Hiring And Firing To Get The Vet Staff You WantOctober 2, 2012Recruiting and retaining dedicated, competent employees and knowing how to let go of employees who are not the best fit for your veterinary practice are significant management challenges. Practices that develop an effective hiring and termination process are more likely to hire outstanding team members and retain employees who are the right fit for the practice culture. Take the following steps to improve recruitment efforts: What You Need When recruiting employees, don’t just look for a warm body to fill the position. Instead, focus on finding job candidates who have the skills and attitude to become an outstanding member of your team. To recruit the right candidates, define the requisite skill set for the position and what kind of employee you need to adhere to the core values of your veterinary practice. In addition, focus on what potential employees want from employers. Make sure the wages and benefits you offer are competitive for your region and with other area practices. Understand that while compensation and benefits are important, these are often not the only deciding factors when people choose a job. Employees want to work in a positive environment. They value flexible work schedules, training and development opportunities, supportive …
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Treating And Preventing Dental Disease In Geriatric PetsOctober 2, 2012 We all know that our patients suffer from the same dental problems that we all do. Dogs and cats feel dental pain and discomfort just as we do, and yet it is far more common for them to have significant dental problems because they don’t get regular dental care. The biggest reason that pets often do not receive the dental care they need is because they rarely show obvious signs of pain or problems, which means that they suffer in silence. Oral/dental disease is by far the No. 1 medical problem in dogs and cats. It is estimated that more than 70 percent of dogs and cats have some form of periodontal disease by just two years of age. Research suggests these shocking numbers actually underestimate the incidence of dental disease. To find out if your patient has periodontal disease, lift his/her lip and look for tartar or redness and swelling of the gums (Figures 1). If the breath smells, it is a sure sign of an oral infection. A new method for determining the level of gum disease in animals is provided by a simple technology called Orastrip QuickCheck Canine. This quick …
Introducing Veterinary CO2 Laser Surgery In JapanOctober 2, 2012 I am an owner of a busy small animal veterinary hospital in Nagoya, Japan. One day I encountered a book on CO2 laser surgery and became fascinated with the technology that brings less bleeding, less swelling, less pain and less risk of infection. It goes without saying that less stress during and after surgical treatment is the best for humans and for animals. I decided to learn more about small animal soft tissue laser surgery in the USA, and did so for two years at various private practices and at Louisiana State University. At the same time I studied to become a diplomate of the American Board of Laser Surgery (ABLS). Learning the art of laser surgery from the best veterinary laser surgeons in the U.S. and through ABLS allowed me to select the best surgical laser for my hospital back home. Figure 2 Types of Medical Lasers It is important to select the type of surgical laser by its wavelength and how it interacts with the tissue. Medical lasers can be assigned to one of three categories: WYSIWYG stands for “What you see is what you get.” This type is suitable …
Brave New World Of St. George’s University School Of Veterinary MedicineOctober 1, 2012 The world is rapidly changing, with shifting demographics, fluid borders, widespread travel, new medical advances, new diseases and fewer medical personnel per patient, both human and animal. Worldwide, there is an urgent need for new thinkers and leaders, those who are experts in veterinary medicine but who also have the experience to quickly and accurately apply it in the real world. Our different world demands a different way of learning veterinary medicine, and St George’s University in Grenada, West Indies, is providing it. Trisha Doswell, third-year vet student at St. George’s. “St. George’s not only provides a unique educational experience but unique life experiences,” says Trisha Doswell, a third-year veterinary medical student at St. George’s University. Originally from Melbourne Beach, Fla., Trisha earned her undergraduate degree at the University of Florida. Trisha doesn’t shy away from raving about the quality of education she’s receiving at St. George’s University. “Our veterinary medical program is challenging and rigorous, but the faculty truly care about us, and when we graduate, we have the opportunity to work all around the world,” Trisha explains. A Global Education Founded in 1999,
Compounding Pharmacists Think Big To Meet Vet Clients' Specialized NeedsSeptember 27, 2012 When compounding pharmacists say that they provide targeted solutions, it seems that they really mean it. After all, if your 5,000-pound rhinoceros balks at taking his antibiotics, who else are you going to call? The Rio Grande Zoo in Albuquerque, N.M., called Michael Blaire, R.Ph., co-owner of Diamondback Drugs, a Scottsdale, Ariz.-based national veterinary pharmacy with an emphasis in compounding. One of the zoo’s rhinos had an infection, and 150 ground-up antibiotic tablets were making his food extremely bitter. “We needed something sweet and chewable,” Blaire said. The answer? A Rice Krispies treat the size of a car hood. It took two technicians 21/2 hours and two dozen boxes of cereal to prepare the prescription and cut it up into 21 doses. “But 21 days later, we had a cured rhino,” Blaire said. Not all compounding solutions have quite so much snap, crackle or pop. But the case of the sweet-toothed rhino does illustrate both the depth of the problems compounders sometimes face and the creativity they can bring to their work. On the horns of a dilemma, a specialized response can mean the difference between wasted effort and welcome relief. The …
