VetCompass clinical data points the way forward

摘要

The majority of companion animal practices store patient records electronically, but mainly in free-text format. This makes interrogation of clinical data to assess disease levels very difficult. The VetCompass epidemiology project encourages practitioners to record diagnoses from a standardised list of veterinary terms, called the VeNom Codes, to allow easier interrogation and analysis of practice caseloads by practitioners and researchers as well as facilitate communication between practice computerised systems and laboratories, insurance companies and microchip registers. Analysis of merged veterinary practice clinical records can highlight disorder and welfare priorities and changing patterns in companion animal disease, as well as facilitate clinical audit, insurance claim submissions and within-practice analysis.