New tool lets vets ‘practice’ writing VFDs

For veterinarians looking for a way to “practice” writing VFDs, there is a new tool they can use.

kadmy, Bigstock.com
kadmy, Bigstock.com

Veterinarians can "practice" writing non-Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD) orders with a new tool.

GlobalVetLINK, a web-based animal health solutions company, has launched a veterinary feed record (VFR) tool that offers veterinarians a way to manage and track non-VFD, feed-grade antibiotics.

“We’ve been out speaking to a lot of veterinary and industry groups, and one of the big questions that kept coming up was, 'Can we write VFDs now to practice?'" said Kaylen Henry, product manager at GlobalVetLINK. “The answer is no, because those drugs aren't VFD status yet.”

A veterinary feed record is a non-regulatory document for tracking non-VFD antibiotics in animal feed. By keeping veterinary feed records, vets can have an internal record, thereby enhancing the veterinary client-patient relationship (VCPR).

“The more documentation that vets have of working with the producer, the better when proving VCPR,” Henry said.

Henry said vets can use the VFR tool to practice the workflow they will use to write VFDs after January 1 and to track non-VFD feed-grade antibiotics like bacitracin, tiamulin and carbadox.

Positive feedback from users

Henry said that although the tool was fully released only recently, feedback from users has been positive.

Dr. Jessika Benes, a veterinarian at Southern Hills Veterinary Services Inc. in Corning, Iowa, has used the tool and said it is helpful and easy to use.

“It’s something that’s very user friendly and helps us get prepared for writing VFDs come the new year,” she said.

Benes likes the tool because it puts all the information a veterinarian needs about his or her client in one place.

“It walks us through the steps of being sure our clients are entered in the system and working with some of our feed mills and feed providers that aren’t in the system yet to get them set up for VFDs,” she said.

Because the VFR tool lists medications and their labeled uses, it “saves us from doing the leg work” of pulling up a label, she said. 

“It’s very nice that all the information is right there for us,” Benes said.

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