We Should Have Learned These Lessons BeforeMarch 6, 2014 Everyone learned that “What goes up must come down.” Anyone with money in the stock market in late 2008 saw accounts drop seemingly by half almost overnight. Real estate values went down and the banks became unstable. As a result of the economic meltdown, the Gross National Product fell and the unemployment rate rose. All in all, not a good time for most people from 2008 through 2010. The specific numbers are still being crunched, but the veterinary profession was not as affected as most other business sectors. Most veterinarians felt lucky they were not automobile dealers, real estate salespeople, bankers or stock brokers. Were veterinarians hurt? Absolutely, but not to the extent many others were hit. The specific effect depended on your practice location, practice type and your attitude about the recession. In most cases, veterinary practices were somewhat resistant to the recession, although not recession-proof. From various surveys done by AAHA, AVMA and NCVEI, reported gross revenues vary from being up 10-15 percent to being down 25-30 percent. As Dr. Karen Felsted, CEO of NCVEI, has said many times, “Flat is the new up.” Some practices on both coasts of the …
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Marketing 101: Open Letter To New (and Existing) ClientsFebruary 12, 2014Dear Client,* Welcome to our practice. We are thrilled to have the opportunity to serve you and help your pet. Here are a few suggestions to make our relationship as pleasant as possible in the long run. 1. Bring along as many small children as possible. More than three is preferred. If you don't have that many, borrow from your neighbors (look for the most poorly behaved). Make sure they all have juice and crayons, because we love to clean. Also, we encourage them to jump on the furniture, play rough with the hospital cat, and go through our drawers. Our favorite is when they jump up and down on our scale in the waiting room. 2. Do not put your dog on a leash or your cat in a carrier. Just let them loose as soon as you walk in. Our staff enjoys chaos. And our doctor loves stitching up bites wounds. 3. Do not bring any prior health records for your pet. Calling other practices gives us time to catch up with old friends. 4. Insist that we follow your breeder’s recommendations, especially about anesthesia or vaccine protocols. Our schooling …
Business-Interruption Service a Safety NetFebruary 10, 2014 Insurance professionals put business interruption insurance high on the list of coverages a business should have to protect itself from a worst-case scenario like a flood, earthquake, extended power outage or fire. But this insurance is often overlooked by those responsible for managing a company’s risk because it’s either wrongly-believed to be included in a company’s existing policies or it is thought of as unnecessary. It’s a common misunderstanding that funds for rebuilding and compensation for losses are the only key elements to getting a business back up and running after an emergency. When disaster strikes, one of the biggest losses can be the loss of business. Without people coming through the door, losses can mount by the day. When business is interrupted, a company may be faced with closing, laying off or furloughing employees, deferring payments to debtors and hoping its customers return when the company is back on its feet. Or an operation can find and pay for a temporary solution, such as leasing a vacant building to re-establish clinic operations, and bankrolling the lease and extra cost of operating with cash on hand. But those are options for those without
Speak with Confidence in Client ConversationsFebruary 10, 2014 When I dialed a clinic to follow up on a training inquiry, the receptionist answered “ABC Veterinary Hospital. Can you hold?” I replied, “Sure.” While I was on hold for seven minutes, a radio station played AC/DC’s “Shook Me All Night Long.” Although I’m a fan, it’s wildly inappropriate on-hold music for a health-care business. Whether I was a favorite client calling about a sick pet or a phone shopper interested in becoming a client, how I was put on hold was a put-off. Employees’ ability to speak with confidence affects perception of value and client retention and recruitment. The client-service team is your practice’s most valuable business asset, so train employees to project confidence during every conversation. Here’s how. Answer the phone with a smile. Often, greetings are said so quickly that it’s hard for the caller to understand the name of the business or employee. Even though receptionists repeat the greeting hundreds of times each day, it creates a first impression with callers every time. Let callers hear the smile in your voice and eagerness to help. Slow down and enunciate your words rather than sounding like you’ve just finished a triple espresso. …
Word Makeovers can Boost Compliance and Grow RevenueFebruary 10, 2014 While consulting at a practice where dental compliance was 17 percent, I shadowed exams to determine why clients weren’t accepting treatment for their pets. The first exam revealed answers. After the veterinarian explained his diagnosis of grade 3 dental disease, he said, “The girls up front will give you an estimate when you check out.” After the client paid, the receptionist said, “Here’s your dental estimate.” The client left without scheduling the procedure. Extreme Makeover A communication makeover would significantly improve client compliance, patient care and hospital revenue. Taking the practice from its current 17 percent dental compliance to the AAHA benchmark of 38 percent 1 could bring $274,561 in additional revenue over the next 12 months (see Table 1). Five communication shortcomings were the cause in this practice. First, employees used the term “estimate” instead of “treatment plan.” Second, treatment plans were handed to clients without interactive conversations. Third, clients received treatment plans in the public lobby. Would you feel comfortable asking medical or financial questions with an audience? Next, front-desk employees gave clients treatment plans. Technicians, who perform dentistry, would be more skilled …
