Virtual care: telehealth, telemedicine, teletriage and general advice

Veterinary care is evolving and Vetster is here to support veterinary professionals as they bring their practices into the future. While connecting with pet owners by phone, text, or email is something most veterinarians have long been familiar with, Vetster takes veterinary telehealth to the next level by providing a comprehensive platform with all the tools needed to work with pet owners online.

One of the most common questions we receive from veterinarians when they start to explore virtual care is,  “What level of service can I provide on Vetster?”

To answer this question, it’s important to understand the different modalities of virtual care and how your regulatory body views each within the scope of virtual practice.

At Vetster, we use the term virtual care to describe the wide range of services veterinary professionals provide to pet owners across the globe through our technology. As a leader in the veterinary telehealth industry, this term represents our commitment to advancing how care is delivered by making expert guidance more accessible, convenient, and flexible. On our platform, virtual care most commonly includes telemedicine, general advice, and teletriage, but the possibilities continue to evolve alongside the needs of pet owners and the professionals who serve them.

To help clarify how they differ, let’s look at the definitions of these key modalities of virtual care:

1. Telehealth is the broad, all-inclusive term used across the veterinary industry to describe all aspects of healthcare provided through the use of technology as opposed to in-person. Telehealth includes many services related to patient care, including telemedicine, general advice, and teletriage.

2. Telemedicine is defined as part of the legally regulated practice of veterinary medicine and requires that you either have a pre-existing veterinary-client-patient relationship (VCPR) as defined by your governing body, or are able to establish one virtually. Within telemedicine, you provide care in the same way as you would in person, including diagnosing and prescribing as appropriate.

   We recognize that some veterinarians may use Vetster to consult with clients for whom a VCPR has already been established outside the platform. Vetster does not evaluate or verify the existence of a VCPR in any case. We trust the licensed professionals using our platform to exercise their clinical judgment, act in the best interests of the pet, and practice in accordance with their regulatory obligations. While Vetster has our own standards for virtual care appointments seen on the platform, we rely on each provider to understand and follow the laws and guidelines applicable to their location and services.  To learn more about the telemedicine regulations in your specific jurisdiction, helpful resources are available from the AAHA and the Veterinary Virtual Care Association (VVCA).

3. General Advice is a powerful tool that presents tremendous opportunities within virtual care. When a VCPR cannot be established virtually, general advice unlocks your ability to provide pet owners with information and coaching to help their pet both immediately and in the long term. Although the value of general advice is sometimes underestimated, at Vetster, it represents one of the fastest growing categories of virtual care. Pet owners increasingly seek expert guidance to better understand their options and make informed decisions about their pets’ health — all from the comfort and convenience of home.

   General advice sounds like what you might read in a textbook and exists outside of a professional relationship, is not regulated by law, and is not specific to the pet or the given situation.

   General advice is information about signs and symptoms, conditions and diseases, diagnostic testing, options for treatment, outcomes and expectations, and so much more!

   General advice does not require a VCPR and can be provided by a veterinary professional to any client — even those outside of your country of residence. Vetster’s platform is available to pet owners in more than 100 countries.

4. Teletriage is the process of assessing a pet’s symptoms remotely to determine how urgently they need in-person veterinary care. It is one of the most valuable applications of virtual care, helping pet owners decide when and where to seek hands-on treatment. In most jurisdictions, teletriage can be provided by a veterinary professional even without an established VCPR. While regulations vary, this type of guidance — such as answering questions like “Does my pet need to see a vet, and how soon?” — is typically permitted and offers meaningful support to concerned pet owners. Using strong communication skills is essential in these consultations, helping clients feel heard, informed, and confident in the value of the guidance you provide.

Once you understand your regulatory body’s stance on virtual care and the requirements for establishing a VCPR, you’ll be better equipped to determine whether you can practice telemedicine, including offering a diagnosis or prescribing medication, within your jurisdiction. But regardless of whether a VCPR is in place, every virtual care appointment presents an opportunity to deliver meaningful support and guidance.

“While some clients may initiate an appointment seeking a specific medication or prescription refill, our role as veterinarians is to use our professional judgment and approach each case with empathy, transparency, and clinical integrity. At the heart of every interaction is a shared goal of doing what’s best for the pet.”

— Jo Myers, veterinarian on Vetster

Even without a VCPR, you can still offer tremendous value by helping the client understand their next steps and ensuring they have the information they need to make informed decisions. This kind of contextualized care (advice tailored to the pet’s current condition, the owner’s concerns, and what is realistically accessible) helps clients feel supported and confident in how they care for their pet. For example, when a prescription isn’t appropriate, you might recommend an in-person exam, offer symptom monitoring guidance, suggest supportive care strategies, or identify appropriate over-the-counter products through VetsterRx.

Whether through teletriage, general advice, or telemedicine, virtual care allows you to meet pet owners where they are and deliver informed, compassionate support that prioritizes the pet’s well-being.

To learn more about how to confidently and compliantly deliver virtual care, including how to apply concepts like telemedicine, general advice, and teletriage in practice, we invite you to enroll in Vetster’s Virtual Care Master Class. This free, self-paced course offers RACE-approved continuing education credits and is designed to support veterinary professionals in building knowledge, skill, and confidence in virtual care delivery.

You may create an account as a veterinary professional, or learn more here.