Course Description
This course will cover practical application of surgical nursing including scrubbing into, and assisting during a live animal surgery. In addition, students will become familiar with common veterinary surgery types, suturing and suture removal as well as principles of wound healing and wound management. In addition, students will continue to develop their skills in live small animal veterinary anesthesia, and more complex anesthesia scenarios are introduced in a simulation format to help students develop their problem solving skills in a standardized format.
Course Content
Note that the theory components of most of the skills outlined below, are taught in VTEC 2112 and VTEC 2108
1. Surgical instrumentation and equipment
- Autoclave operation.
- General and specialty surgerical instruments.
- Care and maintenance of instruments.
- Preparation of sterile surgical packs, surgical drapes and gowns.
2. Surgical assistance
- Preparation, cleaning and disinfection of the surgical suite.
- Monitoring of surgical suite cleaning and disinfection protocols.
- Appropriate surgical suite conduct (sterile and non-sterile personnel).
- Sterile opening and handling of instrument and suture packs, and gowns.
- Scrubbing, gowning and sterile gloving.
- Sterile draping techniques.
- Handling and passing of instruments and suture during surgery.
- Care of exposed tissues.
- Surgical reports.
3. Care of the surgical patient
- Clipping, cleaning and surgical preparation of skin.
- Transfer of patient to surgical suite.
- Patient positioning for different types of surgery.
- Patient identification (tattoo and/or microchip).
4. Suturing
- Suture materials, needles and alternative closure techniques.
5. Wounds
- Stages and methods of wound healing and repair.
- Methods of wound care, including management of abscesses.
6. Knowledge of surgery
- Surgical technique, equipment requirements and patient preparation for common veterinary surgeries.
- Species differences in ovariohysterectomy and castration surgical techniques (dog, cat, rabbit, equine, ruminant).
- Surgery of the head and neck, gastro-intestinal tract, reproductive system and musculo-skeletal system.
7. Patient assessment in preparation for anesthesia, admission and discharge
- Patient wellness procedures including physical examination.
- Blood and urine collection, analysis of blood and urine samples and lab equipment operation.
- Medical record keeping, reception procedures, patient admission and discharge.
8. Anesthesia
- Anesthetic protocols and calculation of drug dosages for pre-medication, induction, maintenance and recovery.
- Administration, maintenance, monitoring and medical record keeping for patients under general anesthesia.
- Support of patients under general anesthesia.
- Anesthetic delivery and monitoring equipment.
Learning Activities
Instruction methods include lecture, online quizzes, pre-lab videos, group work, assignments, simulation and live animal labs, in-lab and video evaluations.
Means of Assessment
Assessments will be carried out in accordance with Douglas College Evaluation Policy. The instructor will present a written course outline with specific evaluation criteria at the beginning of the semester. A final minimum cumulative grade of “C” or 60% is required, in both lecture and lab components, in order to pass this course.
Evaluation will be based on:
Assignments 10-30%
Practical evaluations 30-50% (No single evaluation worth more than 25%)
Midterm 0-20%
Final exam 20-40%
Midterm and final exams may involve practical assessments.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of this course, the successful student will be able to:
SURGICAL ASSISTANCE
- Prepare and care for surgical drapes, towels and gowns for small animal surgeries.
- Clean, lubricate and maintain surgical instruments and equipment, and prepare sterile surgical packs.
- Perform proper pre-operative surgical suite preparation and post-operative cleaning.
- Prepare to assist with surgery (hand scrub, gown and glove).
- Assist a surgeon with surgery including sterile draping, passing instruments, care of exposed tissues.
- Perform patient preparation for surgery.
- Perform patient identification (tattoo and/or microchip placement).
- Describe suture materials, surgical needles and various suture patterns and their uses.
- Perform basic suturing techniques.
- Demonstrate an understanding of indications and surgical techniques for common veterinary surgeries.
- Describe patient, instrument and equipment preparation for common veterinary surgeries.
- Describe post-operative care requirements for different surgeries.
- Describe different types of wound, wound healing and wound management and identify unhealthy wounds.
ANESTHESIA
- Discuss the pharmacology of anesthetic and analgesic drugs, and recognize the effects and side effects of drugs when used in live animals.
- Calculate sedative, anesthetic and analgesic drug dosages.
- Demonstrate competency in patient preparation for anesthesia and surgery in a dog or cat.
- Use clinical signs and monitoring equipment to monitor patient status in all stages of anesthesia.
- Set-up, maintain, operate and trouble shoot anesthetic delivery and monitoring equipment.
- Trouble shoot changes in patient vital signs during anesthesia and implement authorized treatments.
- Identify anesthetic emergencies, discuss the use of emergency drugs and equipment and implement authorized treatments.
Textbook Materials
Consult the Douglas College Bookstore for the latest required textbooks and materials.