Veterinary Emergency & Specialty Hospitals (VESH)
Check-In
What To Expect When You Come To The ER
Medical emergencies can be a frightening experience for your pet and family, so we want to make this challenging time as effortless and stress-free as possible.
When you arrive, your pet’s condition will be evaluated by one of our Emergency Veterinary Technicians to determine its severity (critical vs. stable). Similar to the triage process in human hospitals, critical cases are always attended to first. If your pet is in stable condition, you may be asked to wait in our comfortable waiting area until an Emergency Veterinarian is available.
Once an Emergency Veterinarian has seen your pet, diagnostic and treatment options will be discussed with you, which may include outpatient services or ICU hospitalization, depending on the situation. Following discharge, we will provide your regular veterinarian with your pet’s complete medical record to keep with the office files.
During Your Visit
While you’re waiting to be seen or during your pet’s procedure, the complimentary wireless service, television, and snack/soda machines in our comfortable waiting room will help you feel at home. When the weather’s pleasant, you may enjoy the fresh air in one of our outdoor seating areas.
When Your Pet is Hospitalized
We understand the importance of providing regular updates about pets that are hospitalized with VESH. To coordinate communications between our medical team and your family, we request that you please assign one person to act as the primary contact who will inform all other family members about your pet’s status. Working with your designated contact person, we will provide the following:
Morning Update - One of our client liaisons will call between 8:30–9:00 am with a status report and to take any questions you may have for your conversation with the doctor at mid-day. Please understand that our doctors will not be able to speak with you at this time.
Mid-Day Update - The veterinarian will call between 11:00 am-2:00 pm to provide a detailed update and respond to questions. If your pet is well enough to go home, the doctor will schedule a discharge time for pickup.
Evening Update - Your designated contact may call the hospital to speak with an ICU technician about your pet’s status between 8:00-10:00 pm.
Scheduled Discharge - Please arrive on time for your discharge appointment, or you may be unnecessarily delayed as we attend to other patients’ discharges.
Referring Veterinarian Updates - We will forward all medical records to your primary veterinarian, and our doctors will take his or her calls about your pet. Please be sure we have the correct name and address for your regular vet.
Visiting Your Pet
During hospitalization, you may visit your pet once per day. Please call 413-665-4911 to make advance arrangements.
-Visits are not allowed between 6:00–8:00 AM or 6:00–8:00 PM when our medical team is on rounds.
-If more than one family member wants to visit, please coordinate all visitors to be there at the same time. In the event that emergency cases arrive during your visit, you may be asked to wait until an exam room becomes available.
-Weather permitting, you may visit with your pet outdoors if their condition allows.
-A pet that cannot be moved or has been quarantined can be visited in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) or Isolation Ward.
-Critical patients may have visitors more than once a day with prior doctor approval only. If the ICU becomes busy, your visit may be cut short in order for us to care for other patients properly. We ask for your understanding and cooperation in advance should this occur.
-In addition to giving lots of pats and love, we encourage you to feed your pet if food is allowed and to walk them outside when possible. Feel free to bring a favorite toy to play with your pet.
Paying For Your Pet’s Care
We realize that treatment for animal emergencies and serious illnesses often represent unexpected expenses for your family’s budget. That’s why we are committed to providing cost-effective care with a variety of payment options.
Payment Methods
Once an emergency veterinarian or specialist has assessed your pet’s condition, medical care treatment options with their associated costs will be discussed with you. At VESH, we try to keep our prices as low as possible for our customers, and to do this, all services must be paid for at the time they are provided.
To help you manage costs, we offer as many payment options as possible, including cash, money orders, checks, VISA, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover. While VESH cannot arrange billing or payment plans, CareCredit and Scratchpay may be financing options for those who qualify.
About CareCredit
CareCredit is a Synchrony service, which offers a flexible payment program specifically designed for veterinary and healthcare expenses. CareCredit can not only be used to pay for your pet’s care at VESH but also at many other participating veterinary and healthcare practices.
Applying is easy, and approval is usually obtained within a few minutes for qualified applicants. You can apply for CareCredit at VESH, online at the CareCredit website, or over the phone at 1-800-859-9975.
CareCredit offers several different payment options. Speak with one of our Client Liaisons at the front desk or go to www.carecredit.com for more information.
About Scratchpay
Scratchpay is a simple, transparent patient financing option that is not a credit card. Because Scratchpay isn't a credit card, checking your payment options won't affect your credit score.
They offer a variety of payment plans, no hidden fees, no prepayment penalties, and no deferred interest. Visit the Scratchpay website to apply.
