Some Disturbing Food For ThoughtAugust 6, 2009 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that food-borne illness affects 76 million Americans annually; 325,000 adults and children become sick enough to be hospitalized and 5,000 die. Reading List “Fast Food Nation,” . “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” and “In Defense of Food,” . “Stuffed and Starved: The Hidden Battle for the World Food System,” Daily headlines often include stories about: Food poisoned with e. Coli and Salmonella. . Pesticides and feedlot runoff causing pollution by methane and greenhouse gas emissions. . Food animal and immigrant labor abuses. . World hunger, malnutrition, obesity and the diabetes epidemic becoming rampant. The documentary film “Food Inc.” shows how industrial food is making people sicker, fatter and poorer, and how it negatively affects the environment, the economy and workers’ rights. David Servan-Schreiber, MD, Ph.D., in his well-documented book “Anticancer,” confronts the hazards of our traditional Western diet. Thirty million Americans are …
SPONSORED CONTENTTips to Facilitate Effective Weight-Loss ConversationsWeight-loss programs that focus on traditional caloric restriction and physical activity may not be appropriate or successful for all families. Incorporating strategies that enhance and support the family-pet relationship can help you create a customized—and successful—plan. +
Planning Pet Care Can Help Clients Pay BillsJuly 10, 2009 Follow Veterinary Practice News on Twitter at @vetpetnews. Most veterinarians didn’t go to school to become financial planners. Yet, many spend lots of time discussing finances with their clients. After all, veterinary care costs money, and when that money isn’t available, the pets ultimately suffer. Making a Case for Insurance On the surface, pet insurance may seem like a monthly expense that pet owners could trim in lean times. But Chris Edgar of The Hartville Group Inc., says clients should be reminded that they’ll be even less likely to afford sudden, significant expenses during an economic recession. “The most compelling aspect of pet insurance value remains its service as a means to prevent unexpected veterinary costs, which can total hundreds or thousands of additional dollars,” Edgar says. Jules Benson of Petplan says veterinarians can encourage customers to plan for the health of their pets—and their pocketbooks—in many ways. For example, he says, reminding owners of healthy pets about common conditions that could arise years into the future can help set expectations and …
Vets Offer Tips On Keeping Pets Calm For July 4 FireworksJune 26, 2009With the Fourth of July around the corner, a day of energetic festivities often involving fireworks and loud noises, veterinarians are promoting tips on how to keep pets calm during the holiday. For instance, Rolan Tripp, DVM, founder of the Animal Behavior Network, has made available to veterinarians free lobby posters and hand outs outlining canine fireworks noise phobia. Dr. Tripp defines noise phobia as “an excessive, unreasonable fear response to specific loud noises. It is more common in dogs than cats and the most common noise phobias are to fireworks and thunder.” For mild cases (somewhat anxious) or as prevention to fireworks phobia, Tripp suggests what he calls a “Fireworks Party.” Starting around July 2 to 3 either fast, or feed only ¼ of the early meal. Then at the first faint of fireworks, pet owners respond with a happy, “It’s a fireworks party!” The pet owner then gets a treat for the dog. From there on out, every boom triggers a “party snack” until the dog “happily” waits for the next boom. “The idea is to turn the fear into joy,” Tripp said. A dog appeasing pheromone collar can also be added, he said. For …
80% Reimbursement: A Straightforward Model For Pet Health InsuranceJune 25, 2009Pets Best Insurance In an 80:20 insurance plan, the insurance carrier reimburses 80 percent of eligible veterinary costs to the insured client after the deductible. The client is responsible for his 20 percent co-payment and deductible. There may also be per-incident, annual and lifetime limits, and the client is responsible for payment if these are exceeded. An 80:20 plan provides all parties with easy to understand rules regarding how much is being covered by the insurance provider. Only then can insured pet owners adequately plan and make prudent decisions regarding pet care based on their current financial situation. This simple approach avoids surprises on reimbursement to the client and the care giver supplying the veterinary services. “Out of pocket” payments by the insured, in the form of the deductible, co-payment and over-policy limits, is necessary and vital to the entire process. Otherwise, the insured would not care about cost. A financial involvement by the insured is critically beneficial to curbing the amount and cost of services. The insured becomes a partner in the financial transaction. If, as with some human HMOs, the doctor or hospital bills the HMO provider and the patient has little or no out-of-pocket expense, there is …
Learn About Continuing EducationJune 10, 2009 When it’s time for veterinarians and staff members to log required continuing education hours, they have multiple options and even more opportunities for professional development in their areas of interest. Large national and regional conferences are wonderful places to acquire a lot of CE in a short time while networking with peers. But for those who can’t get away from the practice, there are other options as well. Short Hops Most state veterinary medical associations schedule annual conferences that may be close to home. In larger states, local associations bring the information even closer, often with evening sessions. Variety may be somewhat limited, but if your interest fits the agenda, you can spend an evening or a day or two absorbing some good education. Click here for a directory of links to state veterinary groups. Across Town Local referral practices can be a good place for CE. Emergency and specialty practices often host monthly events for their referring community, bringing in experts from sponsor companies or spotlighting their emergency clinicians and specialists. These are often evening or afternoon sessions that can easily fit the schedule of the veterinary team. John Thompson, CEO …
