Ask Appropriate Questions When Shopping For MonitorNovember 22, 2010 Choosing the right patient monitor for your veterinary practice can be a daunting task, but the keys are determining what’s right for your needs, doing your homework, and asking a lot of questions before signing on the dotted line, say industry experts. Here are some things to keep in mind while shopping. Determine Parameters Are you looking for something to monitor just blood pressure or something that measures multi-parameters? The American Animal Hospital Association and the American College of Veterinary Anesthesiologists recommend monitoring blood pressure, ECG/HR, CO2 and SpO2 (blood oxygen saturation). It’s also a good idea to check out your state’s Veterinary Medical Association guidelines. The more parameters, the higher the cost, and one of the most expensive parameters to monitor is the end-title CO2 (ETCO2), which measures the amount of carbon dioxide exhaled by the animal, said Dan Kozisek, customer service director of Bionet of Tustin, Calif. “In the past, they’d have to buy a unit with [ETCO2] included, and that would’ve added $3,000 to $4,000 to the price,” he said. A relatively recent advancement is a monitor that is “ETCO2 ready,” making it easy for practitioners to start with …
SPONSORED CONTENTThe Case for Year-Round Heartworm Prevention and Affordable OptionsVeterinarians are often more than just clinicians - they’re advisors, educators, and, increasingly, financial counselors. In today’s economy, pet owners may hesitate to invest in year-round prevention due to budget constraints; but, skipping even a few months of heartworm protection can have serious consequences. + Learn More
Animal Welfare Speaker Lays An EggOctober 5, 2010 In August we learned that well over 1,000 people had been sickened by salmonella because of tainted eggs. The subsequent media coverage jangled our profession’s nerves as the poultry industry reeled from accusations of lax oversight and poor sanitation, offering critics easy jugular access on hot-button issues like crowded housing, battery caging and industry ethics. The timing of the crisis, which prompted the largest egg recall in U.S. history, was propitious. I’d just attended an animal welfare symposium at the American Association of Avian Pathologist (AAAP) Conference, and let it suffice to say I was not impressed. “Animal Welfare: Reality, Perception and Thinking Outside the Box” was the symposium’s title. On the basis of this verbiage alone I was prepared to attend a morning-long series of lectures, disagreeable and contentious though many of the concepts and comments might be to a fledgling small-flock consultant like me. Yet it seemed obvious that an organization willing to undertake creative, “outside the box” thinking was interested in progressive approaches to the many welfare problems. Sign me up! Abandon the Bond? In anticipation, I dissected all the AVMA and AAAP position statements on poultry welfare. I devoured …
Do you own a spleen?October 1, 2010BY PHIL ZELTZMAN, DVM, DACVS, CERTIFIED FEAR FREE Dr. M. is a funny woman. When she interviews potential technicians, she knows not to ask illegal questions, such as marital status, ethnic origin and age. Yet without blinking an eye, she asks possible hires if they have a spleen. This was so intriguing to me that of course I had to investigate. Our colleague explained: "I read once in a human morbidity and mortality review that if you do not have your spleen and you are bitten by a dog, the bite has the potential to be fatal. There have been reports of deaths in spleen-less people because of the organ's role in our immunity. Since I've read this article, I thought I should make sure any potential technician does own a spleen." Indeed, an old JAVMA article* describes dysgonic fermenter-2 infections. Since then, the "fastidious, gram-negative, opportunistic" bacterium was renamed Capnocytophaga canimorsus. More recently, Scott Weese, DVM, DACVIM, has written about this topic in his excellent blog (wormsandgermsblog.com). His is an associate professor in the Department of Pathobiology at the University of Guelph, Ontario. Simply said, our internist has become an infectious disease specialist. Here how …
Retire? More Vets Say, ‘No Thanks’August 10, 2010 John Hayes, DVM, has retired twice, but it just never seems to stick. In 1985, after years of foaling mares and taking emergency calls during 18-hour days, he sold a thriving mixed practice in Maryland to a protégée, intending to scale back to part-time work for a colleague. Within months, he was itching for his own practice again. He set up shop in Ruckersville, Va., where his intended part-time clinic grew into a full-time concern. He finally sold that one in 2006, but he still wasn’t done. Now 71, he volunteers spay and neuter services one day a week at a humane society, mentors veterinary students and continues working with a small group of clients, even if it’s to help calve at 2 in the morning. When will he retire for good? He can’t say. “Veterinary medicine wasn’t about making money; it’s something I was born to do,” Dr. Hayes says. “The whole deal is, and I don’t think I’m alone in this, veterinary medicine is your life, and you just don’t want to give it up.” Continuous Career Indeed, Hayes may be on to something: More than …
Do You Have Career Exit Strategy?August 10, 2010 As veterinarians, most of us have not had the agony of having to go to “work.” This is because we love what we do every day. Some of us have been lucky enough to think we would continue doing it even if we were not paid. Some veterinarians have been good businesspeople and have made an excellent income while doing something they love. It doesn’t get much better than that! I have had the good fortune to be a veterinarian for the past 44 years and have little desire to stop what I am doing as long as I have good health and a healthy family. I have sampled many career areas of veterinary medicine in those 44 years: military service, graduate student, resident, practice associate, practice owner, professor, administrator, practice consultant, industry consultant, author and lecturer. I feel blessed to have earned a very reasonable income and done so many things that have been challenging and fun. If you are not as excited about your current activity as you once were, it may be time to consider a change. I have talked with veterinarians who stopped working suddenly and then had great difficulty adjusting …
