This subject is devoted to the correct handling and restraint of the animals in our care. Although a large focus is on dogs and cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, wildlife and birds are also covered. Providing safe and low stress animal handling is a vital skill for any Veterinary Nurse. You will also learn the basics of reading animal body language.

Health and safety are vital aspects of working in any animal care workplace. We’ll introduce you to Work Health and Safety legislation and how it applies to employees, the basics of risk management and controls, how to deal with sharps, allergies, noise, dangerous chemicals and drugs, fire safety and emergencies, biological hazards and zoonoses. Then we’ll finish off with a closer look at animal hazards and manual handling when it comes to animal care workplaces and how you can minimise risks.

Veterinary nurses care for a variety of animals with differences in anatomy that affect how we nurse our patients. In this subject you’ll learn all about the body systems and how they work. The focus is on placental mammals, and we explore the differences between different animals. You’ll also learn about other non-mammalian species such as reptiles.

Veterinary Nurses are required communicate with a range of people from colleagues to clients. You’ll learn how to adjust your communication techniques to match your audience, including switching between medical terminology and client friendly explanations. You’ll also learn about customer service skills and how to deal with difficult situations.

Patients are often kept in hospital and knowing how to look after them from food to bedding, exercising, taking vital signs, recording observations and knowing when to alert the Vet are all skills that form the basis of good nursing. This subject goes into detail on how to really look after your patients well, providing nursing interventions where necessary, and looking at the patient as a whole – not just ticking off a box that a treatment has been given.

Infection control is extremely important in any veterinary clinic and this subject is structured to help you with understanding both basic and advanced precautions that are necessary to keep you and your patients safe from transmissible diseases.

Medical Nursing will introduce the student to a wide variety of equipment found within the veterinary clinic. Students study not only how to set it up and what it is used for, but how to assist the Vet during procedures. The correct maintenance of this equipment is also covered.

Fluid therapy and IV catheterisation, oxygen therapy and urinary catheterisation are also covered.

This subject follows on from Nursing the Veterinary Patient and looks at nursing care plans, nursing interventions such as recumbent nursing, bandaging, physical therapy and wound care. You’ll also learn about pain management, analgesics and pain scoring.

Correct nutrition is not only vital for the patients we nurse and animals we care for, but advising owners on correct nutrition for their pets is often a daily occurrence for Veterinary Nurses. This subject will ensure students understand what makes up nutrition, how to feed for particular life stages, how to read pet labels, diseases that are influenced by nutrition, and how to calculate energy requirements.

Clinical pathology will introduce students to laboratory techniques used in the veterinary clinic, what equipment is used and how to maintain it including microscopes, refractometers, in-house lab machines, centrifuges etc. Students will also learn how to perform a urinalysis including sediment, PCV/TP, faecal floats, blood smears and will also cover the basics on haematology and biochemistry, and cell structure. Correct sample handling and storage techniques are also covered.

Veterinary Nurses are involvedin a range of diagnostic imaging procedures. You’ll learn about how to set up for, take, and trouble shoot radiographs (x-rays), ultrasound and learn more about other imaging techniques such as endoscopy, MRI and CT scans.

This subject covers how to correctly clean and sterilise instruments as per the Australian Standards and best practice.

This subject covers a vast array of surgical topics from asepsis, theatre attire, patient preparation for surgery, pre and post-operative care. You’ll learn about a vast array of surgical procedures, how to assist in surgery, aftercare instructions for surgeries, and how to maintain the theatre suite. You’ll also learn about scheduling procedure, suture materials and more.

Monitoring Anaesthesia is a large part of the Veterinary Nurse’s job. This subject introduces students to the basics of anaesthesia – how to set up, what circuits to pick and when, how the drugs we use affect the body, and why premedication is necessary. Studying the cardiovascular system is also undertaken as part of this subject. Judgement of anaesthetic depth and monitoring techniques are discussed, from manual monitoring to equipment such as pulse oximetry, ap-alerts, blood pressure, capnography and ECG. Students also learn how to classify ASA statuses, and recognise and respond to anaesthetic complications.

