Did you know that Pet Peace of Mind works with the patient's own veterinarian to provide care for their pet? We do it this way for several reasons. The first one is to keep things as consistent as possible for the patient and the pet. Patients feel more secure when their pet is with a doctor they already know and trust and pets do, too. There are also times when pets have recurring medical problems. By keeping the pet with their own veterinarian, diagnostic costs are reduced or eliminated--their vet already knows a treatment that works!
We also recognize that a patient's veterinarian may be the last person to hear that the client they've known for many years is terminally ill. By inviting veterinarians to participate as a pet care partner in Pet Peace of Mind, we give
them an opportunity to use their skills to care for the patient--by caring for their beloved pet again.Our story this month comes from our hospice partner in Louisiana--Hospice of Baton Rouge. PPOM Coordinator Laura Savage tells the story: "I was notified about a patient's dog (Ms. D) that needed surgery for a chronic abscess on its right front paw. I contacted the patient's daughter in law, Sherry, to get more information about Pepper and explain the PPOM program. Sherry was relieved and described the emotional and financial impact of Pepper's mounting vet bills on Ms. D. The following week, I called Sherry to see how Pepper and Ms. D were doing after the dog's surgery. Sherry happily reported that they were both doing much better. She began to cry as she told me she didn't have the heart to put Pepper to sleep and how Ms. D refused to even consider that as a possibility. She further explained how exhausted she was, caring for her mother in law, a disabled daughter and Pepper. Sherry shared with me how grateful she was that our PPOM program had lifted her mother in law's spirits and lifted a heavy burden off of her shoulders. The next week, Pepper's vet called me to update me on Pepper's continued recovery. He thanked me and our hospice for playing such a key role in Pepper's treatment. Before ending the call, the vet asked me how to make a donation to our PPOM program."
This is exactly the situation Pet Peace of Mind was meant to intervene in--imagine if this frazzled caregiver had put her mother in law's dog to sleep because she didn't know any other way out of a stressful situation and couldn't afford the care Pepper needed. Instead, PPOM has a new fan--a veterinarian who will probably never know what a difference he made in the lives of two people, Sherry and Ms. D.