Treat radiation with respect, not anxietyAugust 10, 2010Many veterinary technicians have an unreasonable fear of the harmful effects of ionizing radiation. Though a healthy concern about the potential harm is expected, an unhealthy concern may adversely affect job performance. All veterinarians should ensure that their technical staff is comfortable working with radiation and educate them about the potential hazards and ways to reduce the harmful effects. Positioning and Technique Count Radiographs are an economical, highly informative tool to diagnosis illness and injury in small-animal patents, but not any old radiograph will do. The best radiographs are obtained when good X-ray technique is combined with good patient positioning," says Anne Bahr, DVM, Dipl. ACVR, MS. "Often, veterinarians have good X-ray equipment but don't take the time to position properly and end up with suboptimal images. Dr. Bahr, a veterinary radiology specialist with PetRays, a telemedicine consulting company in Spring, Texas, says sedating a stressed animal can "do wonders for the quality of the images. John Feleciano, DMV, Dipl. ACVR, is manager of radiology at VDIC, part of the Idexx Telemedicine Division of Idexx Laboratories Inc. of Westbrook, Maine. A well-positioned study gives the veterinarian and interpreting radiologist the best chance to achieve an accurate diagnosis," he says. "Asymmetrical …
Learn To Profit From Social MediaJuly 6, 2010Second of two parts: Social media are evolving rapidly, and their power can help you drive more website and front-door traffic. Earning a social media audience is not difficult. It is fun and effective, but it does take time and an understanding of the tools. In order to decrease the time commitment, many veterinarians are very successfully using a trusted staff member to help them in their social media communications. To make this simple, let’s take a look at six tools that can be used to earn an audience and drive them “home.” Your Website Today, most people will visit your website before ever visiting you in person. Ninety-six percent of the predominant generation (Gen Y) has a social media profile and 71 percent of them has two or more. Consumers of all generations are joining the social media world and using the Web for research, finding recommendations and evaluating a business. The power of a great website and building a social network cannot be overstated. Consequently your home on the ’Net—your hospital website or blog—is your Web foundation. All the other audience-building activities will lead visitors there. Your Web home is where you tell …
Profit From The Social Media EvolutionJune 2, 2010First of Two Parts Whether it is communications, education, media or marketing, the world is rapidly changing. The stunning shift in the way we communicate is caused by interactive, instant and worldwide information delivery. We can call this the “new media.” This is a true evolution that is forever changing established industries and even the way we communicate with our clients. The way people obtain information is changing. Newspapers are in record decline, with daily readership down by 7 million. Television and radio advertising is down 11 percent. Where has this audience gone? Online news readers are up 30 million. Internet use is up 10 percent, and smart phone use is up 19 percent. The shift began in 2004. Almost overnight the Web became more about information sharing, collaboration and user-centered design rather than a one-way information delivery medium. The Web today, known as Web 2.0, is extremely interactive, searchable, customizable—and can fit in the palm of your hand. The devices used to access the Web have undergone an equally dramatic evolution. From desktop computers to smart phones, these devices are making it simpler and more compelling for millions of new users to enter the …
Beyond Scalpels: Surgical SubstitutesMay 4, 2010 Veterinarians generally agree that the ability of laser surgery and electrosurgery to control hemorrhaging during surgery is among the benefits that make the technologies superior to the scalpel. Still, the price of the units, marketing and maintenance concerns delay some practitioners from becoming consumers. “Many veterinarians still use a scalpel instead of a laser or radiosurgery,” says Robert Slobody, DVM, of Meadowlands Veterinary Center in Willoughby, Ohio. “Scalpels are cheap and they work, but the veterinarians who stay with the scalpel exclusively don’t realize they can get their money back in little time using laser or electrosurgery and create practice revenue while enhancing the level of care for patients.” Any high-tech unit is a substantial financial investment, so there’s a lot to consider before making a purchase. Considering which procedures you’d use laser or radiosurgery for is a starting point. The type of animals operated on and your level of comfort with the technology are additional considerations. Veterinarians who have invested in these modalities suggest that a buyer learn how to use them before making the purchase and then create a marketing plan. “The success or failure of these technologies largely depends on technique,” says …
Staff Training Opportunities More Abundant And FlexibleApril 12, 2010 In the day-to-day bustle of veterinary clinics, staff training and education often get pushed aside because of a lack of time and resources. But myriad opportunities are available today for clinics to educate their staffs at a pace and price that suits everyone’s needs. Mark Stephenson, DVM, president of Lifelearn Inc. of Guelph, Ontario, notes that learning options “range from independent reading of journals and textbooks to attending local, regional and national veterinary conferences that include tracks for all types of paraprofessionals, including receptionists and animal health technicians.” Computer Learning E-learning has increased dramatically over the past five to 10 years as well, Dr. Stephenson says. Sources range from DVDs to websites. “Most people equate e-learning to online learning; however e-learning really encompasses any learning that is computer based,” Stephenson says. Over the years, this has evolved from CD-ROMs to Web-based learning and educational applications for PDAs and smart phones. David Grant, DVM, president of Animal Care Technologies in Denton, Texas, says standardized training programs—in which every staff member participates in a clearly defined learning path—have long been key to successful businesses. “One of the most profound changes to occur in veterinary staff …