Dentals! You either love them or hate them. This subject will teach students dental anatomy and diseases, how to perform a dental prophylaxis, charting, why extractions are sometimes necessary, and the home care required for dental health, and post op.

Almost all Veterinary Nurses are required to perform reception duties. This can cover making appointments, triaging emergency cases, admissions and discharges, clinic records, and some basic office procedures. All of this is covered in this subject along with taking payments, stock control, and banking reconciliations.

Dealing with client grief requires a whole team approach. In this subject, you’ll learn how to approach the grieving client and provide support within your role as a veterinary nurse. You’ll also learn how to refer clients to additional support.

This subject also covers the euthanasia process.

Emergency nursing can be exciting and very daunting. This subject will teach students how to effectively triage cases over the phone, and in clinic; first aid advice to provide to owner, how to prepare for the arrival of the emergency patient and how to assist the Veterinarian in the management of these cases. Setting up and maintaining crash-carts is also covered along with CPR.

Veterinary Nurses are involved in the handling and administration of medications daily. Dispensing drugs also falls to the veterinary nurse often. This subject looks at different drug classifications and schedules, legislation around prescribing and dispensing medications, obtaining information on drugs and client advice.

Chemotherapy is also covered, with an emphasis on the WHS considerations of chemo administration in the veterinary practice, and how to correctly nurse these patients to minimise any risks of exposure when handling them.

This subject prepares students for recognising, treating and preventing the common parasites found on and in domestic animals. You will also learn what vaccinations animals need, the diseases they cover, and why they are so important. This will ensure you are prepared to educate clients on protecting their pets and family and achieve a high compliance.

This subject covers the reproductive system of common domestic animals, their reproductive cycles and whelping/queening. Students will also learn about reproductive emergencies and what advice should be given to the owners when complications occur or are suspected. There is also an emphasis on understanding what is normal to allow the nurse to advise clients on the correct care of their breeding adults and the neonates.

Providing behavioural advice is often performed by veterinary nurses and having a good understanding of how animals learn and how behaviour modification can be performed is essential for good outcomes. You’ll learn all of this and how to modify common behavioural problems.

The ACM40418 Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing is delivered entirely by distance education using our online ‘Learning Centre’ and printed learners guides. It gives you the flexibility to study as it suits you without having to attend campus, whilst completing your practical coursework in your own clinic.

If you are employed as a Veterinary Nurse in a clinic, you will complete all your practical components in your clinic. In the event your clinic does not have particular equipment, you may be required to do some work experience at another clinic to cover the necessary skills. We will let you know as part of your Student Induction.

For placement students, you’ll complete your practical coursework in your placement clinic. Your placement cannot start until approved by us and you have passed for your first two subjects.

If you are planning on completing the practical component via work placement, there are a few things to keep in mind.

• You will need to find a clinic willing to take you on for Vocational Placement. As part of this you will need to do one 8 hr day a week at this clinic, starting after you finish your first two subjects (please note, you can only do one day a week, not more, not less). This placement will continue until you finish the course, so plan for it to last 2 years. If you start the placement late, you will have to extend your course to ensure you meet the minimum hours required. You will complete 768 hours of vocational placement across the two-year course.
• If you are in Tasmania, there is legislation that prevents you from doing more than 240 hours a year of vocational placement – sadly, you will not be able to enrol in the course until you are employed in a clinic.
• As well as the Vocational Placement, you may need to complete four Intensive Placements covering around another 300 hours (depending on your previous experience). These are two week placements (10 days) that focus on particular skill sets such as Reception, Surgical Nursing, Ward Nursing and Anaesthesia. These must be performed after completing the associated subjects and must be 10 days over a maximum of a three week period. Some of these placements can be performed at your Vocational Placement clinic and some must be at a different clinic to ensure you receive wider experience.

For ACM40418 Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing, you must pre-arrange your placement location prior to enrolment.

It is highly recommended that you discuss placement with clinics in your area to ensure they are willing to take on students for long-term placement.

It is not possible to complete the course with less placement hours. Our standards are high and employers recognise this and seek out our graduates. If you have credits from previous study, we will adjust your placement hours to suit.

If you are completing the ACM40418 Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing with placement, you will need to allow an extra $400 to cover administration and insurance.