St. Vincent's Patient Pet Care Program logoImagine having a serious medical emergency like an accident or heart attack. The first thing on your mind is not “Who will feed my cat.” So what happens to your pet when you face a hospital stay and have no fall back person for pet care? The stress over concern for your pets’ well-being could potentially keep you from recuperating. Hospital intake forms do not ask the question of “Do you have pets at home?” since asking creates the inherent liability that the hospital assumes for caring for pets. (ED. note: This is not the thought of anyone affliated with the program, rather it is the thought of the author here.) It is up to you as a patient to notify the hospital staff that you need assistance with your pets. If you don’t have a case worker or nurse who has the time and kindness of heart to help you, your pets could be in trouble. Pet care is the last item on a long list of things to coordinate for a patient.

This is where a program like Patient Pet Care (PPC) really makes an impact for people. PPC is a forward thinking, thoughtful, and a one-of-a-kind service for the patients of St. Vincent’s hospital in Manhattan. The program is coordinated by Kate Fischer. Here is what she told me about the program:

PPC started in 2004 as a supportive system of pet care for those who need it. Kate Fischer has a group of volunteers and a few third party pet care professionals in contract to help when they are called to duty. The range of services of PPC goes from making phone calls to a patient’s family or neighbors to coordinate care all the way to direct pet care services.

There are some complications involved when volunteers for the program are doing the hands on work of walking and feeding pets. Some cases require a cat or dog to be relocated temporarily while a person is incapacitated. Any ill pets are taken by volunteers for treatment and medical boarding at local veterinary hospitals. If a home environment is unsafe for the pets or if the pets themselves are not agreeable with strangers, then alternate plans must be made by Fischer for their care. The Center for Animal Care and Control (CACC) provides a backup system for Fischer.

This program is not needed every day, but when a patient is in need, Fischer and her volunteers are ready. They will travel to the patient’s home to meet the pets and assess what kind of care they require while the owner is away. Many of the people who are helped by this program are elderly or patients with bipolar disorder. Fischer estimates that the program actively helps about 40 patients per year with hands-on pet care. This number does not reflect the many calls from case workers and nurses for patients who require screening for the program. When patients learn that the program is not entirely free and that the pets have to be handled by volunteers, Fischer notes that patients who have a network of support will ask her to contact a family member or friend and even pass along apartment keys. The program relies on donations for most of the funding, so that patients who cannot afford the program are able to use the service.

Volunteers for PPC must go through an application and training process, due to the sensitive nature of working in a hospital setting. The people who do this work must be compassionate, flexible, kind-hearted, and discreet. Volunteers will be assigned a case at a time, so they will become familiar with a particular pet or family. Safety is a major priority for volunteers. For this reason, it is a challenge to find new recruits since many people are reluctant to enter into the homes of patients alone.

Fischer says the number one need for the program is foster homes. Boarding, as all pet owners know, is costly. Foster families can really help keep pets out of the shelter system when these patients need help. This can help keep costs to CACC down.

The goals in 2009 of Fischer and the program are to increase the outpatient support for the pet care program. Patients recovering from surgery or undergoing cancer treatment may need support for their pets for a duration of time. Fischer’s plan is to increase the volunteer base and to offer more patients care for longer periods.

The second goal of 2009 is to support the foundation of a pet care program at Beth Israel hospital in Manhattan and to promote growing similar programs in other hospitals. Fischer expects her efforts to grow similar pet care programs in hospitals thanks to her strong outreach and alliances with groups like the Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals. Hospital administrators will likely be very slow to adapt to the program. Despite an animal-friendly administration, it took over a year at St. Vincent’s to get all of their legal representatives to approve the PPC.

Pets are often overlooked in social services, but not at St. Vincent’s. The Patient Pet Care program is about helping people through helping their pets. You don’t expect your doctor to walk your dog or feed your cat when you are recovering in the hospital, but it is good to know someone is thinking about your concern for your pets well-being too.

Email Kate Fischer or call her at 212-604-8649 to learn more, volunteer, or donate to PPC. Email Not Home Alone to learn more about efforts to expand the program in other hospitals.

You can also download forms from the NY State Bar Association that will assist the hospital in caring for your pets should the need ever arise.

St. Vincent’s Hospital in Manhattan is located at 170 West 12th Street, New York, NY 10011