Commerce Bank Founder Named Chairman Of PetplanApril 17, 2009 Petplan USA, a pet health insurance provider based in Philadelphia, has named Vernon Hill II as its chairman of the board. Hill, founder of Commerce Bank, has been tied to the veterinary profession since 2005 when he donated $10 million to the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine. In related news, the Vernon and Shirley Hill Foundation recently funded the Penn Vet World Awards, which was designed to recognize innovation, creativity and leadership in the veterinary profession worldwide. The first awards ceremony took place in April. <HOME>
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WVC Installs New PresidentApril 17, 2009 Ann Johnson, DVM, Dipl. ACVS, an orthopedic surgeon and educator, has been elected president of the Western Veterinary Conference for 2008-2009 and was installed at the February conference in Las Vegas. This is the first time in WVC’s 80-year history that a woman has taken the helm. Dr. Johnson has served as recorder, regent, president and chair of the Board of Regents for the American College of Veterinary Surgeons and is the ACVS Residency Program Facilitator. She is a member of the American Veterinary Medical Assn., Illinois State Veterinary Medical Assn., AO Vet (an international surgical specialty organization) and the Veterinary Orthopedic Society. <HOME>
Eklin Names VPs Of Worldwide Sales, Corporate CommunicationsApril 17, 2009 Eklin Medical Systems of Santa Clara, Calif., has named Robert Royea vice president of worldwide sales. He has 25 years of sales and marketing management and operational experience and has held senior executive positions with medical device and PACS companies such as Acuson, AGFA Healthcare and Siemens Medical Systems. Eklin also named Laurie Hallwyler vice president of corporate communications. Hallwyler, who has consulted with Eklin for several years, has more than 25 years experience in corporate and marketing communications with extensive experience in health care. <HOME>
Vsurance Names New PresidentApril 17, 2009 Lile has founded various insurance providers and administrators such as Advanced Insurance Group; Advance Insurance Administration; Physicians Medical Review; Employers Choice Health Alliance; Equity RE; Med RX; and Risk Management Solutions. He previously served as president of Arkansas-based Cosmopolitan Life Insurance Co. <HOME>
In Search Of SelfApril 17, 2009The events of Sept. 11, 2001, were a turning point for America, and for thousands of Americans. J. Brooks Slaughter II, DVM, was one of them. Dr. Slaughter watched from his Lutherville, Md., office as the World Trade Center in New York City was targeted by terrorists who brought down the corporate headquarters of financial services firm Morgan Stanley, where he was a securities principal and first vice president. “I had, in a 15-year career, achieved a lofty perch in the industry,” he writes on his website. But the attacks “made me realize it was time for a more loving way to make a living.” “I saw the buildings collapse while watching CNBC,” he says. “Glued to the station, which appeared in a corner on my computer monitor, I immediately started calling clients. I needed to inform them of the news, and assuage any fears that their assets would disappear. I was managing over $20 million. “On the other line was a long-term client who expressed dismay and anger that I was unable to process her mortgage paperwork due to the collapse the towers. I realized it was the beginning of the end for my love of the securities industry.” …
Making A Difference Through Pet Poison ControlApril 17, 2009Who knew that an elephant could drink a gallon of paint and survive the experience none the worse for wear? Steven R. Hansen, DVM, Dipl. ABVT, head of the ASPCA's Animal Poison Control Center, knew. Luckily the paint was lead free and the only damage was cosmetic; elephants are not the tidiest imbibers of liquid refreshment. "The elephant was really a mess," Dr. Hansen recalls. While the tale of the painted pachyderm ended happily, it began with the same urgency and concern as most of the several thousand calls that pour into the center annually. Typically, it's the curious Labrador that gulps human prescription medication or the cat that chews the Easter lilies, a deadly snack if the animal is left untreated. The historic flood of calls during last year's pet-food recall was unusually mammoth, but still there was a universal urgency to each: What should I do? Calmly but quickly responding to each and every one with expert advise is what Hansen's team of veterinary toxicologists do 24/7 from their offices on the campus of the University of Illinois, Champagne-Urbana, and was the sort of work for which Hansen was honored in February at the annual Show Dogs Awards. …
