At Hook Norton Veterinary Group, our practices in Hook Norton, Charlbury, Deddington and Moreton-in-Marsh are accredited under the RCVS Practice Standards Scheme, providing independent reassurance about the standards behind the veterinary care we provide.
Our White Hills Surgery holds Small Animal Veterinary Hospital, Equine General Practice and Farm Animal General Practice accreditation, while our Charlbury, Deddington and Moreton-in-Marsh practices are accredited to Core Standards (Small Animal).
But what does RCVS accreditation actually mean, and why should it matter when you’re choosing a vet?
The Practice Standards Scheme, often referred to as PSS, is a voluntary accreditation programme run by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS).
The RCVS is responsible for setting professional standards for veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses in the UK, and the Practice Standards Scheme helps veterinary practices demonstrate their commitment to maintaining high standards of care.
Practices that choose to take part in the scheme are independently assessed against a range of standards and are encouraged to continually review and improve the way they work.
It’s not simply about passing an inspection. It’s about maintaining those standards day in, day out.
There’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes of a veterinary practice, and the RCVS Practice Standards Scheme looks at much more than what happens during your animal’s appointment.
Depending on the type of practice and level of accreditation, assessments can cover areas such as:
These are things our team works with every day, but having them independently assessed provides an additional level of reassurance for our clients.
One of the things that makes Hook Norton Veterinary Group a little different is the variety of animals we care for and the range of veterinary services we provide across our practices.
Our practices are accredited under the RCVS Practice Standards Scheme, giving our clients the reassurance that recognised standards are being maintained across the group.
Our main White Hills Surgery in Hook Norton holds three RCVS Practice Standards Scheme accreditations:
As a Small Animal Veterinary Hospital, White Hills holds a higher level of small animal accreditation than our smaller branch practices, reflecting the facilities and services available at our main hospital.
The practice is also accredited for our equine and farm animal veterinary work, recognising the standards we maintain when caring for horses, livestock and farm animals.
Our Charlbury, Deddington and Moreton-in-Marsh branches are each accredited to RCVS Core Standards (Small Animal).
Core Standards accreditation covers essential areas involved in running a veterinary practice, helping to provide reassurance that appropriate standards are being maintained in areas such as patient care, hygiene, clinical procedures, medicines and practice facilities.
For our clients, it means that whether you visit us at Hook Norton, Charlbury, Deddington or Moreton-in-Marsh, you can be confident that your practice is part of the RCVS Practice Standards Scheme.
Alongside Practice Standards Scheme accreditation, veterinary practices can work towards additional PSS Awards.
These awards recognise particular areas of a practice’s work and allow veterinary teams to demonstrate where they are going beyond the requirements of their overall accreditation.
Depending on the type of veterinary practice, award areas can include:
PSS Awards can be achieved at Good or Outstanding level.
For clients, they provide another way of seeing where a veterinary practice has demonstrated particularly high standards in a specific area of its work.
Veterinary standards can sound quite technical, but ultimately the Practice Standards Scheme is about something very straightforward: giving you confidence in the veterinary practice you have chosen to care for your animals.
For us, taking part in the scheme provides an independent benchmark against which we can assess what we do well and identify areas where we can continue to improve.
Whether you’re bringing your puppy in for their first vaccination at one of our branches, your cat needs further investigation or hospital care at White Hills, we’re visiting your horse, or we’re working alongside you on herd or flock health, the same principle applies.
We want you to feel confident in the team caring for your animals.
We’re incredibly proud of our RCVS accreditations, but maintaining high standards isn’t simply about preparing for an assessment.
It’s an ongoing process.
Veterinary medicine is constantly developing, and we believe it’s important that we develop alongside it. That means continuing to invest in our people, facilities, equipment and services while regularly reviewing how we can make the care we provide even better.
The Practice Standards Scheme gives us another framework for doing exactly that.
Most importantly, all that work behind the scenes comes back to one thing: providing the best possible care for our patients, whether they have paws, hooves or anything in between.
You can find out more about the Practice Standards Scheme by visiting https://www.rcvs.org.uk/setting-standards/practice-standards-scheme/
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