My Top 10 Regrets After 20 Years In PracticeMay 1, 2015Originally published in the April 2015 issue of Veterinary Practice News This May, my 1995 colleagues and I celebrate 20 years of degree-wielding, oath-toting veterinary professional wonderfulness. We have survived. And we are all awesomer for it. But that doesn’t mean we don’t have any regrets. We all have regrets. Those who say they don’t are either inhuman or belong to the category of people who find it emotionally expedient to ignore certain words’ definitions. For my part, I relish regrets –– well, sort of. Ruminating over life’s disappointments and missed chances may not be fun, but it sure does make the future run a whole lot more smoothly –– that is, if you do it right. With that last bit in mind I offer you here a rundown of my top 10 biggest regrets. No. 1. Not undertaking an internship Sure, I made do as a trialed-by-fire newbie. But it wasn’t always pretty. Mentorship via technician (no matter how experienced) simply isn’t appropriate –– much less in an ER setting with no veterinary ground control for guidance. There’s no doubt my transition into private practice would have gone more smoothly had I either. But there’s more to this issue …
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How to Cultivate a Healthy Office Culture in Your PracticeApril 27, 2015While unlocking the back door of your hospital on Friday morning, your mind is full of good thoughts. For example, like how fortunate you are to have the luxury of taking every Thursday off to focus on yourself and get recharged. Although there have certainly been times of friction among the staff in the past, that's history now, and everyone is getting along happily and enjoying their work and each other. As usual, you like to arrive a little early to review a few records, take a look at the appointments and generally begin the day a step ahead of the pack. Right away you notice the impressive number of pets seen on your off day. And there's even a "Thank You" note on your desk from a client expressing her gratitude for the great service she experienced yesterday. Then as others start to arrive in plenty of time to get prepared for the day, you sense a feeling of teamwork in action while they chatter and share funny stories from their lives and somehow manage to form a plan of action for the day. You probably would not use the term "healthy office culture," but you know that attitudes …
Are You Making These Two Mistakes and Costing Your Clinic Thousands?April 24, 2015Originally published in the March 2015 issue of Veterinary Practice News? Not a subscriber? Subscribe today! Did you know that 77 percent of pet owners would buy products that you recommend?1 Too often, veterinary teams overlook opportunities for preventive care. Here are two common mistakes, the potential income loss and how to fix them. Mistake 1: Failure to Make Overdue Reminder Calls When patients don’t get regular checkups, doctors miss opportunities to diagnose other health problems that are frequently identified during routine exams, such as dentistry, obesity, arthritis and ear infections. Potential income loss: $308,238 How to fix: On Monday mornings, managers should give receptionists a list of clients to call with pets that are overdue for preventive care. At the end of the week, receptionists will turn in completed lists. Don’t overwhelm staff with reams of people to call. Let’s say you give each receptionist 25 calls to make, and she has the workweek to complete the task. That’s only five calls per day—completely manageable! Your greatest success will be with patients that have just fallen into the third reminder cycle and are only three weeks overdue. Proper etiquette is to call clients between 8 a.m. …
Free & Fair Competition?April 17, 2015Originally published in the March 2015 issue of Veterinary Practice News? Not a subscriber? Subscribe today! I became a practice owner last October. As I’ve confessed on this back page before, I came to this decision only reluctantly, knowing as I did that practice ownership would demand a considerable lifestyle change –– temporarily, at least. Several months in I’m finally starting to feel the ground back under my feet. That’s in no small part because I made the considered decision to take on my practice manager as a business partner. After all the you-this-me-that back-and-forthing and the stressful sign-on-the-dotted line, not to mention the drain on every last bit of financial reserve I held dear, I can finally say it’s the one decision that's kept me halfway sane over the past 10 months. Indeed, her unwavering awesomeness probably explains why I did a double-take when at a recent party a colleague inquired whether I had concerns about “getting into bed” with a non-veterinarian. I could have done without the unwelcome insinuation that there’s something dirty about co-owning a practice with someone who doesn’t possess a veterinary degree. But what really impressed me was that the legality or …
How You Can Build Client Relationships with Social MediaApril 10, 2015Social media. Whether it’s Facebook, Twitter or any of the many social media platforms, people (including your clients) are using them to interact with their friends and family about their daily lives, including their pets. How can your veterinary practice start using social media to interact with existing clients and develop new client relationships? Reasons to Use Social Media to Build Relationships According to Forbes, whether it’s the medical, financial and automotive industries, more and more companies are using social media to let people “share their story” and gain feedback from their customers. This helps them better understand their customers. When it comes to building relationships with clients, Diane Rayfield, founder of Chicago, Ill.-based full-service social media agency Harp Social, explained that social media is the perfect tool to accomplish this. “If a vet office or an animal hospital was to use social media, there would be different benefits they could gain from that,” Rayfield said. “One would be to develop relationships with their current clientele as well as gain awareness with new or potential audiences. They can also gain trust and authority using social media.” While there are numerous social media platforms, …
