How do I make a referral?
To arrange a referral, vets should complete the online referral form. Alternatively, you can to speak to our Client Services Officers on 0151 795 6100.
We have prepared a guide to completing the online referral form (PDF, 383KB) to assist you with the submission of referrals.
Once completed and submitted, the referral form will be processed by our Client Services team.
- Any referral with "see notes" or similar in the case history will unfortunately be returned for completion
- Veterinary surgeons seeking advice only should also use the online request form, selecting 'Advice Request' as the Type of Request
- Our fax service is no longer available. If you need to make a request by fax please contact us on 0151 795 6100.
What should I send with the case?
Please supply a referral letter (with a brief summary of history, physical examination findings and case progression) and computer history (where applicable), together with any laboratory results and radiographs.
For oncology cases please supply any available histopathology or cytology results. Please supply radiographs as films or digital files in Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) format.
Please note that referrals submitted with insufficient details on the front sheet may result in a delay in processing the referral.
How soon will someone respond to my enquiry?
We aim to respond to requests for advice within 24 hours of the request being received.
It will help us if you provide times when you will be available to take a call. However, our clinicians are frequently extremely busy with referral cases so it may sometimes take longer than this for one of them to respond. If your call is for advice about an emergency case, we will respond as soon as possible.
What instructions should I give the client?
- Please ensure that all dogs and cats are starved from 8pm the night before (or at least 12 hours before the appointment), unless there is a medical reason why this is not possible, water can be offered as required
- We would ask that the owners of diabetic animals get in touch with either us or their local vet for further instructions
- For all medicine cases, please ask the owners to collect a urine sample, if possible from the morning of the appointment
- For all cases with gastrointestinal signs please ask the owners to supply a faeces sample, if possible from the morning of the appointment
- For chronic lameness cases it is helpful, if possible, to withdraw non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) treatment for 24-48 hours prior to the appointment
- Dermatology cases should ideally have been off all therapy for three weeks as treatment may interfere with the investigation. Cases will be seen sooner if this is not possible.
Please call us if you have any concerns about taking an animal off treatment.
How soon will someone respond to my enquiry?
We aim to respond to requests for advice within 24 hours of the request being received.
It will help us if you provide times when you will be available to take a call. However, our clinicians are frequently extremely busy with referral cases so it may sometimes take longer than this for one of them to respond. If your call is for advice about an emergency case, we will respond as soon as possible.
Is an out-of-hours service available?
An out of hours emergency referral service is also available. In this instance please call 0151 795 6100 to be directed to the on-duty clinician. Please do not use the online referral service for emergencies.
Emergency consultations will be more expensive than those taking place within normal hours and this should be discussed with owners prior to referral.
Should I refer to any alternative services?
- Our orthopaedic service are able to provide verbal reports for orthopaedic cases, through the hospital’s clinical advice service
- Veterinary laboratory services are run independently of the Hospital. All post-mortem and pathology enquiries should be made directly to them on 0151 795 6294
- We are no longer able to offer a radiographic interpretation service for external image submissions. Alternative service providers include Idexx Laboratories, Antech imaging services and VET CT.
Back to: Small Animal Teaching Hospital