PetVet Magazine August/September 2021

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VOL. 4 ED.5 • AUGUST /SEPTEMBER 2021

REASONS Vet Students Should

pursue business

EDUCATION HOW DO

Veterinarians stay healthy?

(OUR PATIENTS MAY HAVE THE ANSWER!)

DR. JASON COE

relationships

ARE AT THE HEART OF VETERINARY CARE

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AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 2021

CONTENTS

A Practical Guide for Pet Health Professionals

4 PetVet Advisory Board

REASONS

5 Veterinarian Life Advice 6 3 Important Takeaways from The New AVMA Companion Animal Aftercare Policy

Vet Students Should

PURSUE BUSINESS EDUCATION

10 How Do Veterinarians Stay Healthy? (Our Patients May Have the Answer) 18 Worry Less Serve More 22 Worth Their Weight in Gold: Developing Priceless Team Members

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26 Developing the Veterinary Drugs I Wish I Had Years Ago 32 PetVet 10: 10 Things to Do This Month Inquiries info@barkleigh.com (717) 691-3388 Editorial rebecca@barkleigh.com Advertising james@barkleigh.com

DR. JA SON COE Relationships Are At the Heart of Veterinary Care

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@PetVet_Magazine

Copyright August 2021. PetVet Magazine is published bimonthly by Barkleigh Productions, Inc, 970 West Trindle Road, Mechanicsburg PA 17055. Postmaster: Send change of address to Pet Vet Magazine c/o Barkleigh Productions, Inc., 970 West Trindle Road, Mechanicsburg PA 17055. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission of the publisher.

Editorial offices: 970 West Trindle Road, Mechanicsburg PA 17055. (717) 691–3388 FAX (717) 691–3381 Email: info@barkleigh.com

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ADVISORY BOARD

Meet our EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD!

Courtney A. Campbell DVM, DACVS-SA

PetVet’s advisory board is here to help ensure quality content to motivate & educate Veterinarians and their staff.

Jenifer Chatfield DVM, Dipl. ACZM, Dipl.

ACVPM

“My passions ultimately drove me towards becoming a veterinarian, but when I was growing up I briefly flirted with the idea of becoming a magician.

As a veterinarian, the ability to save lives, keep animals healthy, and strengthen the human– animal bond makes me realize there’s nothing more magical than that.”

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“People should be so lucky as to get to be a veterinarian. The broad-based education empowers us to be successful in multiple fields and affords us the opportunity to choose how we spend our professional time.”

STAFF

Executive Editor Rebecca Shipman

Publisher Barkleigh Productions, Inc.

Art Director Laura Pennington

President Todd Shelly

Senior Graphic Designer Jenn Barraclough

Vice President Gwen Shelly

Web Master Luke Dumberth

Chief Operations Officer Adam Lohr

Marketing Consultant Alex Hammersla

Julie Legred CVT “I have worked in many areas of veterinary medicine and veterinary technology over the last thirty five years, and it is amazing how far our profession has grown and paved the way for the betterment of animals' lives and happiness, as well as improving public health issues. It is an honor for me to be a part of this advisory board to offer additional education and opportunities to grow in our profession.”

Director of Marketing & Client Relations James Severs

Lisa Powell DVM, DACVECC “I have had the privilege of working with a variety of animals in my career and my passion has allowed me to be involved in teaching veterinary students, interns, residents and other veterinarians. I continue to enjoy going to work every day to help critically ill dogs and cats, and love the client interactions as well. I am proud to be a part of this advisory board to help teach and spread my love for this profession to others in the veterinary community.”

Kathryn Primm, DVM, CVPM “Animals mean so much to the human condition. It is my privilege to make lives better every day! I cannot imagine myself in any other career.”

Administrative / Marketing Assistant Karin Grottola Social Media / PR Coordinator Evan Gummo

PETVET MAGAZINE

Veterinary medicine is a team sport.

.

VETERINARIAN LIFE ADVICE

The more we get together around shared goals, shared knowledge, mutual respect and frequent, timely, accurate communication, the

the happier a veterinary team will be.

Placing your focus on teamwork benefits everyone!

— Jason B Coe, DVM, PhD PETVET MAGAZINE

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3

business trends

Important

takeaways from The New AVMA Companion Animal Aftercare Policy

By Alexandra Yaksich, BSc, AHT

W

e all want to see the progression of animal welfare and to increase the standard of our veterinary practice. Often, our daily choices can affect this in ways we may not intuitively consider. As we progress as a culture, we gather more information on what the people want in a broader sense and how we can better serve our clients and patients.

Taking this cultural progression into account, the AVMA created a new policy on aftercare that affects us all. We can now be held accountable for the aftercare providers we choose. The AVMA has adapted their guidelines to the evolution of the human-animal bond and it starts out by small actions that can have a ripple effect bigger than we can imagine.