Is Your Office Culture Negatively Affecting Your Well-Being?April 8, 2015Most of us spend the bulk of our waking hours at work. So, it’s important that we feel respected, supported and appreciated in our work environment. However, numerous studies show that’s not the case for the majority of employees in today’s workforce. Work-related stress can be a significant cause of mental and physical illness. And, it’s linked to costly problems like absenteeism and employee turnover. Veterinarians in practice are expected to excel in an incredible array of stressful demands. Demands that begin with educational standards prior to admission to a veterinary college, which continue to escalate throughout multiple years of medical training and then mushroom with entrance into the profession. Finally, we have begun to recognize the reality of potential effects of high-stress levels veterinarians face by juggling a variety of non-negotiable responsibilities. For example: Maintaining up-to-date knowledge of a broad variety of medical knowledge across multiple species; Keeping clients happy; Dealing with conflicting ethical issues; Hiring, training and maintaining a highly qualified staff. Sadly, tragic consequences for several well-known colleagues have resulted in numerous studies and articles focusing on mental health issues experienced by a large number of veterinarians. Terms we see in …
The 2015 "They Ate What?!" Radiograph Contest Now Accepting Entries!March 26, 2015Entries are being accepted for Veterinary Practice News' 10th annual radiograph contest, "They Ate WHAT?" Pet health insurer Trupanion of Seattle is sponsoring the contest. The top three winners will be awarded cash prizes. First prize is $1,500; second prize, $1,000; third prize, $500. Shawn Messonnier, DVM, Paws & Claws Animal Hospital, Plano, Texas Kermit the frog was the 2014 "They Ate What?!" Radiograph Contest winner. More than 30 small ornamental rocks were found inside Kermit, but were removed without complications. Entries must be submitted electronically by June 30. Clinics that don't have digital radiography may submit digital photos of their qualifying films. Email radiographs to VPNeditor@luminamedia.com or use our online submission form. The submission must include the submitter's name, clinic address, a telephone number and a short explanation of the case, including outcome. Photographs of the pet and removed items may also be sent, as in the case of last year's third-place winner, the dog that ate 43 ½ socks. The photo of the socks paired nicely with the X-ray. Entries become the property of Lumina Media, the parent company of Veterinary Practice News, which reserves the right to use …
Try to Look at Dentistry From the Client’s SideMarch 11, 2015Originally published in the February 2015 issue of Veterinary Practice News Imagine you’re a dog owner and visit the veterinarian for your dog’s annual checkup. You spend $208 for an exam, vaccines and diagnostic tests.1 During the exam, the doctor diagnoses your dog with grade 2 dental disease and recommends treatment. A technician gives you an estimate for $427.1 You’re facing a total of $635 in veterinary care—when you assumed your dog just needed an exam, vaccines and heartworm/tick and intestinal parasite tests. Not surprisingly, 34 percent of pet owners say their veterinary bills are higher than they expected, according to the Bayer Veterinary Care Usage Study.2 Veterinarians often diagnose dental disease during routine exams because 80 percent of dogs and 70 percent of cats age 3 and older have dental disease, according to the American Veterinary Dental Society.3 Your team’s ability to confidently explain the dental diagnosis, treatment and fees will determine whether pets get needed medical care. To take a fresh approach to client communication, look at dentistry from the client’s side of the exam table. Here are common client reactions when hearing dental recommendations and how to respond: “Sure, my pet has bad breath. That’s normal.” Teach pet owners …
7 Things That Will Kill Your Employee's MotivationMarch 9, 2015Almost every new employee brings a high degree of motivation to: Be the best they can be Contribute to your practice Learn new skills Get along with other employees Remain with your practice for the long haul “I Love My Job.” The challenge for practice leaders is to build on that initial motivation, and to create an environment where motivation grows deeper. Eventually, a sense of motivation can blossom into an attitude of loyalty and commitment. This reminds me of a scene at the altar of a wedding I once heard about. When the groom started patting his pockets as though looking for something, his best man asked, “Did you forget the ring?” The groom worriedly answered, “No, I think I’ve lost my enthusiasm.” Looking back on 36 years of leadership in veterinary practices makes me wish I had researched and written this article many years ago. No, I didn’t make all the mistakes all the time, but my leadership could have been better, especially in the area of keeping team members motivated. A lot gets written about how to motivate employees. But what about the flip side; things that kill motivation like weeds choke out a vegetable garden? Killer …
The Biggest Winners and Losers of 2014March 6, 2015Originally published in the January 2015 issue of Veterinary Practice News Dear colleagues, we are gathered here today to bid farewell to yet another banner year of paddling about in this fish pond we call the veterinary profession. And what a year it was! As you look around the room, you’ll see plenty of clients, friends, co-workers, classmates, competitors, mentors, instructors, researchers, drug reps, supply vendors, pharma execs, industry leaders and maybe even journalists who have influenced your professional lives over these past 12 months. While the memory of most may bring a tear of remembrance to your eye or a broad smile of appreciation to your lips, some are more likely to elicit a sigh or a scowl as you recall their missteps—political, practical, scientific, economic, ethical or otherwise. To be sure, every year has its host of winners and losers, most of whom we’d rather ignore, so intent on treading pond water as we are. But as I scan the room from atop the bully-est pulpit my 4-inch heels will afford, I find it difficult to withhold my own assessment of the landscape (no surprise there). To that end, here’s my take on the best and worst of …
