The Veterinary Council of Ireland (VCI)

The Veterinary Council of Ireland (“the VCI”) is the statutory regulator of veterinary practitioners, veterinary nurses, and veterinary practice premises in Ireland. The VCI’s Council was established under the Veterinary Practice Act 2005 (as amended) (“the Act”) and its main function is to regulate and manage the practice of veterinary medicine and veterinary nursing in the State in the public interest and in the interest of animal health and welfare.

The purpose and functions of the VCI are for the protection of the public by the registration of veterinary practice premises, by the supervision of veterinary education, by the keeping and the publishing of the Register of Veterinary Practitioners and the Register of Veterinary Nurses, and by the taking of disciplinary action when required in cases of professional misconduct.

Veterinary practitioners and veterinary nurses who practise in Ireland must be registered with the VCI. In the Act, such veterinary practitioners and veterinary nurses are referred to as “registered persons”.

The Act contains the procedures for complaints and disciplinary action against registered persons and sets out the role of the VCI in relation to such complaints and disciplinary action against registered persons.

Who can make a complaint?

The VCI has a responsibility to investigate a complaint about a registered person. Anyone is entitled to make a complaint to the VCI about a registered person, including members of the public, employers or the VCI’s Council itself.

If you think your complaint is for us, or you are not sure, please contact us on 01 668 4402 or email info@vci.ie and we will contact you.

Considering making a complaint?

It is a good idea to speak first with the registered person in the first instance. However, if you continue to be concerned about the behaviour, conduct, practice or health of a registered person, you can make a formal complaint to the VCI.

There are some matters that we cannot consider, for example:

• Persons who are not veterinary practitioners or veterinary nurses.
• Employment issues, such as hours of work or contracts of employment.
• Commercial matters, such as the fees you have been charged or non-payment of rent on commercial premises.

What the VCI cannot do

• Give you legal advice or representation.
• Help you make a claim for compensation, or award compensation.
• Ask a registered person on your behalf to do something.
• Force a registered person to offer you a refund, a goodwill payment, an apology or corrective/further treatment.
• Give an explanation of what happened.

What type of complaints will the VCI consider

The VCI can only take action where complaints are of a serious nature and raise concerns about a registered person’s fitness to practise. This includes:

• Professional misconduct where there is a serious falling short of the standards expected of a registered person.
• Fraud or dishonesty.
• Criminal convictions
• Physical or mental health problems affecting ability to work.
• Erroneous registration.
• A failure to comply with the Veterinary Practice Act 2005 or the Regulations made under it.

To check if a veterinary practitioner or a veterinary nurse is registered, please check our Register on our website www.vci.ie.

How to make a complaint

A complaint must be made in writing and sent to us either in the post or by email. We cannot accept complaints made over the telephone. Please consider our complaint form which gives us all relevant details about the matter. Your complaint must be in writing and signed and must include:

• Your full name, address and telephone number.
• As much information about the circumstances of your complaint as you can, including names, dates and places.
• The name of the veterinary practitioner(s) and/or veterinary nurse(s) your complaint is about.
• Any supporting documents that you have, including copies of correspondence or prescriptions.
• The name and contact details of anyone, such a witness, who can confirm the matters you describe in your complaint.
• Send your complaint form and your supporting documents by:
• Email to info@vci.ie
• Post to Case Officer, Veterinary Council of Ireland, 53 Lansdowne Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4.

The complaint form can be downloaded here.

What happens after a complaint is made

The complaint is first dealt with by a Case Officer, who works within the VCI’s Legal team. The Case Officer is a neutral point of contact for all parties to a complaint and you can contact the Case Officer if you have a query during your involvement in the process.

When the VCI receives a complaint, the Case Officer will:

• Send an acknowledgement letter to the complainant.
• Send a copy of the complaint to the registered person and give them an opportunity to provide observations and comments in relation to the complaint. If the registered person decides to submit observations, these must be provided in writing, and within the timeframe given. This is usually 21 days from the date of the letter.
• Send the complainant a copy of the response of the registered person for further comment within the timeframe given, usually 14 days.
• Send any further comments that the complainant makes to the registered person for their final comment.
• When all observations and comments have been received, the information and documentation will be sent to the Preliminary Investigation Committee.

The registered person is under no obligation to respond. If the registered person does not respond to correspondence from the VCI or submit any observations, the file will be sent to the Preliminary Investigation Committee (PIC) and the PIC will proceed to meet to consider the complaint.

Who considers a complaint

All complaints received by the VCI are considered by the complaints screening committee, called the Preliminary Investigation Committee (“the PIC”), an independent statutory committee.

The PIC is under a statutory obligation to consider a complaint within 4 months of the complaint being directed to it.

The PIC meets regularly in private to consider complaints and is made up of members of Council who are registered persons and non-registered persons. The role of the PIC is to decide whether further action is necessary in relation to complaints received.

1. The PIC may decide there is a case for further action and refer the complaint to the Fitness to Practise Committee; or
2. The PIC may decide there is insufficient cause to take further action. If the Council agrees, the complaints process ends, and no further action will be taken on the complaint. The complainant has the option of an appeal to the Circuit Court. If the Council does not agree with the decision of the PIC, it will send the complaint to the Fitness to Practise Committee.