New Vet Keeps Going Over My Head to the Practice OwnerMay 2, 2016A veterinary practice manager writes: We have a new veterinarian who joined the team almost a month ago. As the practice manager, I am responsible for a large portion of his induction. This involves administrative things like employment documentation, training him in our PMS, employment policies, customer service procedures and standards of care. We’ve also spoken about work schedules, annual leave, standard medications we use, etc. Most of these policies are documented and all our staff follows them. He asks questions, and I always refer to the relevant policy and explain why we do things in a certain way. He has never strongly disagreed with anything or given me the impression that he won’t follow a policy. However, on numerous occasions I have discovered that he has gone to the practice owner and questioned certain policies that I had already explained to him, hoping to get a different response. How do I explain to him that, as the practice manager, this is my responsibility and these policies and procedures have come out of lengthy discussions between the practice owner, myself and other veterinarians? He is undermining my authority …
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Give Thanks for Vet TechsApril 29, 2016 Have you gotten any thanks recently? Dr. Andy Roark and VetStreet.com are asking people to do so in this video, “5 Reasons You Should Thank a Vet Tech.” As they explain in their video description: “Veterinary technicians are the unsung heroes of vet medicine, and they're a huge part of the care and love that your pet receives when he or she is at the clinic.” So what are the five reasons? From 5 to 1, they are: 5) They have a dirty job. 4) They keep the veterinarians on track. 3) Their job can be dangerous. 2) They're highly skilled. 1) They love your pet when you can't be there. Each of the five reasons comes with a cute little example video, such as 5) below. Screencap/VetStreet.com And 3) too, featuring one angry cat. Screencap/VetStreet.com So have you been thanked today? Let us know in the comments.
#TheStruggleisReal: That’s Not What I Meant by “Joint”April 29, 2016A submission from our #TheStruggleisReal page. “I told an owner he should consider a joint supplement for his dog's stiff hips. He got real quiet like he didn't understand what I was saying, so I chimed in with ‘glucosamine’ and “chondroitin.’ He started to stammer and admitted to thinking I was suggesting medical marijuana. ‘Joint’ supplement. It took me about 5 minutes to get my laughter under control to explain my recommendation further!” Do you have a funny story you want to share! Submit it here! (All entries will be edited for clarity.)
Is Veterinary Medicine OK?April 28, 2016Over on Dr. Andy Roark’s website, they have a new blog post called “Veterinary Medicine, Are You OK?" by Sarah Boston, DVM, DVSC, Dipl ACVS. And she has this to say: “If you take a look at the recent social media posts on veterinary medicine, most of it is negative. Most of it would suggest that we are in trouble. A lot of trouble. We are unhappy with our careers and our choices. The blogs that talk about compassion fatigue, setting boundaries, work-life balance, depression, mental health issues in our profession, and general workplace misery, are the ones that resonate with our people. We can’t get enough of each other’s unhappiness because it makes us realize that we are not alone. #CompassionFatiguePorn” Now we’ve talked extensively about compassion fatigue, and have poked have some of the more miserable aspects. But Dr. Boston makes a great point in her article saying, “In the end, veterinary medicine is a job. Our lives need to be more than a job, even a great job.” Basically, our jobs shouldn’t leave …
Why Can't I Find a Job as a Vet Tech?April 25, 2016A veterinary technician writes: I have been trying to find a job as a vet tech and I’m having a difficult time. I've been on about seven interviews and got only three responses back, all saying that I was not experienced enough for the clinic. I don't know why since I've been at my clinic for more than three years and I do just about everything. The only problem is that we don't use computers (which I can learn quickly), X-rays, in-house labs and I have a very strong background in customer service. I had one interviewer tell me right away that I wasn't going to get the job because I didn't know their practice management software and that they don't have the time to train me. During the interview, I do tell them this up front and I also mention that I'm a quick learner. Is it my age? I don’t tell them how old I am because I really don't look it and don't act it? I talk it up about how I love talking with owners about their pets and other things. I'm very honest about …
