Western Australian Consolidated Acts

VETERINARY SURGEONS ACT 1960 - SECT 2

2 .         Interpretation

                In this Act unless the context requires otherwise — 

        animal includes bird and reptile;

        Board means the Veterinary Surgeons’ Board constituted under this Act;

        diploma means any diploma, certificate, or other document granted by any college, corporation or other body that is recognized for the time being by the Board;

        member means — 

            (a)         in relation to the Board, a member of the Board; and

            (b)         in relation to a body corporate, a shareholder or a director or a person in accordance with whose directions or instructions the affairs of the body corporate are customarily conducted;

        practise , in relation to veterinary surgery, includes the doing or performing, whether on one occasion or on more than one occasion, of any act, matter, procedure, or thing that is included within the interpretation of the term "veterinary surgery"; and " practice " shall be construed accordingly;

        Register means the Register of Veterinary Surgeons, Western Australia, referred to in section 17;

        registered veterinary surgeon means — 

            (a)         person who is registered as a veterinary surgeon or as an honorary veterinary surgeon under section 17; and

            (b)         a person who holds a certificate of provisional registration as a veterinary surgeon under section 20B;

        Registrar means the Registrar appointed by the Board under this Act;

        veterinary clinic means any premises at which veterinary surgery is practised, but at which animals are not retained overnight;

        veterinary hospital means any premises at which veterinary surgery is practised at which animals receive treatment, nursing care, and other services required for the reception, treatment and care of animals suffering from disease or injury or in need of surgical or medical treatment or assistance;

        veterinary nurse means a person who is authorised to perform prescribed veterinary services pursuant to section 26E;

        veterinary surgery means the art and science of veterinary surgery and veterinary medicine, and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, includes — 

            (a)         the examination of any animal for the purpose of the diagnosis of disease in, or injury to, that animal, or the conduct of tests, whether physiological or pathological, on any animal for diagnostic purposes;

            (b)         the provision of advice based upon diagnosis of disease of, or injury to, any animal;

            (c)         the surgical or medical treatment of any animal;

            (d)         the giving of any anaesthetic to, or the performance of surgical operations on, any animal; and

            (e)         the doing or performing of any act, matter, procedure, or thing that is prescribed pursuant to section 31 as forming part of the practice of veterinary surgery.

        [Section 2 amended by No. 45 of 1977 s. 3; No. 8 of 1984 s. 3; No. 43 of 1988 s. 4; No. 55 of 2004 s. 1276.]