The Atlanta Humane Society (AHS) will open a new veterinary clinic in late Spring 2022, made possible by the generous support of VCA Animal Hospitals (VCA). The clinic – Remedy: Your Community Vet – will be located near the East Lake community at 1843 Memorial Drive SE, Atlanta, GA 30317. Remedy will provide accessible veterinary care to pet owners experiencing financial hardship or who need resources and support to keep pets healthy and in their homes.
Located in an area void of access to high-quality and affordable care, the clinic will focus on serving the most vulnerable pets, providing healthy and sick pet services, select surgeries, and preventative and dental care.
“I’m proud of this new chapter in the VCA and Atlanta Humane relationship,” said Todd Lavender, DVM, president of VCA Animal Hospitals. “Every pet deserves access to world-class veterinary care, in their hometown. And any young person deserves to see and know the joy that comes from taking care of animals. With this local care for families and pets in need comes the opportunity to build the next generation of aspiring veterinarians and technicians.”
A generous donation from VCA to AHS to support the new community veterinary clinic was the catalyst that made the shared vision of expanding access to care in underserved communities a reality. VCA’s support includes critical funds to help underwrite necessary preventive care such as wellness visits and heartworm prevention, as well as services that are most likely to cause owners to surrender pets to shelters, including sick pet care, heartworm treatment, and surgery.
In addition to VCA’s financial commitment, VCA veterinary professionals will lend their talents and expertise to support the clinic. VCA is also supporting an externship program within the new hospital and at Atlanta Humane, aiming to improve exposure to the profession within underrepresented communities. This new program will provide veterinary students an opportunity to further their education about community practice and the importance of delivering accessible and affordable veterinary care at Remedy as well as through the Atlanta Humane Shelter Medicine Program. Students in this program can also participate in Atlanta Humane’s community outreach program, including animal cruelty response and large-scale community education events.
Both organizations also worked together to create a Specialty Care Fund that will help clients of the new community clinic access complex, critical medical and/or surgical cases outside the AHS veterinary team’s scope.
The Atlanta Humane Society and VCA Animal Hospitals have been partners for more than a decade, helping shelter pets find loving homes and supporting the greater pet population of the Atlanta community.
“Collaboration is key to ensuring all communities of pet owners have access to care – the enhanced partnership between AHS and VCA is the key to ensuring pets and families can remain together,” said Cal Morgan, president and CEO of the Atlanta Humane Society. “We change animal’s lives once they enter our shelter. Now, we have the means to ensure those animals receive the care they need when they find a family to love them.”
The Atlanta Humane Society’s veterinary solution focuses on providing affordable care and using technology to create an ultra-efficient, sustainable, and high-volume model. The model is scalable and replicable, providing the opportunity to address the veterinary needs of other underserved communities in the future.
To learn more about this new community veterinary practice, please visit: atlantahumane.org/remedy
To learn more about VCA Animal Hospitals, please visit: vcahospitals.com