Developing Your Clinic’s WebsiteJune 9, 2009 When Rick Wall, DVM, graduated from veterinary school three decades ago, he had no idea that blogs and tweets would occupy his consciousness alongside spays and neuters. Now that he’s six months into the redevelopment of his four practices’ Web presence, the Woodlands, Texas, practitioner says, “I’m fascinated by this whole process. When I first started, we didn’t even have computers. Now we’re talking about a blog on our site, posting things regularly, linking to Facebook and YouTube.” As a group, veterinarians have been slow to embrace the potential marketing benefits of a fully developed website, Internet consultants say. “We still have a ways to go before veterinarians take this seriously,” notes Mark Feltz, DVM, whose company VetNetwork.com designs websites and marketing plans for practitioners. “There are practices with $2 million to $3 million facilities, with clients who pay hundreds of dollars per transaction,” Dr. Feltz says. “You can’t have it look like your fourth-grade daughter designed your website.” A clinic’s website is its front door to the world, a vital extension to word-of-mouth marketing, Internet experts say. “When people are looking for a veterinarian and get a recommendation from …
Surviving Recession Bonus: Lenders Like VetsMay 7, 2009 Follow Veterinary Practice News on Twitter at @vetpetnews. James “Chip” Mahan, CEO of Live Oak Bank in Wilmington, N.C., has good feelings about the veterinary field. “I don’t know of any other industry that made more in 2008 than in 2007 outside of veterinary medicine,” Mahan says. “Although veterinary loan applications were slow at the end of 2008, there has been an uptick in the first quarter of 2009. There are some exciting changes that help the profession, such as the elimination of the 3 1/2-point origination fee with the Small Business Administration.” Veterinarians who are rejected for a business loan tend to check out banks more savvy about the industry, Mahan says. “A lot of bankers are scared about who they lend to now and are tightening their underwriting standards,” he says. “But many of our competitors know veterinarians are a great profession to lend to.” Mark Edwards, president of BB&T Corp., an Atlanta-based lender, says fewer veterinarians are looking for start-up loans. “Those who are located in areas where the housing market was hit the hardest are feeling the greatest pain,” Edwards says. “Some veterinarians have needed extra …
CE Meets R&RApril 17, 2009 Follow Veterinary Practice News on Twitter at @vetpetnews. Sometimes you have to take a trip to realize your practice isn’t going anywhere. That revelation hit home for Al Schwartz , DVM, owner-operator of Moorpark Veterinary Hospital in Southern California, during a cruise that combined vacation travel with continuing education. He realized his business had stagnated because he had the wrong person in the role of practice manager. “Change is always scary,” Dr. Schwartz says. “I was very grateful to get the management insight to make the necessary change, otherwise the practice would have continued to suffer.” Schwartz has attended two Seminars at Sea programs–one cruise to Australia and New Zealand last year, and the other in the Caribbean in 2002. In both cases, he says, he learned a lot from the scheduled programs, “But there was also a lot of learning that went on outside the lecture halls.” Creating a relaxed atmosphere that fosters weeklong learning is the whole idea behind seminars that mix CE with R&R, says Thomas E. Catanzaro, DVM, MHA, FACHE, Diplomate, American College of Heathcare Executives, and sponsor of Seminars at Sea. Before and after the …
Lasers Financially Therapeutic, TooApril 17, 2009 Capital equipment with a five-figure price tag isn’t a likely candidate for an impulse buy. Which is why Don Nunn, DVM, pondered, contemplated and considered for, oh, almost two whole hours before he added a Class IV laser to his arsenal of therapies. “I wasn’t looking for it, but it caught my attention in the exhibit hall,” Dr. Nunn says of his introduction to laser therapy at a veterinary conference in January. “Now I’m using it every single day.” Nunn, owner-operator of Integrity Animal Hospital in Kingsland, Ga., echoes sentiments voiced by many of his laser- using contemporaries. The primary “wow” factor is the therapy’s impact on the lives of patients and clients. “The feedback I get lets me know it’s nothing short of miraculous,” Nunn says. “It just adds another dimension to the management of pain.” Nunn and others also enjoy the benefits of wow factor No. 2: The therapeutic laser can have a powerful effect on the economics of a practice. Nunn purchased LiteCure’s Companion Therapy Laser for his two-doctor small-animal practice without shopping around or doing a cost-benefit analysis. The case made by the LiteCure …
How Your Staff Helps Maintain a Happy HolidaysApril 17, 2009Follow Veterinary Practice News on Twitter at @vetpetnews. Veterinarians have long been the primary source of client education regarding holiday hazards, but in recent years practice staff has assumed an increasingly important role for many reasons: Receptionists, technicians, groomers and other staff members tend to spend more time with clients than do practitioners, who are usually too busy tending to the immediate medical needs of their patients to discuss potential holiday hazards. Often more aware of potential holiday hazards as a result of casual conversation with clients, staff are in a better position to offer immediate advice and education. Clients often feel more comfortable asking questions of staff members rather than "bothering" the veterinarian. Office staff can more efficiently distribute flyers, newsletters and other educational materials to clients who visit the clinic for routine pet care. "Even though holiday hazards are important, the topic often isn't at the top of our have-to-talk-about list," said Wayne Hunthausen, DVM, owner of Animal Behavior Consultations in Westwood, Kan. "There is so much information that [practitioners] must provide to people now, information that is usually more pertinent than holiday hazards, such as heart worms, fleas, …
