When should you refer a surgical patient?September 15, 2017From a legal standpoint, any licensed veterinarian can perform any surgery on any patient. But just because you can doesn’t mean that you should.
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AHS urges best practices to prevent, minimize heartworm transmission in dogsSeptember 14, 2017By Veterinary Practice News Editors The American Heartworm Society (AHS) has announced a new set of veterinary best practices for minimizing heartworm transmission in dogs relocated due to recent natural disasters, a cross-country family move, or other circumstances. The guidelines include recommendations for heartworm testing, treatment, and prevention, and were developed in collaboration with the Association of Shelter Veterinarians (ASV). "Preventing transmission of D. immitis has always been a focus of the AHS Heartworm Guidelines," sais Chris Rehm, DVM, AHS president. "However, we believe we need to do more, given the potential for heartworm-positive dogs to serve as reservoirs for infection. For example, if a microfilaria-positive dog is rescued in one state and subsequently moved to a new home in another state where nearby pets are unprotected, mosquitoes feeding on the new dog can quickly become heartworm vectors. The results can be disastrous for unprotected pets in the vicinity." Measures can be taken to protect the health of both infected animals and their new neighbors, according to Dr. Rehm. While the ideal scenario is to treat infected dogs before transporting or traveling with them, situations often dictate that infected animals cannot undergo …
Time Inc. latest corporation to reap pet, veterinary industry rewardsSeptember 12, 2017The lure of the lucrative pet products industry is hard to resist—even for a content king like Time Inc., which is launching PetHero, a paid membership program that leverages a network of veterinarians that belong to Pet Assure pet owners' club. Time Inc. claims it engages with more than 100 million pet owners and pet lovers through its pet-related content platforms. With the pet products and services industry surpassing $66 billion in 2016 and expected to exceed $70 billion by 2020, according to the American Pet Products Association, it comes as little surprise that the media giant is looking to take greater advantage of what this sector offers. How the PetHero program works PetHero membership plans begin at $20 per month for one-pet households and $25 for multipet households. After purchasing a plan, PetHero members receive a 25 percent discount on in-house veterinary services from more than 5,600 participating veterinary practices, a 15 percent discount on all products purchased through PetCareRx.com, seasonal gift boxes with pet toys and treats, and expert veterinary advice. The discounts on health care costs apply to all pets regardless …
Could your practice use a CWO?September 11, 2017Until recently, there were: The CEO, or chief executive officer; The CFO, or chief financial officer; The CIO, or chief information officer; The CTO, or chief technology officer; And a few others (CSO, CCO, and CKO anybody*?) I recently heard of the CWO, aka Chief WOW Officer, aka Director of WOW, as Nido Qubein calls it. The businessman and motivational speaker is currently the President of High Point University, an amazing private liberal arts university in High Point, North Carolina. Of course, there is a CWO at High Point. His job is to identify the un-WOW on campus, and turn it into WOW to improve the students' experience. Here are a few of the services provided. Each one honors an important value: • There is an ice cream truck on campus, and a bubble-gum machine at the entrance of the Dean's door (value: generosity). • Students can have a free car wash on week-ends to forget the dust caused by an extensive construction project (value: respect for others' property). • Valet parking for students after 9 pm (value: safety). • Live music at the cafeteria (value: rock 'n' roll forever?). Similar creative …
Follow the 8 secret ingredients to successSeptember 8, 2017In an extremely popular TED talk, Richard St. John, a former marketing and communication expert turned speaker, and author in Toronto, shared his secrets to reaching sustained success.
How call tracking barks up business for veterinariansSeptember 8, 2017There's no denying that veterinarians are dedicated to their craft. Animal care is complex and leaves little time for marketing—after all, a veterinarian belongs in the field, not at a desk. Regardless of the difficulties of veterinary work, owners will accept nothing less than the best for their pets. Ninety percent of pet owners regard their pets as family and have the same health care experience expectations as they would for a child or spouse. Confusing or inconsistent advertising can dissuade pet owners from a choosing a veterinarian—there's no kidding around with animal health. Some veterinarians are prioritizing better companion care through partnership with third-party providers. While outsourcing the business side of a practice alleviates major marketing responsibilities, as well as other routine tasks like accounting and human resources, it does not solve the entire problem for vets. If these campaigns are still based on gut decisions rather than data, there's little opportunity for vets to improve their marketing efforts over time. Call-tracking and analytics solutions remove the guesswork from attribution, even between online and offline efforts. As vets begin to understand which marketing channels are actually driving leads, they can adapt their advertising …
American Association of Feline Practitioners revises declawing positionSeptember 7, 2017The American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) has revised its previous 2015 position statement on declawing to strongly oppose onychectomy as an elective procedure.
Diabetes PetCare Alliance program terms expandedSeptember 7, 2017For four years running, Merck Animal Health, Purina, and Zoetis have partnered via the Diabetes PetCare Alliance to help veterinary practices diagnose new canine and feline diabetes cases and jump-start disease management. Now, the collective has lifted the previous enrollment cap of 1,000 clinics, meaning there's no limit to the number of veterinary practices that can enroll in the annual educational program, and the program enrollment period has been extended from one month to two. Veterinarians participating in the program, which is timed to prepare veterinary practices for Pet Diabetes Month in November, diagnosed an estimated 300 pets with diabetes in 2016. Veterinarians who enroll gain access to tools and resources related to diabetes awareness and screening. In addition, clients whose pets are diagnosed during the program period receive a free disease management kit from participating clinics. The kits include the following: One AlphaTRAK 2 Blood Glucose Monitoring System from Zoetis One 6-pound bag of Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets DM Dietetic Management Feline Formula for cats or Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets EN Gastroenteric Fiber Balance Dry Formula for dogs One 10 mL vial of Vetsulin …
Is your practice ready for millennial clients?September 6, 2017Half our world’s population is younger than 30. Millennials, age 18 to 34, grew up tethered to their smartphones, which they check 43 times per day. They now comprise the primary pet-owning demographic at 35 percent of U.S. pet owners, surpassing baby boomers’ 32 percent, according to the American Pet Products Association (APPA).
AAFP Cat Friendly Practice endorsements promote programSeptember 6, 2017The American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) has announced endorsements of the Cat Friendly Practice (CFP) Program by CATalyst Council, Cat Healthy, and the Association of Shelter Veterinarians. The program is a global initiative designed to elevate care for felines by reducing stress for the cat, their caregiver, and the entire veterinary team, according to the AAFP. The CFP program, launched in 2012, currently includes more than 1,100 clinics in North and South America. It provides tools to integrate the feline perspective into clinics' physical environments and the delivery of medical care, focuses on increasing the standard of feline care, educating practices about feline patients' needs, decreasing the stress of veterinary visits, and ensuring each cat receives the highest quality, according to the association. To earn the CFP designation, veterinary clinics must meet specific criteria, such as embracing gentle and respectful handling of all cats, providing adjusted procedures to make veterinary visits less stressful for cats and their caregivers, and training staff to understand the individualized needs of cats. "Visiting the veterinarian can be stressful for both cats and their caregivers," said Elizabeth Colleran, DVM, MS, DABVP (Feline), co‐chair of the CFP committee. "So often regular check-ups …
