I'm sharing this to help other pet owners avoid what we went through. I do not recommend Dr. McLeod…read morefor major oral surgery. For complex procedures, I strongly recommend seeking a Board-Certified Veterinary Dentist. If telehealth is used, insist on speaking directly with the surgeon who performed the procedure, and do not rely on guidance from other staff.
Dr. McLeod extracted teeth from my cat Egon on Mon. She directed me to use telehealth for follow-up. I called Thurs AM to report complete anorexia since surgery. I believed McLeod was overseeing Egon's care, but she'd disengaged. Care was handled by a receptionist, office manager, & Dr. Kline.
In NC, a VCPR is required before a vet can legally practice telemedicine & can only be established through an in-person exam. I believe Kline's use of telemedicine was inappropriate as she later admitted in writing to the NCVMB she'd not established the required in-person VCPR for prescribing medication or scheduling surgery.
I expected AHW to indicate if telehealth was inappropriate. That never happened. Telehealth replaced in-person care, & no one recognized 3 days without eating required urgent evaluation, despite notes saying Egon should eat by Tues.
Thurs, Recpst stated the vet wants to know if I can "give gabapentin orally? otherwise we would have to sedate him to examine". I stated I didn't want to sedate unnecessarily. The Recpst recorded this as "She does not want to bring him in." I never said that. I explained Egon can't be pilled & ask for transdermal(TD) equivalent. I called again & requested compounded TD Gabapentin(GBP) from my pharmacy. This call wasn't documented, leading Kline to believe I refused GBP. The Recpst called & told me to use an appetite stimulant I already had. When I asked about pain control, the Recpst, without consulting the vet, falsely claimed GBP was only being recommended as an appetite stimulant, not for pain, & that TD GBP does not exist. She falsely recorded that Egon was drinking. Kline later said she meant liquid.
Fri. AM, I reported Egon was still not eating & was yelping in pain. I explained I can't drive due to disability & that if an appt was needed, I'd need time to arrange a ride. I requested TD pain meds for pickup. The office mgr only recorded "Not doing well after full mouth extractions." Without calling me, Kline created an estimate for an esophageal feeding tube surgery. She tried to notify me of her short surgery window, but dialed the wrong number. Records confirm she didn't call me or the 2 emergency contacts on file. She made no further attempts & didn't instruct staff to try again.
Around 3 PM, I called about the meds. Kline finally answered & said TD pain med was only available in-office & offered for me to bring Egon in to "attempt to re-apply Zorbium without sedation"--through the cage, without checking his mouth. She then offered GBP, suggesting I "could squirt it in his mouth if he hissed at" me. She explained hepatic lipidosis risk & said he needed an e-tube surgery, yet she was still willing to dispense meds without an exam, diagnosis, or VCPR.
She asked if I could manage the tube at home. I said I wasn't sure, but she provided no alternative, so I agreed. It was too late for her to perform the surgery, so she attempted to refer it to Carolina Vet. Specialists (CVS). I never knew McLeod was not supervising Egon's care.
Thank God, CVS refused to place the e-tube. It would've aggravated Egon's already severe inflammation & would've been impossible for me to manage. Egon was admitted to the ICU at CVS, where he received a nasal feeding tube. He later had wound dehiscence & required a 2nd ICU stay. I believe the delay between my first report of anorexia & the start of proper hydration, nutrition & IV meds left Egon severely weakened. His recovery took 18 days instead of the expected 5.
