VPN Plus+ ExclusiveSix practice models to reinvigorate independent small animal practicesApril 4, 2024By Patty Khuly, VMD, MBASince independent clinics are small, we are nimble. We just have to keep thinking outside that damned box. With that in mind, here are six ideas Dr. Patty Khuly has been pondering with an eye toward spicing up how we think about independent small animal practice.
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VPN Plus+ ExclusiveAssorted findings from this year's veterinary conference seasonFebruary 22, 2024By Patty Khuly, VMD, MBATo glean a proper appreciation of an industry’s dynamics via veterinary conferences I like to take a three-pronged approach: 1) Concentrate on the periphery of the exhibition hall. 2) Interview random veterinarians and do not skip the small talk with veterinary technicians and vet students. 3) Attend panel discussions on cultural issues or practice management.
VPN Plus+ ExclusivePositivity prevails: nine resolutions for the new yearDecember 20, 2023By Patty Khuly, VMD, MBAAfter last month’s column, it was brought to my attention that my last few columns have been somewhat less than positive in their outlook on our profession; and that’s no way to end a year, is it? To wit, it is time to offer a rosier take on how to succeed in veterinary medicine.
VPN Plus+ ExclusiveAre you disappointed in your profession?November 23, 2023By Patty Khuly, VMD, MBAIt has finally happened. I’ve turned into that veterinarian: the crotchety, 30-year veteran of private practice so disillusioned by her own profession’s evolution she has begun actively planning a definitive exit strategy.
VPN Plus+ ExclusiveDo we need a mid-level veterinary 'nurse practitioner?'October 16, 2023By Patty Khuly, VMD, MBAFor camels, the desert is home. For veterinarians, it represents a hiring wasteland. “The percentage of local certified technicians is shockingly low … Tech deserts are everywhere,” Patty Khuly says. Would a title change help? Photo: Bigstock/kaikups
VPN Plus+ ExclusiveHow many new veterinary schools do we need?September 21, 2023By Patty Khuly, VMD, MBADo we really have a shortage of veterinarians? The answer is multifactorial and complex, but it certainly feels like a shortage to most of us. Yet, I can’t help but interpret the fundamental trends that fuel this feeling as stemming from fewer veterinary hours worked and decreased productivity overall—not from a lack of bodies.
VPN Plus+ ExclusiveThe correlation of veterinary compensation and mental healthAugust 17, 2023By Patty Khuly, VMD, MBAA recent article led to a long, lively discussion on how veterinarians should be paid, revealing a broad, interesting and informed range of opinions but somehow largely sidestepping the more fascinating issue: how modes of compensation may affect our profession’s mental health.
VPN Plus+ ExclusiveUnleashing the truth: challenging veterinary industry norms and embracing new opportunitiesJuly 6, 2023By Patty Khuly, VMD, MBAIt is high time I wrote a post on what you are doing all wrong and how we can all do better. However, before you come at me for my unspeakable hubris, please understand I speak from a place of love for animals on the planet of unflinching self-recrimination. In other words, if I tell you you’re doing something misguided and stupid, it’s because I figured it out after screwing it up first—and continually do.
VPN Plus+ ExclusiveHow ChatGPT technology will change your lifeMay 18, 2023By Patty Khuly, VMD, MBAChatGPT has been available since November, but it’s just now starting to hit its stride outside the nerdiest of circles. Now that it has been proclaimed a game-changer among mainstream users such as physicians, accountants, and attorneys, there’s no reason veterinarians should not be using it, too.
VPN Plus+ Exclusive12 good ways to combat bad online reviews; or worse – a targeted attackApril 28, 2023By Patty Khuly, VMD, MBAOngoing legal action hasn’t yet stopped her. Though we have successfully barred her from the premises, she has pledged to wage war online—indefinitely. It would be piteous were it not so damaging. I keep trying to put it into perspective (this is a sick person, etc.) and offer emotional support to my associate, who is bearing the brunt of it, but it is a hard thing to have to handle amid all the other stresses of life in the veterinary trenches; and handle them we must!
