 Unit 13 - 151 Industrial Road Under the Red Roof at The Calcite Centre Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada Y1A 2V3 Email: clinic@yukonvet.ca Phone: (867) 633-6137 Fax: (867)633-5256 |
Welcome
to our hospital!
Yukon Veterinary Services started in a small cabin in 1988 at Judas Creek. Working out of a truck, we began providing remote veterinary services to the communities of the Yukon, primarily in the Dawson area. We've grown from small, rural clinics to the largest and most modern clinic north of 60. Our hospital was designed by Wayne Usiak of New Mexico. Wayne has designed over 250 clinics in three countries and is one of 5 architects in the world that specialise in veterinary design. He's won more than a dozen international design awards. His design was brought to reality by Cardinal Contracting of Whitehorse. It is among the most advanced clinics in North America and was the winner of the 1998 Practice of Excellence Award sponsored by The Veterinary Medical Publishing Group and Pfizer Pharmaceutical. We're very proud to be only the second Canadian veterinary practice to receive this award.
Four independent heating systems prevent cross-contamination of infectious agents and odours. Public areas, treatment and offices, kennels and the residential component are all completely self-contained. A 21 foot ceiling in the reception area, brings light into the second floor offices. Cat Boarding is available and visible to the public near the entrance well away from and on a different ventilation system from our medical cases. Fully computerised medical records with terminals at various points including each of the three examination rooms.
A spacious apartment for technical staff is provided on site allowing 24 hour coverage of medical and surgical cases.
In 1988, we started to visit Dawson City and other communities
to do vaccinations, spays, neuters and other basic services. We struck
a deal with the clinic in Whitehorse that we would not see small animals
within 40 miles of their office, and all the rest of the territory and
all large animals would be ours. We worked in garages, firehalls, stables,
back rooms and generally began to provide basic services from a truck.
The practice at this time was featured on the national television show
On the Road Again. In 1991, Yukon Veterinary Services opened a small
clinic in Whitehorse and eventually bought out the existing clinic.
We had a small 1500 sq. ft. clinic that featured a treatment table made
from a bathtub we found in the dump. It was rough, but began to bring
modern veterinary medicine to the Yukon.
We grew to a 2 man practice, but had great difficulties finding associates
to work in a remote area that can hit -40 degrees for weeks. It was a
real decision time. Did we take a plunge and enlarge the practice, or
simply fold it and return to mobile services from a truck. It was nearing
the end of a five year lease on what could be best described as a renovated
garden shed. The building was a U.S. Air Force Mess that had been built
during WWII and moved to a new location in the 1950's. It looked it. It
was at this time that we made a walking tour of the clinic with a video
camera. As we reviewed the video, we realised that even we wouldn't take
a pet to a place that was this bad. It was overcrowded, poorly equipped
and just generally disorganised. We began to make plans for a new facility
and the new Yukon Veterinary Services was born.
The three Examination rooms provide:
Accoustical protection to make examinations more private and quiet. Individual Extraction fans to remove odours. Facility for closed-circuit television presentations. Private rooms for visitations and euthanasias. In 1999, we added computer terminals to each room to make it easier to review and maintain medical records. We can issue prescriptions, check vaccination history, print handout sheets and do a wide variety of things directly from each examining room now.
The Laboratory provides: A wide range of in-house laboratory testing. Haematology, Blood Biochemistry and Electrolyte analysis were added in 1997. Bacteriology and sensitivity testing were added in 1996. Parasite analysis is extensive. Laboratory services are available from the largest referral laboratory in Western Canada. In-House Heart monitoring was added in 1997. It is now possible to do this in the examining room at the time of an appointment. Cardiology consultations are readily available, often on three hours notice. Regular specialist consultations are available as well.
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the capability of all inhalant anaesthetics including Halothane, IsoForane,
Ethrane and Methoxyflurane. Ventilators for open-chest procedures are
available. State of the art surgical monitoring such as blood pressure, pulse oximetry and ECG is constantly updated and now features three pulse oximeters, non-invasive blood pressure both dynamic ECG monitoring and diagnostic electrocardiography.
Fibre-optic endoscopy and rigid laparoscopy now can be videotaped for later review. Electrosurgery was added in 1995. Cryosurgery was added in 1996. Medical photography and in-house electrocardiography with referral support was added in 1997.
Full pre-surgical blood screening available on day of surgery added in 1997. A second surgical table was added in 1997 allowing two surgeons to be working at the same time. Most dental equipment is available with dental referral support. Dental equipment was upgraded in 1998 and soon we will offer routine fillings, root canals and crowns. Video was added to our surgery in 1999 and we can now videotape our surgeries if needed as well as still photography.
Most of the people in the Yukon are acutely aware of our limitations caused by distance. We are two and a half hours by jet from the nearest centre and this always has to be a factor. Even human medical facilities are affected by distance. A myelogram is done down south and the patient would be flown to a southern hospital for the procedure. It would not surprise people to suggest this for their pets. But there have been striking contrasts as our practice grows. We recently had a consultation with Dr. Larry Tilley on a cardiac case. We had a three page letter in less than three hours and Larry was on the phone to discuss it. A human ECG can take almost two weeks to come back from Edmonton!
It's always nice to have people rather surprised how fast we can provide the services. Blood Chemistry for an insurance physical can take up to 10 days to come back and a physician to call, but we can have a client's results within the hour. A biopsy from Whitehorse General Hospital can take weeks, but we can have the tissue in Vancouver in a day and the results back in three.