Scrub in or rub in?January 30, 2014 Dr. John Smith is getting ready for his first surgery of the day. He puts on his cap and mask, adjusts them methodically, and starts to rigorously prepare his hands for surgery. He grabs a brush soaked with chlorhexidine scrub and goes to work, as if it were a ritual: First his fingers, then the palm of each hand, then the back, then his wrists, then his forearms, for a full five minutes, just like he has been doing for the past 15 years as a surgeon. Sounds perfectly acceptable, doesn't it? What Dr. Smith doesn't know is that his surgical scrub routine is actually detrimental to the health of his hands, increases the likelihood of contamination, and puts him at risk of developing occupational dermatitis. Meanwhile, Dr. Denis Verwilghen of Copenhagen, Denmark, is getting ready for his first surgery of the day. He puts on his cap and mask, adjusts them methodically, and starts to rigorously prepare his hands for surgery. He first gently washes his hands with a mild, non-medicated soap, dries them with a non-sterile paper towel, and then meticulously rubs a hydroalcoholic solution on his hands and arms for a couple of minutes — until they are …
Do You Have a Hobby?January 23, 2014One method of coping with compassion fatigue and burnout is having a hobby that you can enjoy outside of work (and even better, away from caregiving). We talk about hobbies when I present these topics to an audience. Typically, when I ask how many people have hobbies, about one-third to one-half of the room raises their hands. Then I follow it with, how many of you spend as much TIME as you would like, doing that hobby? And many hands go down…but it's encouraging to see some stay up in the air! I like to think that I am one of those with my hand up, for the first question at least. I have hobbies, including: Writing … I love to write non-work-related fiction and non-fiction; Painting ... miniatures such as characters in strategy games like The Hobbit with tiny goblins and dwarves; Painting … 3-D pictures of seasonal scenes, such as the changing colors of Autumn or a winter holiday scene; Jewelry making ... especially beads and pretty pendants; Scrapbooking. …
Christmas Gift Ideas For Surgery LoversDecember 3, 2013 Running out of time or ideas to make your surgery-loving colleagues happy? From affordable to higher-priced, here are some suggestions to get you started. For better aseptic technique, individual self-sealing sterilization pouches are safer than cut-off pouches on a roll. The concern with the latter is that it is difficult to open them and empty their contents in a sterile manner. Self-seal pouches may cost a few pennies more, but they will improve patient care by decreasing the contamination risk. Depending on the size, each sterilization pouch costs less than 5 cents (e.g. 3.5 by 10 inch) to under 10 cents (e.g. 7.5 by 13 inch). An anesthetized cat with a warming blanket. Surgical ties are designed to keep the patient in position during surgery. Using appropriate ties will avoid cutting into the skin or causing a tourniquet effect. Proper positioning and reasonable tension can prevent lasting tissue damage. Ideally, ties should be placed right above the carpus and the hock. Arguably, two loops are better than one to even out pressure on the skin. You can get four …
How To Tame Your Email AddictionSeptember 30, 2013 I have a confession to make: I had an addiction. I was an email hoarder. I had well over 12,000 emails in my inbox--and that was counting only my main email account. I tried to treat my obsession, but "life” always seemed to get in the way. So after hitting rock bottom, one of my goals emerged: cleaning up my inbox. Accomplishing this task has been a huge relief, mentally and almost physically. Fair warning: Some readers may have arrhythmias reading this article. Dealing with email has become a very emotional endeavor. But as they say, awareness is the first step to recovery. You may need to make some bold decisions. So be bold. It is interesting how some colleagues rationalize. A practitioner explained to me, "Yes, I am a borderline hoarder, but at least with email there is no physical clutter!” If you are an email hoarder as well, here are some pointers and solutions to stop the madness. * Trim and Simplify. Seriously question your need for multiple email addresses. Do you truly need a work email, in addition to a personal Gmail account, a Hotmail account for rebates …
When Should You Retire?September 10, 2013 I have been telling myself and others I was never going to retire. I truly believed I would just keep working until I faded into the sunset. I started to work for the veterinarian across the street from my home in Mitchellville, Iowa, when I was 11. My first job was to help a sow in dystocia by delivering four live pigs. It was great fun and I was hooked from that point on. I started to help with farm calls on Saturdays and after school and then full time during the summers. When I was in Veterinary School at Iowa State University the great practical experiences I had in junior and senior high helped me put context to most everything we were taught. The hands-on experience was invaluable during professional school. Early in my career I wanted to practice companion animal surgery in private practice, which I did with my mentor/partner from Iowa, Dr. Don E. Sceli, who had moved from Mitchellville to Phoenix and had started a companion animal practice. We practiced together for six years and started three practices. Eventually we sold the practice and I returned to Iowa State University to …
