report that all those puppies and new dogs acquired during the initial lockdowns in Perth have, in our practice at least, gone on to join puppy classes and dog obedience training with extra classes having to be scheduled on Saturdays as well as Sundays. This rather than the prophets of doom predicting they would find themselves back in Refuges and the like after people returned to work. Covid has indeed a lot to answer for!!

There will be two new dog obedience classes held in October and one in November and to access booking sites see our website at swanbournevet.com/dogobedience.  There are still places available but get in now so as not to miss out.

We look forward to the return of Dr Laura Giraud to the practice in October when Dad, Ian, takes his turn at parental leave which he is apparently looking forward to immensely.

Hard to believe that we are starting to think about Christmas functions and the like. What an incredibly dysfunctional couple of years this has been, as the world struggles for some sort of normality. We have been very lucky in the West but should take care not to be too smug as our cousins in the Eastern States struggle with a way different set of circumstances.

Finally I would like to introduce you to some new faces on the reception desk, particularly on weekends.

1. Aaron Van is a Melbourne-ite in 3rd year Vet at Murdoch

2. Ting-Jun Foo is a Melbourne-ite as well, born in Singapore but having spent most of her life in Melbourne and is 2nd year at Murdoch

3. Claire Dalgleish, a Perth girl who is a Cert 4 qualified Vet Nurse but now studying for a Bachelor of Nursing and Midwifery who also has a Melbourne connection

You will find more about these three new draftees later in the Newsletter

Tony Vigano