How to Earn Repeat Business by Forward Booking Patients' Next VisitJune 15, 2015Originally published in the June 2015 issue of Veterinary Practice News Think about your last visit to the dentist. Before you left, the receptionist scheduled your next hygiene appointment. This scheduling technique serves dual purposes of safeguarding patients' preventive care and the practice's financial health. The patient strategy ensures timely visits for professional care as well as to diagnose oral problems early. The hygienist also sends you home with toothpaste, floss and a toothbrush to reinforce preventive oral care at home. As a business strategy for dentists, scheduling the next visit today will keep the hygiene schedule full and productive. When the hygiene schedule is not full, a domino affect will occur. Patient suffers without timely hygiene appointments, and the dentist will see openings in the treatment schedule in the future. At least 80 percent of dental problems — root canals, crowns and restorations — come from hygiene appointments. Dentists refer to their system as "recare appointments." When patients leave today's hygiene appointment without a future one scheduled, a dental practice's profits will decrease at least 50 percent.2 Dentists have shifted patients' perceptions from only going to the dentist for a toothache to routine preventive care. Savvy veterinarians should follow dentists' lead. …
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It's Time to Have the Pet Food DiscussionJune 12, 2015Originally published in the June 2015 issue of Veterinary Practice News. Like this article? Then subscribe today! I wrote a blog post several weeks ago on the subject of veterinary nutrition for pets. Not one to mince words, I made clear that I’ve become disillusioned by the state of veterinary science and education in the U.S. Citing our profession’s lack of independence from corporate influence as our foremost downfall, I argued that “Big Pet Food” has surpassed all other industry subcategories in this regard. It has effectively usurped our role as the scientific font on the subject in ways no pharmaceutical empire has ever achieved. But here’s the thing: The pet food industry hasn’t been content to simply take over the way others have done, appealing to our rapacious thirst for retail sales. Instead, it has done so in ways no pharmaceutical empire has ever achieved — from the inside out … one endowed chair at a time. What’s more, this Achilles’ heel is becoming increasingly apparent to stakeholders outside our profession, too. We may know lots about nutrition at the theoretical level, they say, but when it comes right down to it, most veterinarians don’t know …
9 Stupid Things I Did as a Veterinary Practice OwnerJune 10, 2015Much has been written and said about how everyone should view failure as a best friend. That can be true if we take the perspective of people like Michael Jordan and Thomas Edison. I’ve failed over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed. — Michael Jordan “I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.” ― Thomas A. Edison As a practice owner for 30 years, I experienced plenty of “failures,” so I guess you could say I had lots of “best friends,” too. In retrospect, I sometimes took advantage of what I learned from mistakes; sometimes I didn’t. Hopefully, as a current practice owner, you can adopt some “new friends” from a few of my mistakes. The following is a partial list along with a short explanation about each one. I did not think big enough. The initial sign in front of my practice may have looked professional, but it was far too easy for people on the highway to overlook. I didn’t purchase the lot next to my practice when it was sold at auction. My fees were too low in the early years because I …
Why You Should Embrace Fear Free Veterinary VisitsJune 9, 2015Originally published in the June 2015 issue of Veterinary Practice News I’ve been writing to and on behalf of the veterinary profession for 30 years. You may have seen my columns in magazines ranging from professional veterinary publications to Reader’s Digest and Parade, or online on sites from Vetstreet to HuffPost and DrOz.com. So why another column? I still have important topics to tackle and this magazine gives me the opportunity to focus on an area I know to be vitally important, underappreciated and not covered as much as it deserves. The area I’m referring to is “In the Middle.” I have a unique perspective and experience being in the middle between pet owners and the profession. Having been on network TV for 18 years, having written a syndicated column for about 15 years, and having communicated with tens of thousands of pet owners on radio shows, via column Q&As and at appearances, I know how pet owners’ wants and needs have evolved. I understand the difference between cost and value. Appreciate their need to feel like the bond they share with their pet needs to be celebrated, nurtured and shared. That there’s only one greatest pet in the world, …