Treat Your Clients Like FriendsSeptember 24, 2012Well, you’ve probably figured out that now I’m on the “other” side of the exam table, as a pet owner rather than as a technician, and it’s been quite an eye-opening experience. Here’s the latest. I took one of my cats in to update her vaccinations (yes, she was overdue), and just happened to see the technician who saw Minnie the one other time she’d been to this vet, back in 2008 for an aspirate of a lump in her “belly waddle” (you know, that thing that hangs down from every cat’s belly, and waddles when they walk). I remembered her, but she didn’t give me any indication of knowing me … and I know that a quick glance at her chart would have clued her in that we had met before. I don’t why it bothered me so much. I guess because I know it can be done SO much better, and I just don’t think it’s very hard to give a client the best experience ever. It’s simple, in fact, you just have to become aware and put a little bit of thought into it. Here are some quick tips for making your client feel like your …
What It Takes To Be An Effective LeaderSeptember 24, 2012 A leader can both use and exploit different forms of power to assist herself in her position, but many of these forms can have some pretty problematic side effects. For example, while the power of position, the power to give rewards, the power to punish and the power to control information may have some strength in limited situations, they ultimately place the people being led in an unhealthy position of weakness. Leaders who use coerciveness and threats to accomplish their objectives are seen as autocratic and out of touch, and rarely succeed in exerting any positive influence over their organization or people. Societies have changed tremendously over the last 50 years, and today individuals are encouraged to create their own power and take responsibility for their own decisions. Few of us enjoy having power exerted over us and will do what we can to undermine those who try to use these powers on us. As Mahatma Gandhi said, “I suppose leadership at one time meant muscle; but today it means getting along with people.” The Art of Power Today’s effective leaders have found a tremendous amount of power in knowledge, and that pursuing the …
Quality Control Counts With In-clinic Veterinary Labs, Heska And Abaxis SaySeptember 24, 2012 All blood analysis equipment has a propensity for certain errors. It’s just that reference laboratories are usually better at catching them, said Leslie Sharkey, DVM, Ph.D., diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Pathology and president of the American Society of Veterinary Clinical Pathologists. “Quality assurance programs in reference labs usually include running high, low and normal control materials purchased from the manufacturer of the analyzer or another commercial source at regular intervals, often about once a day,” she said. “We graph the data over time to make sure that we are getting the expected results and to look for trends that might indicate the analyzer is developing a problem. “In addition, many reference labs participate in external quality assurance programs in which labs are sent ‘unknowns,’ which we test and then return the results to the program,” Sharkey continued. “The program lets us know how our results compare with other participating laboratories so we can gauge our performance.” Kendal Harr, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVP, owner of a private pathology consulting firm, said quality control programs for in-clinic blood analysis equipment would frequently be considered substandard to measures taken by reference labs. A recent survey she …
Why Veterinarians Self-Treat...But Shouldn'tSeptember 21, 2012 Many veterinarians will confess to eschewing physicians, even in the case of some serious injuries. Yes, it’s an uncomfortable concept.Many among us will confess we often eschew physicians even in the case of some serious injuries. Got scratched or bitten this week? Kicked recently? Hurt your back hauling pets? Wrangling a calf? It’s inevitable, right? But never fear; the answer to what ails us is easily found in a pill, patch, spray, pomade, ointment or injection ... on your hospital’s shelves, of course. Many among us will confess we often eschew physicians even in the case of some serious injuries. Yes, it’s an uncomfortable concept: Veterinarians are way willing to script-up whenever the need arises. Plenty among us find the answer to our ills within our own hospital’s pharmacy—or via prescription pad. That can prove problematic. Self-Serve Medicine A 1988 study (Landercasper et al.) found that 77 percent of respondents to a survey reported self-treatment of injuries (most commonly involving sutures and antibiotics) while a 2000 study (Jeyaretnam & Jones) confirmed that high incidence. But I’ve witnessed or accepted confessions pertaining to more than a round of Clavamox for a bite wound or a …
The Evolution Of Pet Health InsuranceSeptember 21, 2012 Starting with one company that could barely keep its head above water for years, pet health insurance in the United States now boasts 12 companies that are strong and growing. Industry leaders talked about the secrets of their success and visions of the future. VPI Pet Insurance With half a million policyholders and a 60 percent market share, VPI Pet Insurance of Brea, Calif., is the granddaddy of them all. Its first policy was issued in 1982 to TV’s Lassie. “We have doubled the number of policyholders every five years since 1982,” said Scott Liles, the company’s executive leader. “Our nearest competitor has a little less than 10 percent market share.” With a second office in Denver, VPI has 500 employees, 110 of whom have veterinary experience, said Carol McConnell, DVM, the chief veterinary officer. “We go out of our way to minimize the impact on the vet,” she said. “Our staff can read the invoices and understand them, and we process 97 percent of claims without having to call the veterinary hospital for the medical records. This is important, since we are processing about 80,000 claims per month, or from 1.1 million …
