I am a veterinarian in a small rural town and I oppose this regulation for numerous reasons.

?1. I feel that there is the perception of not enough technicians, but my clinic alone has 1 LVT and 3 technician students currently on staff. I worked at another rural clinic that also had 1 LVT on staff. The increased availability of programs thru online and distance learning has made this degree much more attainable for those wishing to pursue a career as a veterinary technician. If there is an untrained individual on staff that wants to do these tasks why not offer them assitance on agreement to work so many years afterwards? It helps tie them to the clinic that they are already invested in as well as providing an LVT to the staff.

?2. I am also concerned that we will begin down a slippery slope to devaluing our LVT's and the rigorous coursework they take to become proficient. Allowing IV catheter placement is the first step. I can't trust an unlicensed person to pull blood from a vein, but I should trust them to be able to place an IV catheter for me to give medication thru over several days? If we can train them to place IV catheters then why can't we train them to pull blood from those same veins or give medicine thru the catheters they place? If we then open it back up to allow unlicensed individuals to do these duties why would anyone want to pay to continue their education and become licensed?

?3. What is the liability risk to the veterinarian? How would we "prove" that they were trained properly and met a standard? There is a large degree of trust placed in the proper placement of IV catheters. If these are not placed correctly there can be dire consicuences such as infection, increased pain, and skin sloughing. If an unlicensed person performs this task what will the reprecussions be to the veterinarian in charge?