Veterinary Council Welcomes Change Allowing Dental Procedures To Be Performed By Veterinary Nurses

The Veterinary Council of New Zealand, the body responsible for registering and regulating veterinarians in Aotearoa, has welcomed the Associate Minister of Agriculture Andrew Hoggard’s announcement that veterinary nurses will be allowed to perform some dental procedures without needing a veterinarian present.

Chief Executive and Registrar Iain McLachlan says, as the regulator for veterinarians, the Vet Council was delighted with news that changes to the current legislation would enable approved non-veterinarians to perform subgingival dental procedures on cats and dogs using general anaesthesia, as authorised by a vet. This type of work includes scaling under the gums.

“Veterinary nurses doing these procedures will free up time for veterinarians to deliver more advanced care and treatment,” McLachlan says. “It’s excellent that this change has been made and it would be great to see more like it.”

“A better, long-term solution would be to have a fully regulated veterinary nurse profession that would not need to use legal workarounds like this to achieve things. It is why we, and others in the veterinary sector, have been advocating for essential changes to the Veterinarians Act 2005.”

McLachlan says that spreading the workload among various members of veterinary teams is essential in ensuring the long-term sustainability of the veterinary workforce, which has faced significant pressure from shortages.

“Allied Veterinary Professionals (AVPs), which include veterinary nurses, technicians, and technologists, are trained professionals working in clinics alongside veterinarians,” he says. “They are an important part of veterinary teams and if regulated, could be used to their full capacity.”

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