10 Ways to Not be a Jerk in the Veterinary PracticeApril 25, 2016Reprinted with permission from Smart Flow Sheet. It really is quite simple to not be a jerk in veterinary medicine. Step number one, don't be a jerk. If you are not sure what not being a jerk looks like, just follow these next steps: Did you just walk past that diarrhea bomb? I didn't think so. Get back there and clean up that explosion. You are on your 15th smoke break (and you don't even smoke)? Put your phone down and get back into the game. You assume someone else is going to clean up your IV catheter mess? Not likely. Now treat this clinic like it is a 5-star resort. I hear the phone ringing. Do you hear it ringing? Help a receptionist out and answer the call. Floors don't mop themselves. Wouldn't that be nice? Fill up a bucket and get to work. You don't work well with others? Not an option! Be polite, even if it hurts. It takes you how long to fill that RX? Stop wasting time. What, you mean showing up at 8:05 isn't the same as starting …
Stats Show New Veterinarians are Smothered in DebtApril 21, 2016Figures released by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) reveal some alarming statistics about veterinary students and recent graduates. In the 2015 graduating class of about 3,000 students, the mean educational debt load was $174,060, and 223 students owed more than $300,000. Considering that the average salary for those going into practice is about $71,000, that debt will not be repaid easily. Mike Chaddock, DVM, EML, the associate dean for administration at the Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine, grasps the debt spiral. “One of the chief problems is that students often come in to veterinary school with a huge undergraduate burden of debt,” he said. “And many lenders are lending as much as students want, so students don’t think about the consequences, feeling they will just deal with it years down the line. “I’ve heard horror stories of what happens once they graduate and realize how much they truly owe.” Dennis M. McCurnin, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVS, a Louisiana State University professor emeritus who taught surgery and practice management, believes student debt is a plague …
Did I Ruin My Chances at a Promotion and a Pay Raise?April 19, 2016A veterinary employee writes: I have been employed at a hospital for just over a year now. I started in an administrative position and a couple of months ago, a management position opened up. I told the hospital owner that I am interested in this role, and she encouraged me to apply. Two months went by, and nothing has happened in regards to the position — no interviews have been conducted, no one has been hired. I inquired about it a few weeks ago, and was told that there are too many other things going on at the moment and it’s not a priority. During those two months, I have been feeling really overworked and underpaid. Well, not just underpaid, but undervalued and unappreciated. I rarely get any positive feedback, I am asked to do the work of multiple people and I am left to deal with a lot of stuff on my own. Yesterday, we were scheduled to have a team meeting. I was already having a bad morning and thinking about a lot of this stuff (no promotion, no …
Takeaways From the 2016 Veterinary Conference SeasonApril 19, 2016If you crunch the numbers on annual veterinary conference attendance, you’re likely to glean one thing above all else: January’s North American Veterinary Conference in Orlando and March’s Western Veterinary Conference in Las Vegas attract the largest share of national conference attendees in an annual locking of horns over market share within the coveted, increasingly competitive and surprisingly lucrative veterinary continuing education marketplace. No denying it: There’s no more exciting time of the year for a part-time veterinary journalist. Here’s where I get to hang out with old friends, make new ones, suck in some energizing CE and surrender to some hard-won spa time. (The Delano’s Bathhouse in Las Vegas is my all-time favorite.) What with all the attendant pomp, ceremony and trash talk (overheard, I swear), what’s not to love? Best of all, however, is the annual opportunity to assess the year’s changes in our veterinary landscape through a panoramic lens. Though we’re rarely treated to shocking revelations or earth-shattering innovations—conference sponsors will claim otherwise—there’s a constant thrum of forward motion behind all the banners, glossies and swag. Even the tricked-out booths will have a thing or two to say …
One of Those Days? How to Handle ItApril 18, 2016Reprinted with permission from Smart Flow Sheet. By now, you've definitely had one of THOSE days. The kind of day where everyone is late, everyone is grumpy, nothing is going the way it should and everything is most definitely only your fault. You'd think it would only happen in a veterinary clinic, but trust me, it happens everywhere. Now I know what you're thinking, "You can keep your list! That bottle of red wine I'm going to pick up on my way home will fix anything!" But alas, being one of THOSE days, you will inevitably be getting out late and the store will already be closed. So, here are some alternatives. 1. Leaving Baggage at the Door We've all heard this one before. However, it is absolutely true. Leaving your baggage from home at the door before you walk in can give you the best focus on your day ahead. A bad day at home should not greatly impact your day at the vet clinic and vice versa. It is just as important to get your frustrations from work out of …