Challenging The Status QuoApril 17, 2009Originally published in the November 2007 issue of Veterinary Practice News After struggling with an especially unmanageable case of diabetes mellitus in her own cat for almost a year and hearing euthanasia recommended by colleagues, Elizabeth Hodgkins, DVM, went back to the drawing board. It was 1994 and she had left her position as vice president of marketing at Hill’s Pet Nutrition to start law school. She began studying ingredients on the label of dry food she had been feeding the 4-year-old cat. What she discovered not only cured her Punkin of diabetes in five days but also led to her patenting a canned food for diabetic cats and developing her “Tight Regulation” protocol, which she says has permanently cured several hundred diabetics in her feline practice. Spreading the Word In her new book, “Your Cat: Simple New Secrets to a Longer, Stronger Life” (Thomas Dunne Books, 2007), Hodgkins shares her rationale and offers case studies from her Yorba Linda, Calif., practice, All About Cats Health Center. She also explains the history and influence of the pet food industry to help readers understand why today’s cats are being fed dry food, which she firmly believes is causing a multitude of …
A Model For Researchers In Veterinary MedicineApril 17, 2009While in graduate school, Janice Miller, DVM, of Ames, Iowa, found the virus that causes bovine leukemia, and that discovery set the tone for her whole veterinary career. "At that point in time, a lot of people thought that it was going to be found that all cancers were caused by viruses," she says. "Of course that didn't turn out to be true. But we're talking about almost 50 years ago." After gaining a reputation for finding the virus, Miller got a job at the National Animal Disease Center in Ames. As a federal research laboratory working strictly on diseases of food-producing animals, it had a project on bovine leukemia, so Miller fit right in. "I was really fortunate that I got a job where I spent my whole career doing nothing but research, because that's what I always wanted to do," Miller says. Miller says working in research keeps her very busy. "You're doing literature searches to find out what's known about a subject, you're planning the research that you're going to do to try to answer a question that hasn't been answered, and you're involved in working out techniques to solve that problem," she says. "Usually you've got …
A Pioneer In Animal Rehab EducationApril 17, 2009 Six years ago, Janet Van Dyke, DVM, packed all her surgical tools into a big blue Rubbermaid plastic tub. Best to keep them handy, she thought. This new idea about starting a canine physical rehabilitation business might be the biggest stumble of her career. “I gave myself six months’ sabbatical to try and make this thing happen,” she says. She needn’t have worried. Today the Canine Rehabilitation Institute Dr. Van Dyke founded in Wellington, Fla., is a thriving business with a second facility opening this spring on the campus of Colorado State University in Fort Collins. The institute has certificated about 100 students, attracted an impressive roster of physical therapists and veterinarians to teach its courses and become a model provider of animal rehabilitation certification–even as the veterinary community works to create a governing body to oversee the certification of this emerging specialty. And if there’s one sure sign that a trend is sticking, it’s the arrival of healthy competition in the form of similar certification programs, which Van Dyke welcomes. “A little competition forces us to stay on our toes and do the best that we can do,” Van Dyke says. Competition has …
Financial Newswire 04-30-2008April 17, 2009VCA Antech Inc. Los Angeles-based VCA Antech Inc. recently reported that its animal hospital revenue for the first quarter ending March 31 was $226.1 million, compared to revenue of $187.2 million in the year-ago period. The 20.8 percent increase was driven by acquisitions and same-store revenue growth of 1.9 percent. The company reported laboratory revenue of $76.7 million for the first quarter, compared to $73.6 million in the year-ago period. Medical technology revenue was $13.8 million for the first quarter, compared to $11.2 million in the year-ago period. Overall, VCA Antech reported net income of $31.2 million on revenue of $307.8 million for the first quarter, compared to net income of $28.3 million on revenue of $265.1 million in the year-ago period. The company’s 2008 financial guidance includes revenue from $1.3 billion to $1.33 billion. Eli Lilly and Company Eli Lilly and Co.’s animal health division reported U.S. sales of $107.6 million for its first quarter ended March 31, up 16 percent compared to the year-ago period. Worldwide sales were $235.3 million, an increase of 9 percent compared to the year-ago period. Sales outside the United States grew 4 percent to $127.7 million. …
