THE North East’s biggest veterinary group is set for a huge expansion following £100,000 of investment to improve facilities at its Newcastle hospital.
Westway Veterinary Group on West Road, Newcastle upon Tyne, has taken over the neighbouring newsagents and convenience store to expand its main branch so it can accommodate more patients.
The expansion will see the number of consult rooms increase from five to eight and create a new x-ray room at the practice, which is a Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) hospital.
Building work starts this month and is expected to be completed by the end of May.
Westway has 21 branches across the North East, from Wideopen to Darlington and is part of VetPartners, owners of some of the UK’s most respected veterinary practices.
Managing Director Jason Atherton said: “We deal with emergencies from all over the North East and having extra space will be invaluable to the service we provide and the training we offer to our vets and nurses.
“Extra diagnostic space will allow us to have a second x-ray room, as well as enable us to provide more nurse clinics, including our new Prime of Life clinics, which gives clients specific care and support for elderly cats and dogs.”
One of the new consult rooms will be large enough to be equipped with sound and video, enabling the practice to record consults for veterinary training and mentoring of young vets.
Space will also be created for future investment in a CT scanning service, three-dimensional, diagnostic images of animal anatomy.
The £100,000 investment to rent the neighbouring premises and revamp the building is the latest round of significant investment by Westway.
Three years ago, they took over half of the neighbouring shop to create a cat-only waiting room to make it less stressful for feline patients as they are segregated from dogs.
They then built a £100,000 state-of-the-art cat unit in 2016, with operating theatre and facilities specially designed for cats in a separate wing of the hospital.
Expansion continued when they then opened a new branch surgery in Whitley Bay later in the year.
Mr Atherton added: “Taking over the rest of the shop will not only expand the services we are able to provide here at Westway but also gives us the opportunity for further investment.
“We want to ensure we provide the best available care and great services for clients and their pets.”