In 2008, Dr. Bernard Rollin, a professor of biomedical sciences and philosophy of animal welfare, set out to eliminate the sow stalls that were being used as breeding factories for pigs. The first time he had ever encountered one, he was shocked. He was taken aback by the utter lack of moral treatment of animals, and right then and there he made a promise to himself that he would do whatever was in his power to eliminate that style of farming.

Instead of going through legislative power, his strategy was to show big businesses that their customers despised that style of practice. He marched into Smithfield, the largest pork producer at the time, and challenged them to poll their customers. “What will we find?” They asked. “You will find 75% rejection of this style of farming,” he replied.1 They called him back six months later to inform him, 6

“Actually, it was 78%.” Seventy eight percent of the public does not like this.

So why keep giving it to them?

The genius in the way Dr. Rollin strategized was that he simply asked people for their opinions and Smithfield stopped using that style of sow stalls. Actions like this have a large effect on the industry as a whole. We are progressing culturally, and the relevance of public opinion is something we will come back to when we look at the third point in the policy.

Our perception of the human-animal bond worldwide has strongly evolved in the last decade, and the AVMA took the lead in bringing a policy to frame our practice of aftercare.

Here are the three main points from the AVMA Companion Animal Aftercare Policy, some examples of how they work and how they can affect you:

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1. “Veterinarians must understand that they may be responsible and may be held accountable for the aftercare provider they recommend.”* The International Association of Pet Cemeteries and Crematories (IAOPCC) told Stephen Dubner of the Freakonomics podcast that 10 years ago, only a handful of facilities specialized in pet aftercare. There is now a vast increase in the number of pet aftercare facilities to complement the ever-increasing number of pet owners.

However, there is limited legislation in this industry and it varies substantially.

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With so much emotion surrounding death and aftercare, along with the increase in number and size of aftercare providers, it makes us wonder what the margins of error are. Have you, yourself, ever visited a pet cremation facility?

Freakonomics hosts investigated this issue.2 They wanted to know, are we indeed getting the appropriate ashes back when we take our beloved pets to the crematorium?

To investigate this, they created a fake cat. They took fur from a rabbit, stuffed it with hamburger meat and named it Stevie.

As there were no bones in Stevie, the amount of ashes returned to them should be minimal compared to normal cremains.

Crematoriums should likely flag this, as the second step in cremation is to crush the bones, a process called “cremulation.”

They sent a version of Stevie to three crematoriums to see what they would get back. For each one, they received bone ash in the cremains. How is this possible?

None of the crematoriums gave an explanation of how there could be bone fragments in the ashes. The Freakonomics team sent all of their data to the attorney general’s office and will update the viewers in the event this is pursued.

In line with an increasing number of pet parents and their concern, it is clear there are issues in the aftercare industry.

The AVMA Policy is there to guide us and help prevent such traumatizing events.

One reason there will be more accountability on the part of the veterinarian is because the IAOPCC decided to conduct a mock trial in the event of cremation fraud to see what the peoples’ perspectives are and how they would be judged in a court setting. In the trial, jurors ruled in favor of the prosecution in all counts, with a total of $3.5 million dollars in punitive damages. The jurors charged the veterinary clinic damages for not going out to check on the crematorium.

The public is clear that they don’t take cremation fraud lightly. So it is important we hold crematoriums to a high standard.

The AVMA goes on to say, “Aftercare providers you work with or refer clients to should be seen to always handle pets with

dignity and respect.”

The interesting part about the mock trial is that it shows veterinary facilities will likely be held accountable for any indiscretion on their part. To this point, the AVMA took the lead again in pointing it out in their policy that it is a very real possibility that the facilities can face damages—something to keep in mind the next time you name your crematorium.

It is also notable to mention that in many cases, crematory providers are sometimes chosen on the price of their service. Many veterinarians and vet teams likely have not visited a crematorium, though we send deceased pets to them every week.

2. “Encourage prior planning so that owners are aware of their options and can easily communicate their preferences. Pre-planning can be offered by the veterinarian or delegated to the aftercare facility.”*

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The power of pre-planning for euthanasia is exceptional in that it gives the owners a chance to both prepare and begin to cope with the loss of their companion. It often empowers owners as they face the circumstance of loss. Opening a dialogue about this also gives them the time to think about what they want in terms of the appointment itself, when it

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should occur and aftercare options.

The Companion Animal Euthanasia Training Academy suggests a few points to consider for the appointment:3 • Where to gather (home, hospital, favorite place) • When it should take place (before a crisis, when loved ones will be able to attend) • Who should be there (family and friends, children, other pets) • What special touches to include (music, photos, ceremonies) • How the aftercare will be managed (personal preference of crematorium, cemetery or memorialization) Many people do not know what to expect with regard to the euthanasia appointment. A pre-euthanasia appointment is useful in helping map out the experience and inform clients of what to expect on the day of their appointment. These appointments provide time to discuss pre-planning for aftercare options.

