Tech Talk: 30 years in and still going strong

If this youngster is anything like the author, a love of pets at a young age might turn into an animal-focused career in adulthood. Bigstock/ De Visu Almost 30 years ago, I took my first baby steps into the field of veterinary medicine. Younger, way blonder than I am now, and so naïve, I had no idea what I was getting involved in. I thought—as so many do—our world was made up of puppies and kittens, with a few sick pets thrown in between. I knew I loved animals (as we all do) and I wanted to help them. That is about where my knowledge ended. I was in my mid-teens and just wanted to get my foot in somewhere. How? Where? I really had no idea. I thought I wanted to become a veterinarian. That seemed to be every little girl’s dream at the time and so very much in line with my own childhood dreams. Take care of and fix the sick animals in the world. Being a veterinarian was the only career in veterinary medicine that was discussed or even talked about at the time. There were no other options discussed in school. I loved the animals we had in our family. Cats, dogs, birds, fish, rabbits, turtles, hamsters, etc. My parents never begrudged my want for more, even after I dressed my cat in a Cabbage Patch doll outfit and took her to sit outside with me in the sunshine while I would read books. That cat lived to be 18 years old and never put up a fight when I got my backpack out and popped her inside for a quick ride outside to our reading spot. She gave me my first experiences with a pet during post-op recovery care, as well as a well-remembered lesson in how to medicate a cat, claws and teeth included. I thrived on various animal books. I was given a simple cat anatomy book one year for Christmas and read it until the pages fell apart. I still have it to this day as a memento of my childhood. In my childhood thoughts, all of those sick pets always got better. They never died. Money was never an issue. Their owners were always pleasant and thankful. Happy endings were always the end result. I had no reason to think any different. In the movies, on TV, and in the books I read, that is what always happened. I really do not recall reading about the negative aspects of our world until I was older. Perhaps that was best, so I was not deterred from moving into the profession. Little did I know that was only the case part of the time. There was another side to veterinary medicine I had yet to dip my toes into. The introduction I began my career working in a kennel at a local veterinary hospital as a teenager. Back then, we saw GP cases for the most part, vaccines and well care, nothing too sick. I worked in “the back” and was allowed to venture up front to help assist the DVMs and technicians once my duties were completed. Once I realized what else was beyond the doors into the treatment area, I looked forward to going to work, rushing to complete my care of the boarding animals, and would make myself available to the medical and reception team. I loved working with the animals and could not believe I was so lucky to be able to work with them day in and day out. I was eager to help complete any task assigned to me. I was cross-trained to work in reception and as an assistant, eventually learning how to restrain patients and draw blood. I loved talking to clients and enjoyed even more being able to help educate them on their pet’s care. Thinking back now on those days, I was young and impressionable. I worked with some wonderful veterinarians and technicians who continued to encourage me to grow in the field. Phase two begins with a specialty After two years, I decided that I was looking to do more than I was able to at that practice. I left that hospital to work in a different GP practice in the area. I was brought in as a veterinary assistant. I worked under an amazing veterinarian and several other skilled team members. I was allowed to start learning new skills and increasing my knowledge level as time went on. I helped assist in rooms and with anesthesia for patients for routine surgeries. I was pushed to become a veterinarian and really thought that was where I would end up. In looking to increase my skill set, I began to pick up relief shifts at a local emergency clinic. I was tossed into a new world and my eyes were filled with wonder at seeing the variety of patients and their illnesses that came with an ER experience. I learned how to put my first IV catheter in a patient hit by a car. The DVM literally tossed me a catheter and told me to figure it out. While that experience was not ideal for myself or anyone, it allowed me to push through and gain a skill I had not had before. That little ER clinic helped me see my newfound love for emergency and critical care and begin to think to myself…now what? The surgeries that I was able to assist in and the patients I was able to help care for made a huge impact on my mindset of how I viewed the profession. I met my current practice partner on an ER shift. She picked up an open shift to help the emergency clinic out where I currently was picking up relief shifts. It must have been fate as we had not known each other before that day. We had a slow day with a handful of patients. We began to get to know each other, and we found out that we had several things in common. I learned she was opening a new practice in the area. I wondered if working for her would be a good idea for me. She seemed very supportive and loved to teach. After a few more conversations, she made an offer to me to come and work with her when her new practice opened. In a continual effort to always do more and learn more, I jumped at this new opportunity. Who knew what this was going to do for me? Our practice started out like so many others, slow and steady. Over the years, we grew by leaps and bounds. Present day, present role Little did I know where I would end up today. I never thought I would have accomplished what I have or am continuing to do. That practice that was just starting out with one veterinarian and four support staff blew up and was never the same. Fast forward to present day, 24 years later. My DVM pushed me to become licensed and use my skill set as a technician, supporting me whole heartedly along the way. How different my world has become. How different the world itself has become, especially post-Covid. Little did I know where I would end up today and the opportunities that would be available to me as my career progressed. I am a licensed veterinary technician and medical manager of a large, 15 doctor, 24/7 GP/ER practice north of Atlanta, with almost 90 staff members. I own part of my practice, as well. We took the plunge and went 24/7 a little over two and a half years ago. It was a great decision for us, and we have no regrets taking that plunge. I help lead a team of amazingly talented individuals and am lucky to work with those who love vet med just as much as I do. I have interests in emergency, critical care, surgery, anesthesia, pain management, hospice and palliative care, and client education and communication. My life is nowhere near just puppies and kittens. There are a lot of sick pets in between. Some days more than I can count. Days happen when the emergencies never seem to stop coming, each one more critical than the last. I sometimes think to myself I am in way over my head, then reality sets in and I come to terms with the fact I can accomplish anything I set my mind too. How does that make me feel? How does that wear on me? Is this what I really wanted to do? What has my life become? Does that make me regret my career choice? I learn new skills on a continual basis and am encouraged to teach others. I enjoy being able to imprint on my younger staff with “old” ways of doing things and having the opportunity to explain how things came about and reasons why medicine is why it is for some things and different for others. The chance to teach those who are new and learning in our profession is a chance I will always jump at. Who knows the impression I may be able to make on someone and how that may positively impact their lives? Some days I feel exhausted. Physically, mentally, and emotionally. Some days I think I can do nothing right. Can’t seem to draw blood or hit a vein. Who can wrap their mind around solutions and dilutions? Decimals matter, math kills. A simple error can cause an untimely death. My patients sometimes die, no matter the best effort and every attempt possible to save them. Clients get upset, defensive, and even angry when their pets are sick. They lash out with emotions when they cannot pay their bills or when their pets die, regardless if treatment was attempted or not. I try to put myself in their shoes when things like this happen. We are always quick to judge. No matter the situation. I teach my team to remember we are there for the patient. They do not pick their owners. Time and time again, we choose our patients over getting home on time, eating dinner with our families and just sometimes working a normal schedule. We do this because they have no choice in the matter and we can do something to benefit them, even if euthanasia is the solution. The guilt that comes with letting them down weighs on me immensely. I cry with them; holding onto the 65-year-old man who had to euthanize his dog, his only companion, months after he held his wife’s hand as she died from cancer. I empathize with them and try to create a connection that puts us on the same level as caregivers of our patients. We are both doing the same for their pet, just in different ways. Some days I am on an adrenaline high, helping my team to save patients left and right, with more positive outcomes than negative. Clients are thankful, hugging and professing their appreciation. Those days surely outweigh the negative ones when clients are upset and even angry. Spirits are good, even giddy as we rejoice in the fact our patients are doing well and survived. Which do we love more of? The positive for sure. Which do I live for? Or despise? I feel that a combination of both types of days is what generally makes up our worlds. I can truly say after all this time I feel the balance of the types of days usually is fair and no more than what can be handled. I do not regret my decision to move into the field of veterinary medicine or the path my veterinary career has taken me. Each day I know I am putting my skills to the test and doing the best I can for each one of my patients. Do they all survive, to walk out of the clinic and sleep beside their people each night? Not always. Do I know at the end of the day I have done right by myself and those I represent in the field? Yes, each and every day. Jamie Rauscher is a licensed veterinary technician at a 24/7 GP/ER practice in Atlanta. She has been at this practice for more than 20 years and is part owner of the practice, as well as the medical manager. She is the current president of NAVTA and the vice president of the Georgia Veterinary Technician and Assistant Association. Her interests in include anesthesia, pain management, emergency and critical care, as well as hospice and palliative care.

