Toxicology for Nurses

Poisoning incidents are not uncommonly seen in small animal practice, and nurses are often the first point of contact to triage and provide up to date advice for these often time critical cases. However, with so many potential small animal poisons and varying management strategies, it can be hard to feel confident to advise and nurse these patients.
This one-day course will aim to provide nurses with a sound knowledge of the general concepts that can be employed when approaching small animal toxicology cases, before moving on to cover more specific management of common poisons, with a focus on the role nurses can play in both triaging and managing these cases.

Topics to be covered include:

• Telephone communication, history taking, triage and initial assessment
• Decontamination protocols – dermal, ocular and gastrointestinal
• General nursing protocols for poisoned patients – including acute kidney injury and the neurotoxin patient
• Nursing the hospitalised toxicity patient
• Management and nursing of common canine toxicities – chocolate, rodenticide, grapes, metaldehyde, organophosphates, xylitol, adder bites
• Management and nursing of common feline toxicities – ethylene glycol, poisonous plants (e.g. lilies, es), permethrin, paracetamol