WHAT TO EXPECT
How to Schedule an Appointment
- Contact us by phone, email or text to set up an appointment at one of our referral locations. If you’d like us to visit your hospital for a single case or a multi-case visit, or to schedule a regular visit time/day every 2-6 weeks, please contact us.
- Fill out the online Referral Form HERE.
- Please direct clients to our website for more information.
- A blood pressure should be obtained prior to echocardiography appointments when possible.
About Appointments
Please know we will make every effort to serve you at the next soonest appointment, often the same day or next or as needed.
**Add-on Cases: If an appointment(s) is already scheduled with us for an ultrasound and an additional case(s) arises, please call and notify us so we can be prepared. In nearly all situations we can accommodate the request, but please notify us as soon as possible as add-on cases can affect our ability to serve other scheduled cases that day.
** Appointment times for visiting your hospital give an estimation of when Dr. Bacon will arrive. Because we are a mobile practice there are many factors that will affect our time of arrival. Some of the variables include driving distance and traffic, the complexity of previous cases, and additional procedures that may need to be performed. Dr. Bacon will call or text when she is on her way so that shaving can be completed and sedation, if required, can be administered.
Expediting Appointments at Your Hospital. Your time is valuable.
To expedite appointments at your hospital:
- Fill out the Referral Form.
- We prefer pets be dropped off prior to their appointment with Dr. Bacon.
- Have pet owners complete the Ultrasound Consent Form at drop off. Please provide Dr. Bacon with a copy of the signed consent form prior to the ultrasound.
- Shave the patient in the appropriate areas prior to the scheduled appointment time. Please help us stay on schedule by factoring shaving time into your schedule. Shaving before we arrive helps gauge if pets will need sedation or relaxation medication for their procedure.
- Echocardiograms require a small shaved square (3″x3″) in the right & left axial areas and a small square 2″x2 cranial to, and to the left of, the xyphoid process.
- Abdominal ultrasounds require shaving from 2 rib spaces cranial to the xyphoid process to the caudal abdomen with very wide margins. This is a shave similar to what’s needed for exploratory laparotomy except wider and more cranial. The shave needs to be clean and to the skin.
- Sedate the patient as necessary (after receiving owner permission). Patient comfort and reduced anxiety with sedation administration, especially for abdominal studies, will give the best diagnostic yield. Sometimes a small dose of valium or midazolam can help relax nervous patient enough to even enjoy their ear and “belly rub”. If a FNA or biopsy is requested, sedation or anesthesia is very important for stable patients. Administration of any drugs and monitoring of the patient are the responsibilities of the requesting DVM. Please contact me if you would like a copy of our Sedation Protocols emailed to you.
- Brief assistance from a hospital technician will be necessary to aid in patient restraint during the exam only. The exam generally takes approximately 30 minutes.
- Dr. Bacon will call or text when she is on her way.
- A verbal report of exam findings will be reported immediately after the scan followed by a comprehensive report that will be available within 24-72 hours of performing the study.
Client Communication
All communication for cases at your hospital is provided directly to the requesting veterinarian. Because we can perform a much more efficient and more focused exam when clients are not present we do ask that clients not be in the room during the imaging procedure. Please contact us for unique scenarios or special requests. We are committed to making this a positive experience for you, your clients and your beloved patients.
Payment
Scanning services will be billed directly to the hospital after our visit. We do not accept payment directly from pet owners for scans performed at referral hospitals. Payments are due upon receipt. Clients who bring patients to one of our referral locations will be charged at the time of services.
