11 Sep Responsibility for health and safety

Vets frequently find themselves faced with less than perfect handling arrangements when they arrive on farm to undertake the TB test. It appears that this is much more common in areas where testing is less frequent and where the owner has only a small number of animals to test.

It can be really hard to make the decision to withdraw from the test, especially once testing is underway and the end is in sight.

The government contract management team recently emphasised their view that an OV should take the lead in such circumstances and should stop the test if they consider that unacceptable risks are being taken by anyone involved in the testing process.

However, it is well understood that in abandoning the work the problems don’t always end. The test will need to be rearranged and some tricky conversations will have to be held with the animal keeper in order to help them discharge their responsibilities in presenting their animals safely.

All XL Farmcare regions now have access to some mobile handling kit and in some parts of the country there are also some businesses that can offer cattle handling staff to assist with tricky tests. Obviously, this all has a cost which would have to be borne by the animal owner. So, in practical terms an easy solution is often hard to find.

The BVA and VDS are keen to ensure that all parties understand that Health and Safety on farm is the joint responsibility of both farmer and veterinary surgeon. Both have a legal duty to work together to ensure the safety of all workers and themselves on the site.

A further challenge in circumstances where the vet decides to withdraw from the test is to make sure that all parties receive appropriate payment for the work they have completed. The Authority have confirmed that they will pay normal testing rates for all animals that are tested successfully and will also pay the instruction fee for attendance when tests are abandoned for reasons of health and safety. Sadly the current payment arrangements are insufficient to deal with repeated efforts to attend and complete the test and in such circumstances we would encourage early contact with XL Farmcare staff so that the regional VDP team can escalate the matter to the Authority and seek some kind of bespoke solution that can solve the issue without any business being too badly disadvantaged.