Cookie	Duration	Description
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional	11 months	The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
JSESSIONID	session	The JSESSIONID cookie is used by New Relic to store a session identifier so that New Relic can monitor session counts for an application.
viewed_cookie_policy	11 months	The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

Cookie	Duration	Description
vuid	2 years	Vimeo installs this cookie to collect tracking information by setting a unique ID to embed videos to the website.
_ga	2 years	The _ga cookie, installed by Google Analytics, calculates visitor, session and campaign data and also keeps track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookie stores information anonymously and assigns a randomly generated number to recognize unique visitors.
_gat	1 minute	This cookie is installed by Google Universal Analytics to restrain request rate and thus limit the collection of data on high traffic sites.
_gat_UA-	1 minute	A variation of the _gat cookie set by Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager to allow website owners to track visitor behaviour and measure site performance. The pattern element in the name contains the unique identity number of the account or website it relates to.
_gid	1 day	Installed by Google Analytics, _gid cookie stores information on how visitors use a website, while also creating an analytics report of the website's performance. Some of the data that are collected include the number of visitors, their source, and the pages they visit anonymously.
__gads	1 year 24 days	The __gads cookie, set by Google, is stored under DoubleClick domain and tracks the number of times users see an advert, measures the success of the campaign and calculates its revenue. This cookie can only be read from the domain they are set on and will not track any data while browsing through other sites.

Cookie	Duration	Description
ADV_u_id	3 months 8 days	Unique customer identifier used to track unique ad views and interactions with some ads.
anj	3 months	AppNexus sets the anj cookie that contains data stating whether a cookie ID is synced with partners.
fr	3 months	Facebook sets this cookie to show relevant advertisements to users by tracking user behaviour across the web, on sites that have Facebook pixel or Facebook social plugin.
IDE	1 year 24 days	Google DoubleClick IDE cookies are used to store information about how the user uses the website to present them with relevant ads and according to the user profile.
loc	never	AddThis sets this geolocation cookie to help understand the location of users who share the information.
OAGEO	session	OpenX sets this cookie to avoid the repeated display of the same ad.
OAID	1 year	Cookie set to record whether the user has opted out of the collection of information by the AdsWizz Service Cookies.
test_cookie	15 minutes	The test_cookie is set by doubleclick.net and is used to determine if the user's browser supports cookies.
uuid2	3 months	The uuid2 cookie is set by AppNexus and records information that helps in differentiating between devices and browsers. This information is used to pick out ads delivered by the platform and assess the ad performance and its attribute payment.
_fbp	3 months	This cookie is set by Facebook to display advertisements when either on Facebook or on a digital platform powered by Facebook advertising, after visiting the website.

Tech Talk: 30 years in and still going strong

How an early childhood love of helping animals turned into a career, and steps along the way

Membership Required