Measuring the accessibility of veterinary care for companion animals in England and Wales

Recent surveys have suggested that over half of UK households own a pet. One important aspect to this ownership is ensuring that access to appropriate veterinary care is available for their pets. To measure the ease of accessibility to such care, three aspects are important, the local demand for veterinary care, the supply of care, and the ease of travel to obtain the care. For the first element, in this study estimates were made of the household pet population for all neighbourhoods in England and Wales (36,672 neighbourhoods each containing approximately 700 households). Information regarding the location and number of veterinarians working in local practices was then used, with vehicle journey times, to provide a measure of accessibility to veterinary care. It was found that the more affluent and rural locations have better accessibility to veterinary care than deprived and urban locations. The detailed geography of the estimates provided by this study enabled the location of potential ‘veterinary deserts’ to be identified. With this knowledge additional provision can be prioritised to such locations with a view to improving the welfare of companion animals. Not only will this improve the accessibility of veterinary care but, through competition, this also has the potential to reduce care costs. Thus, the likelihood of pets receiving the care they need will improve. Whilst this study focuses upon England and Wales, the methodology presented would be equally valid in other settings where appropriate data exist.