How to Avoid Scheduling Mistakes Every Veterinary Clinic MakesMay 15, 2015Originally published in the April 2015 issue of Veterinary Practice News A client calls and explains, “My dog has diarrhea. Do you have an appointment available at 3 p.m. today?” The client care coordinator replies, “Yes, 3 p.m. is available.” Instead of asking callers, “When do you want to come in?” guide them to specific times that will have your day flowing smoothly and provide better client service. Sick pets should be seen the same day, while clients calling for preventive care exams should be seen within one week. Let’s say you have sick-pet exams scheduled today at 2 and 2:30 p.m. If you put a third sick pet at 3 p.m., chances are high that you’ll run behind and the client will experience wait time. Instead, aim for an alternating exam pattern of preventive care / sick care / preventive care. Always sandwich a sick-patient exam between two preventive care exams, which are more predictable and likely to stay on time. It’s OK to schedule preventive care exams back-to-back. When booking appointments, color code your schedule based on the reason for the visit. Strive for layers of colors. Imagine that you’re making a club sandwich, layering bread, lettuce, tomato, …
Customer Service: Hall of Shame or Hall of Fame?May 14, 2015Have you seen the latest 2014 survey on customer service? The results were reported in a recent article on the “24/7 Wall St.” website1. Here are the 10 worst companies: 10. Citigroup (15% “poor” ratings for banking and for credit cards) 9. Wells Fargo (15% “poor” for banking, 16% for credit cards) 8. AT&T (18% “poor”) 7. AOL (18% “poor”) 6. Time Warner Cable (20% “poor”) 5. DirecTV (20% “poor”) 4. Dish Network (20% “poor”) 3. Sprint (21% “poor”) 2. Comcast (25% “poor”) Who was No. 1? Bank of America (25% “poor” for banking, 22% “poor” for credit cards) No comment, besides the fact that I’m surprised that airline companies are not on that list. They have a habit of treating customers in the worst ways possible, for ever increasing prices. And here are the top 10 best companies for customer service in 2014: 10. Apple (36% "excellent") 9. Hewlett-Packard (36% "excellent") 8. Sony (37% "excellent") 7. UPS (37% "excellent") 6. Trader Joe’s (37% "excellent") 5. American Express (38% "excellent") 4. Chick-fil-A (39% "excellent") 3. Marriott International (40% "excellent") 2. Hilton Worldwide (41% "excellent") Who was rated the best? Amazon.com (58% "excellent") Here is what Micah Solomon, a customer service consultant, …
Aquamation: A Dignified, Environmentally Friendly Alternative to Pet Cremation or BurialMay 8, 2015Originally published in the April 2015 issue of Veterinary Practice News A water line and a $70,000 apparatus helped propel Jerry Shevick into the business of dissolving dead animals. The former TV executive launched his second career in 2013 when he formed Peaceful Pets Aquamation Inc., whose sales pitch to Southern California veterinary customers centers on an environmentally friendly alternative to burial or cremation of their feathered, scaled or furry patients. Aquamation is a marketing term for what is technically alkaline hydrolysis, the process by which a solution of potassium hydroxide and sodium hydroxide is diluted with water and slowly circulated through a stainless-steel chamber containing the remains of animals as large as a horse. Twenty hours after the button is pushed at Peaceful Pets’ Newbury Park, Calif., headquarters, a pile of soft bones is ready to be dried, pulverized into a sandlike material and packaged inside a decorative container for eventual return to the veterinary clinic and client. Alkaline hydrolysis has been used for years in research laboratories to safely dispose of tissue waste and animal subjects and, according to Luke Wilson of Bio-Response Solutions Inc., is an accepted “green” method of rapidly breaking down human remains. His Danville, …
Have You Embraced Veterinary Telemedicine?May 5, 2015Originally published in the April 2014 issue of Veterinary Practice News Telemedicine is a growing field in veterinary medicine, and professionals in the industry are adding personnel and services to meet that demand. “With increased bandwidth and the increased gravitation toward the smartphone generation, we have seen a more relaxed mentality toward efficient Internet-based communication,” said Eric Lindquist, DVM, Dipl. IVUSS. Dr. Lindquist founded SonoPath.com 2007 to provide a source of sonographic pathology information to veterinarians. “This translates into an easy transition to telemedicine mentality and improved quality of service for all involved.” Dr. Lindquist said SonoPath.com has been growing rapidly in the last few years, and it’s continuing to accelerate. Advancements in technology have paved the way for that growth. The telecommunication and telemedicine processes are “less lumpy” than in the past, when slow bandwidth and limited image quality caused hitches. The technology has improved markedly over the last few years, Lindquist said. He and other experts agree that telemedicine’s growth in veterinary medicine should come as a surprise to no one, because it follows growth on the human medicine side. Growing There are roughly 2,000 human telemedicine networks and counting in the U.S., according to the American Telemedicine …
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. …
