| Complaint: | Complaint 21-44 |
|---|---|
| Respondent: | Brian Serbin |
| Premises: | Ingleside Animal Hospital |
The complainant says that his dog was seen at Ingleside and given a new dose of Proheart (a heartworm medication) months before the next dose was due. His other dog, meanwhile, was told he was due but then told on the way to the appointment that he actually wasn't. We're told that he has had similar problems regarding missed notifications for his other pets. He states his concern for pets getting medications when they don't need it or not getting medications when they do; he notes that while he was refunded for the erroneous Proheart injection, he was not refunded for the unnecessary heartworm test the clinic also ran.
Serbin's response states that the dog in question was actually in fact overdue for a heartworm check following the guidelines of the American Heartworm Society. He also reports that he doesn't know why the dog was given a Proheart injection too early; he spoke with the veterinarian responsible (Hewitt, last seen in 19-48) and it appears she didn't read the previous dose in the record. They called up Zoetis, the manufacturer, and were told it was going to be fine, so it was fine. He also says the complainant wasn't alerted about reminders for his other dogs because he opted out of email reminders; as he opted out of email reminders and had an email address on file, it also meant that he wouldn't get any notifications about his pets. (One wonders if he opted out of reminders to avoid spam and the ALLYDVM software doesn't see a difference between spam and necessary medical reminders.) He doesn't appear to address the allegation that a different dog was told he was due and then advised on the way to the appointment that he wasn't; that would certainly seem to be a bigger deal than an email reminder?
The Investigative Committee says that there were some technical issues with the practice management software. They also said that the clinic tried to make it right when they gave a dog a shot he didn't need, so it was okay, and the dog needed the heartworm test so it was also okay. They didn't feel that any of this rose to the level of a violation and the Board didn't feel it needed to send a letter of concern or anything like that.
Brian Serbin is both a Past President of the Arizona Veterinary Medical Association and a former Arizona State Veterinary Medical Examining Board chair later on; in fact, at the same time he was the AzVMA President (2008-2009) it looks like he was also on the Investigative Committee for the Board. Now that's regulatory capture right there. In addition to running Ingleside Animal Hospital he seem like he has some other stuff going on, notably working as an advisor for Trupanion Pet Insurance.
Serbin's also mentioned in another complaint about his clinic, 19-48. When asked by a complainant for a refund, he allegedly told her that "you came for an opinion and you got one."
| Source: | April 4, 2021 PM Investigative Committee Meeting |
|---|---|
| People: | |
| Brian Serbin | Respondent |
| Roll Call: | |
| Adam Almaraz | Aye |
| Amrit Rai | Aye |
| Brian Sidaway | Aye |
| Cameron Dow | Aye |
| Result: | Passed |
| Source: | May 5, 2021 Board Meeting |
|---|---|
| Proposed By: | Nikki Frost |
| Seconded By: | Jessica Creager |
| Roll Call: | |
| Darren Wright | Aye |
| J Greg Byrne | Aye |
| Jane Soloman | Aye |
| Jessica Creager | Aye |
| Jim Loughead | Aye |
| Nikki Frost | Aye |
| Robyn Jaynes | Aye |
| Sarah Heinrich | Absent |
| Result: | Passed |
The primary source for the above summary was obtained as a public record from the Arizona State Veterinary Medical Examining Board. You are welcome to review the original records and board meeting minutes by clicking the relevant links. While we endeavor to provide an accurate summary of the complaint, response, investigative reports and board actions, we encourage you to review the primary sources and come to your own conclusions. In some cases we have also been able to reach out to individuals with knowledge of specific complaints, and where possible that information will be included here.