S.I. No. 278/2017 - Veterinary Practice Act 2005 (Treatment by non registered person) Regulations 2017.

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 4th July, 2017.

I, Michael Creed, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 54A (as inserted by section 2 of the Veterinary Practice (Amendment) Act 2012 (No. 25 of 2012)) and 59 of the Veterinary Practice Act 2005 (No. 22 of 2005) (as adapted by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Alteration of Name of Department and Title of Minister) Order 2011 ( S.I. No. 455 of 2011 )), and having consulted with the Veterinary Council of Ireland, hereby make the following regulations:

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Veterinary Practice Act 2005 (Treatment by non-registered person) Regulations 2017.

2. In these Regulations—

“registered dentist” has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Dentists Act 1985 (No. 9 of 1985);

“registered medical practitioner” has the same meaning as in section 2 (as amended by section 2 of the Medical Practitioners (Amendment) Act 2011 (No. 12 of 2011)) of the Medical Practitioners Act 2007 (No. 25 of 2007)).

3. (1) A veterinary practitioner may, in respect of an animal under his or her care, request a registered medical practitioner to carry out a procedure on the animal-

(a) if the procedure is unusually complex,

(b) if that registered medical practitioner has a high level of expertise in the field of medicine related to the procedure, and

(c) there is no veterinary practitioner with the requisite skill and experience available to carry out the procedure.

(2) Notwithstanding section 54 (1) of the Veterinary Practice Act 2005 (No. 22 of 2005), the registered medical practitioner may carry out the procedure referred to in paragraph (1).

4. (1) A veterinary practitioner may, in respect of an animal under his or her care, request a registered dentist to carry out a procedure on the animal-

(a) if the procedure is unusually complex,

(b) if that registered dentist has a high level of expertise in the field of dentistry related to the procedure, and

(c) there is no veterinary practitioner with the requisite skill and experience available to carry out the procedure.

(2) Notwithstanding section 54 (1) of the Veterinary Practice Act 2005 , the registered dentist may carry out the procedure referred to in paragraph (1).

5. A procedure carried out in accordance with paragraph 3 or 4 shall be carried out in the presence of the veterinary practitioner who requested the procedure.

GIVEN under my Official Seal,

27 June 2017.

MICHAEL CREED,

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.)

These regulations provide for the practice of veterinary medicine by a medical practitioner or a dentist in the case of an emergency.