Bringing our Dogtors to healthcare settings to improve the mental and emotional well-being of our healthcare workers, patients and caregivers

Dogtors on Call

What is Dogtors on Call?

A programme that brings our canine teams into healthcare facilities to interact and participate in activities together with staff or patients with the aim of bringing joy, and reducing stress, anxiety, and loneliness

Why Dogtors on Call?

Our Dogtors on Call programme can help to:

Improve perceptions of your healthcare facilities
Improve patient emotional welfare, wellbeing, and overall patient experience, which may then lead to better rate of physical recovery
Enhance wellbeing of staff and patient’s caregivers
Complement existing services with a non-pharmacological, science-based programme

Our hygiene and infection control measures

At The Dogtors, we take a proactive approach to managing infection risks. Therefore, the majority of our infection control procedures stipulate measures for safeguarding the health of our handlers and their dogs before the day of the AAI session itself. Our hygiene and infection control protocols are updated regularly, and in compliance with international guidelines on animals in healthcare facilities e.g. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA).

These measures include:

Washing clients’ hands with soap and water/sanitizer before and after session
Abiding by existing COVID-19 safety measures
Ensuring all dog handlers are vaccinated against COVID-19

To minimise the risk of zoonoses transmission, we:

Exclude dogs on raw meat diets from our programme
Discourage dogs licking beneficiaries
Discourage beneficiaries from touching the noses and mouth of dogs
Prevent dogs from entering toilets and food preparation areas

our dogtors can come and visit

During health or well-being day sessions

As part of your team-building activities

As part of a mental health initiative

During a transitional period or organisational change

After a difficult situation that your team has experienced

Duration

You may book a session for up to 60 minutes.

Price

Please reach out to us at woof@thedogtors.sg for more information on our pricing structure.

FAQS

Are there any patients who are not suitable for this programme?

To protect the wellbeing of patients, the recommended exclusion criteria is as follows:

Tuberculosis
Fear of dogs
Immunosuppressed
Uncovered open wounds
Hepatitis
Salmonella
Fever of unknown origin
Communicable virus
Staphylococcus aureus

What if a person is allergic to dogs?

Our activities would take place in a common area, which may be indoors or outdoors. Individuals allergic to dogs are not encouraged to participate in our programme. However, we have had participants with allergies take an antihistamine prior to the start of the session.

Will your dogs make a mess of the place?

Prior to each session, the dogs will be walked, and relieved. Handlers will also observe their dogs to see if they require a toilet break during the session. Furthermore, the dogs are showered not more than 24 hours prior to each session, and are up to date on their vaccinations and parasite prevention treatments.

Can you meet our company’s requirements for each session?

Once we receive your request for a session, we will get in touch with you to discuss the details, such as the venue, number of participants and any other special requests.

more programmes