Veterinary Telemedicine Terms & Conditions

1. Nature of Teleconsultation

PetMitra provides a digital platform to facilitate veterinary consultations, communication, appointment booking, and related pet-care services. Teleconsultation is subject to the limitations of remote assessment and the professional judgment of the consulting veterinarian.

A teleconsultation may not replace a physical examination, diagnostic testing, emergency treatment, or hospitalization where clinically necessary.

2. Responsibility of the Pet Owner

The pet owner or their duly authorized representative is responsible for:

• Providing complete and accurate information regarding the animal's symptoms, medical history, vaccination status, allergies, existing medicines, and previous treatment.
• Sharing genuine and relevant reports, photographs, videos, and diagnostic records.
• Following the veterinarian's lawful and clinically appropriate instructions, including dosage, route, frequency, duration, precautions, and follow-up advice.
• Administering medicines correctly, or arranging administration by a suitably qualified person where required.
• Monitoring the animal after treatment and promptly reporting adverse reactions, deterioration, or lack of improvement.
• Arranging an in-person veterinary examination, diagnostic investigation, or emergency treatment when advised or when the animal's condition requires it.

The owner remains responsible for decisions and actions within their control. However, this clause does not remove the veterinarian's professional duties or any liability imposed by applicable law.

3. Veterinarian's Professional Responsibility

The consulting veterinarian is responsible for exercising independent professional judgment within their qualifications, registration, authorized scope of practice, and applicable law.

The veterinarian is responsible for the clinical decisions they personally make, including assessment, diagnosis where possible, treatment recommendations, prescriptions, referrals, and warnings about material risks.

A remote consultation may be limited by the information available and the inability to perform a physical examination. The veterinarian should explain relevant limitations and recommend an in-person examination or referral when clinically indicated.

PetMitra does not authorize any veterinarian to act outside applicable professional requirements. Nothing in these Terms excludes liability for professional negligence, misconduct, or breach of a legal duty where established under applicable law.

4. Medicine Prescription Policy

• A prescription, where legally permitted and clinically appropriate, must be issued by the responsible veterinarian in their own professional capacity.
• The prescription must identify the prescribing veterinarian and contain the applicable professional registration details and other information required by law.
• The veterinarian independently determines whether a medicine can appropriately be prescribed through teleconsultation or whether physical examination, testing, or referral is necessary.
• PetMitra's platform, administrative personnel, customer-support staff, paravets, groomers, and other non-prescribing personnel must not independently diagnose, prescribe, or alter a veterinary prescription unless specifically authorized by applicable law and acting within their lawful scope.
• No employee or staff member may change the prescribed drug, strength, dose, route, frequency, or duration without lawful authorization from the responsible prescribing professional.
• Medicines requiring a prescription must be supplied only through legally authorized channels and after the required prescription and dispensing checks.
• The owner must not start, stop, increase, decrease, substitute, or share a prescribed medicine contrary to the veterinarian's instructions, except where emergency action is required and directed by an appropriate veterinary professional.

5. Staff and Platform Responsibilities

PetMitra staff may assist with appointment coordination, record management, customer support, payment processing, and communication within their assigned duties.

Staff members must not represent administrative information as a veterinary diagnosis or prescription. Any clinical instruction must be attributable to the responsible authorized veterinary professional.

PetMitra is not automatically responsible for every independent clinical decision made by a veterinarian or every act of an independent third-party provider. Responsibility will depend on the person's role, the services undertaken, the facts of the incident, and applicable law.

Nothing in this section excludes PetMitra's own legal obligations or liability for its own acts, omissions, representations, data handling, or other responsibilities where applicable.

6. Emergency Conditions and Referral

Teleconsultation must not delay emergency veterinary care. If the animal has severe breathing difficulty, collapse, uncontrolled bleeding, seizures, suspected poisoning, severe trauma, inability to urinate, or another potentially life-threatening condition, the owner should seek immediate in-person veterinary care.

Where the veterinarian considers a physical examination, diagnostic testing, hospitalization, or referral necessary, the owner should arrange it promptly. Remote advice cannot guarantee a particular outcome or replace urgent hands-on treatment.

7. Treatment Outcomes and Risks

Veterinary treatment outcomes depend on multiple factors, including the animal's condition, disease severity, timely presentation, available diagnostic information, treatment compliance, and individual response.

PetMitra and the treating veterinarian do not guarantee recovery or a particular clinical outcome. However, the absence of a guaranteed outcome does not excuse a failure to meet applicable professional or legal standards.

8. Owner Consent and Acknowledgment

Before starting a teleconsultation, the owner or authorized representative must confirm that:

• They are authorized to seek care for the animal.
• The information provided is accurate to the best of their knowledge.
• They understand the limitations of remote veterinary assessment.
• They will follow appropriate treatment, monitoring, and referral instructions.
• They understand that medicines may be prescribed only when considered appropriate by an authorized veterinarian and permitted by law.

9. Limitation of Liability

To the extent permitted by applicable law, each party is responsible for its own acts and omissions and for duties assigned to it by law or contract.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or restricts liability for fraud, wilful misconduct, professional negligence, or any liability or consumer right that cannot lawfully be excluded or restricted.

A dispute concerning a consultation, prescription, medicine supply, staff conduct, or platform service will be assessed according to the facts, the responsibilities of the parties, and applicable law.

10. Acceptance

By booking or proceeding with a PetMitra teleconsultation, the pet owner or authorized representative confirms that they have read and understood these Terms and consent to the use of teleconsultation subject to the limitations described above.