Veterinary Practice Certification Program – ER & Urgent Care
Taking the Pet out of Petrified
Fear Free Certified Veterinary Emergency & Urgent Care Practices provide every patient with an experience that incorporates the core concepts of Fear Free. All veterinary care staff will incorporate what they have learned in the Veterinary Professional Certification Program to create workflows, patient handling protocols, and client communication strategies that exemplify the principles of Fear Free.

Veterinary Practice Certification Program – ER & Urgent Care
Patients presenting in emergency and/or urgent care situations are at a higher risk of experiencing fear, anxiety, and stress. These patients often have underlying and/or debilitating disease processes which could be worsened by FAS.
As a Fear Free Certified Veterinary ER & Urgent Care Practice, your team will :
- Recognize that the emergency and/or urgent care setting creates a heightened sense of FAS and work to reduce this through intentional implementation of Fear Free principles
- Increase client compliance by reducing stress for both patients and their owners.
- Improve staff morale by empowering the team to provide emotional wellbeing to all their patients
- Provide the highest quality medicine in a manner that patients enjoy
Overview
The Veterinary Emergency & Urgent Care Practice Certification Program consists of several steps, which can be done individually or in tandem. Upon purchase of the Veterinary Practice Certification – ER/Urgent Care product, each team member will be assigned a membership that gives them access to the individual Veterinary Professional Certification Program. This individual level membership provides the baseline knowledge, and applicable individual benefits that are required to complete the initial step of the program. In addition to completing the Veterinary Professional Certification Program, team members must also complete the ER & Critical Care Course, located in the catalog of the Fear Free Education Portal. While these two courses are the only ones required for initial certification, we encourage team members to complete additional courses to advance their skills and provide the highest level of care.
Teams must work together to implement the certification standards, within all aspects of care at the practice. An online assessment is completed in which standard operating protocols, SOPs, and medical records are evaluated. Additionally, patient handling techniques are observed by the Fear Free team through submission of recorded procedures to ensure all principles of Fear Free are utilized in an appropriate manner.
Certified Veterinary ER/Urgent Care Practices renew their practice level membership annually which in turn, renews all team members’ memberships. Every three years, the practice must re-certify by utilizing the online assessment platform to complete an abridged certification process designed to showcase the team’s advancing Fear Free skillset.
- Team purchases the Veterinary Practice Certification Program – ER/Urgent Care product
- Individual team members become certified in a Veterinary Professional Certification Program and the ER and Critical Care course
- Team implements certification standards within the practice
- Team completes self-assessment with required documents and completes a successful virtual onsite visit
- Fear Free Veterinary ER/Urgent Care Practice Certification Achieved!
Requirements
Begin your path to becoming a Fear Free Certified Veterinary ER/Urgent Care Practice by purchasing the Veterinary Practice Certification Program – ER/Urgent Care product, which includes practice program-specific memberships for all your staff.
As the individual team members complete the necessary requirements, your practice can start implementing the certification standards and work to complete the self-assessment through the Facility Certification Dashboard.
Every three (3) years, your practice will complete a recertification process in which your team will update any previously submitted documents, provide any new standard operating procedure (SOPs), and provide recorded patient visits for review.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please schedule a meeting by clicking the button below.
Pricing
Purchase the Veterinary Practice Certification Product below that best aligns with the size of your practice, based on the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) veterinarians on staff.
Corporate pricing may be available. Contact certifyme@fearfree.com for more information.
Number of FTE Veterinarians
This cost includes memberships for all staff including part-time, seasonal, and relief staff. This practice-level membership will renew annually based on the number of full-time equivalent veterinarians on staff at the time of renewal.
Resources & White Papers
- The Path to Fear Free Practice Certification
- Fear Free Certified Veterinary Practice Standards
- Fear Free Veterinary Practice Certification Process Overview
- The Positive Impact of Fear Free Certification in Veterinary Practices (2024)
- The Continual Business Growth of Fear Free of Certified Practices (2024)
- Fear Free: The Long-Term Benefits for Pets, People & the Profession (2024)
- Animal Arts Fear Free Hospital Design Guide
