A hotly debated topic in veterinary medicine right now is whether there is a need for a midlevel practitioner—a position comparable to a nurse practitioner or physician’s assistant on the human side of medicine. 

So, what are the arguments for and against this potential new veterinary career track? And what would be required for the role of veterinary nurse practitioner to be created?

This is what will discuss today, in the first part of a two-part series on midlevel practitioners in veterinary medicine…

What Is a Veterinary Nurse Practitioner?

A midlevel practitioner is someone whose scope of practice would be beyond that of a veterinary technician or nurse, but less than that of a veterinarian.

This idea has been floating around for at least a decade, if not longer. But the recent veterinarian and vet staff shortage during the pandemic may have spurred to the forefront of many vet professionals’ minds.

Right now, veterinary technicians are able to perform many of the tasks necessary for patient care. The exception is any part of the scope of practice that is limited to vets—diagnosing, prognosing, prescribing, and performing surgeries.

Creating a veterinary nurse practitioner would mean allowing these vet professionals to take on some of these roles that are currently restricted to veterinarians. 

Examples may include taking on wellness visits, diagnosing and prescribing treatment for minor ailments (ear infections, etc.), refilling chronic medications after checking bloodwork or performing minor surgeries such as uncomplicated dental extractions.

Of course, many tasks—including most surgeries and management of more in-depth medical cases—would continue to be reserved for licensed DVMs… 

The goal of this new role would be to take some of the routine daily tasks off the veterinarian’s hands, to free up the veterinarian and allow the practice to provide care to more patients.

What Are the Arguments For and Against Creating Veterinary Nurse Practitioners?

There are strong cases being made both for and against this new position within veterinary medicine. Here are some of the key points of the debate…

Access to Care 

Right now—as demand for veterinary care increased during the pandemic, while a shortage in vets and vet team members has left many practices struggling to keep up with that demand—many pet owners report challenges in receiving care for their pets. 

Clients are having difficulty scheduling appointments, often having to wait weeks to months for a wellness visit. And some practices have limited how many new clients they can see. 

Proponents of the veterinary nurse practitioner envision the role freeing up time for the vet, so that the practice can see more patients and clients. 

On the other hand, some state that a decision that could permanently affect the future of the profession shouldn’t be made because of circumstances that could be short-term.

In other words, is the increased demand for pet care during the pandemic going to stick around? Is it enough to fuel and support the new role of the veterinary nurse practitioners in the long term?

Availability of Jobs for Veterinarians

Right now, there is a veterinarian shortage. But not so many years ago, many complained of a surplus, which made veterinarians’ jobs harder to find with less competitive salaries.

Detractors of the veterinary nurse practitioner movement worry that in another few years, we could again be facing a surplus of vets. After all, ups and downs are natural in any industry.

Should that occur at any point in the future, there is a serious concern that veterinarians could be out of work because practices (especially corporate practices) may prefer to hire lower-salary nurse practitioners rather than DVMs.

Since nurse practitioners in human medicine have the right to open their own practice, there is also a potential concern of competition for veterinarians who are practice owners.

Cost of Care 

Even before staffing shortages occurred, the cost of care has been another hotly debated topic in veterinary medicine for many years. This is another important facet of access to care since many pet owners are unable to afford quality veterinary care. 

Some state that by providing a midlevel practitioner, a veterinary practice can expand its reach to more clients by offering affordable services (since a veterinary nurse practitioner would be paid less than a veterinarian), especially for wellness and minor ailments.

Supporters argue it would be the best of both worlds. In addition to the ability to offer affordable services, the new system would also increase the practice’s bottom line and provide fair compensation to all employees (since having a nurse practitioner would allow a practice to see a lot more patients per day and thus bring in more revenue). 

Also, the availability of nurse practitioners may decrease the need to hire relief vets for too many shifts, decreasing the practice’s overall operating costs. Of course, for relief vets, this would be a disadvantage.

Stay Tuned for More…

To cover this topic more in-depth, we’ll address more pros, cons, and considerations in next week’s article. 

In the meantime, hopefully, this has provided some food for thought. 

Whether the profession moves forward with creating a nurse practitioner role or not, the issue has opened discussions on many important topics currently facing the field of veterinary medicine. And those discussions are important to always improve, adapt, and to find solutions to keep the profession healthy and sustainable.

Written by: Dr. Tammy Powell, DVM