Dr. Cindy Bressler, longtime Hamptons and New York City house-call veterinarian, will open the first-of-its-kind emergency all night veterinary hospital in the Hamptons, WAVE Center for Veterinary Emergencies.
“In all the years I have been a house-call vet here in the Hamptons, we have had to transport pets in dire situations at night to the closest emergency hospitals an hour or two away for full-scale treatment, and very often pets don’t make it in time,” said Dr. Bressler. “Opening this clinic will bring emergency care home, and with it, greater chances of survival.”
Dr. Bressler has provided on-call availability and emergency care for pet owners in the Hamptons since 2003, but often cannot cover all aspects of emergencies on her own. This endeavor will bring vital resources to a local site, allowing Dr. Bressler and her team to address emergency cases fully, and quickly to stabilize more specialized cases for transfers to larger emergency facilities when necessary.
The hospital will be staffed with emergency doctors and ICU nurses.
“In busy summer seasons, the lack of a local emergency hospital was often tragic and eliminating the need for patient transfers could have changed the entire story,” said Dr. Bressler. “Many more lives can be saved now.” The pandemic has further exacerbated this necessity. Dr. Bressler added, “The Hamptons are known to offer a wealth of amenities, but in an era of pet abundance fueled by Covid, our residents and visitors can’t go another summer without an immediate emergency night vet hospital.”
We spoke with Dr. Bressler to learn more about the WAVE Center.
Tell us about your background as a veterinarian. What inspired you to be a vet and what brought you to this point?
I always wanted to be a Veterinarian since I was young and wanted help any animal who was sick. I accomplished my dream graduating from Veterinary school in 1994. I completed a residency in internal medicine and rotated through emergency so I could be the best doctor that I could be. After years of working in specialty hospitals I started a house call emergency practice in the Hamptons. I have worked all night for 20 years treating animals while the local clinics were closed. Despite the work I have done and the lives we have saved there were still many animals who didn’t make it all the way to Riverhead or Islip because it was too far away. We have always needed a Pet ER out here. Everyone talks about it but when their pets are no longer ill they move on and don’t think about it anymore. I decided to open it this summer to finally fulfill this need.
Tell us more about WAVE Center.
The wave center stands for Wellness and Veterinary Emergencies (WAVE). We are also proud to be opening the East Ends first Wellness Center for Pets. It will be a beautiful facility with a spa-like atmosphere offering unique wellness services. At night it will become an Emergency Room. This summer we will be providing at home wellness services as house calls.
We also have a private membership for more personalized services. Benefits include priority appointments and ER services. Priority booking for wellness services and 24-hour pharmacy services as well.
Talk a little about phase 1 and 2 of your opening.
We are building a wellness center with an overnight pet ER. It will be a beautiful building. Since that was not going to be ready for this summer we decided to open a pop up clinic in an already existing veterinary hospital since they close at 4 PM. We are proud to be working out of the South Fork Animal Hospital this summer. Dr. Mark Davis was instrumental in getting this started. He is allowing us to rent his hospital for the evenings. He has always thought of starting an emergency clinic as well over the years. We are happy to be working out of his Wainscott hospital.
How has Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated the necessity for all-night emergency pet care in the Hamptons?
There are so many pets in the Hamptons since Covid. This includes all types of animals. Everyone was getting dogs, cats, other small pets, even chickens. We are happy to help any and all animals in need. We will be working with ARF, the Turtle Rescue, Wildlife Rescue and the towns of East Hampton and Southampton to help everyone.
Tell us a little about the patient experience at WAVE Center. What can be expected?
Our goal is to create a relaxing and calm emergency room because we know how stressful it can be when your pet is sick. Our new Wave Center will be designed for this. This summer we hope to help the clients get through an often difficult time and to keep them informed of everything that is going on with their pets at all times. We don’t want them to be sitting in the parking lot waiting and wondering what is happening. Please call 631-892-9283 (WAVE) before arrival.
WAVE Center for Veterinary Emergencies is located at 340 Montauk Highway in Wainscott. The emergency team can be reached at 631-892-WAVE (9283).