3. Companion animal veterinarians should […] provide adequate containment of the remains.”* This can be interpreted in a variety of ways, but it’s safe to say we are phasing out the use of plastic bags to

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store remains in. As anyone who works in a medical field knows, we have all witnessed our fair share of less-than-pleasant sights. The status-quo cannot be the definition of “adequate.” Pet parents are trusting us to protect their companions so we must keep dignity intact. The use of an appropriate body bag is not only dignified but symbolic. Think of all the extra effort we put in for our patients, but when it comes to how the body is handled after death, the same standards do not apply.

According to a survey conducted with pet owners in July, 2019, 86% of pet owners consider proper containment important.4 There are more options available now to satisfy this market problem and pet parents all over are feeling the difference.

The AVMA writes “[…] veterinarians should handle animal remains in a sensitive manner, such that it is not unnecessarily disturbing to the owner

or any other person with a valid reason to see the remains.” They go on to say, “Deceased pets, whenever possible, should be maintained in a condition suitable for return to the owner or to the aftercare providers such that families may witness their pets’ aftercare.”

Further, “the sensitive handling of pet remains is an important aspect of veterinary practice.” This adds to our code of ethics as well as professionalism as a whole.

Like our friend Dr. Rollin, a veterinarian was curious about asking clients what their preferences were on aftercare of their pets. In a recent study by Dr. Kathy Cooney, she showed that the majority of people found it unacceptable that animals were placed in garbage bags.5 Much like Dr. Rollin, it begs the question: The majority of the public does not like this…so why are we giving it to them?

The perception of the human-animal bond is evolving, and decisions to adhere to these higher-order guidelines help

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us to create a world that treats all life with respect and protects its dignity. It is something we all intuitively know, yet we must work hard to achieve. We already know what the right thing to do is and the AVMA is helping us get there. To paraphrase a concept by the philosopher Plato: we do not teach, simply, we remind. 

You can find the main policy detailed here: https://www.avma.org/sites/default/files/ resources/AWFAftercareBrochure.pdf *Companion Animal Aftercare Policy by the AVMA is subject to the CC BY-NCND license.

Alexandra Yaksich wears many hats: she is a veterinary technician, writer of all things veterinary, and helps clinics build their practices. Alexandra is on a mission to dispel myths in the animal health industry and create solutions available to both clinic staff and pet owners. Follow her educational and informative Instagram @alexandra. yaksich and on LinkedIn.

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1. PRMR, P. R. (2014), https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=HzOH_Mm7hEM 2. Dubner, (2013), https://freakonomics. com/podcast/the-troubled-cremation-of-steviethe-cat-a-new-freakonomics-radio-podcast/ 3. CAETA,(2019), https://caetainternational. com/making-pre-euthanasia-arrangements/ 4. Euthabag, (2021), https:// static1.squarespace.com/ static/56473d98e4b0b493dee0ea49/t/5efb af3e670b5d4f87aa2c1f/1593552703770/ Sondage+pet+owner+EN+US+2020+WEB. pdf 5. Cooney, K. B. (2021), https:// www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/ S193897362030101X

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lifestyle

HOW DO

VETERiNARiANS

STA TAY HEALT L HY? (Our Patients May Have The Answer!)

By Courtney Campbell DVM, DACVS-SA

V

eterinarians work long hours, routinely have close contact with multiple clients a day (or multiple clients in an hour) and frequently miss valuable hours of sleep. Despite this intensity, there is an imperative for veterinarians to be clear-headed and sharp in their practice.

The ability of some veterinarians to blast through the day while maintaining a positive attitude and maintaining their health is a mystifying feat. The level of physiological stress from the grueling work week potentiates the risk of illness from pathogens outside and inside the practice, including zoonoses.

So, how are so many veterinarians able to maintain such a rigorous schedule caring for the sick without getting sick themselves?

Well, the answer may lie in an ethos that undergirds the entire veterinary profession: Human health is closely connected to animal health and our shared environment.

Not only do veterinarians strive to maintain animal health, but safeguarding human health is also supremely important—including protecting the health of the veterinary healthcare workforce.

Keeping the veterinary medical team healthy not only allows more animals to be treated, but it is also an integral component of public health. A healthy veterinary team promotes wellness and a more sustainable professional life.

Veterinarians already employ a myriad of methods to help keep our patients healthy; however, these techniques and practices are not just for our patients. These same techniques can be used for 10

ourselves…albeit in a different form. Essentially, the preventative strategies that veterinarians espouse for our patients may also be the key to keeping ourselves healthy.

PHYSiCAL FiTNESS For Us: Exercise has long been understood to be one of key tenets to maintain both physical and mental health. For busy veterinarians, finding the time and energy to exercise can be a struggle. How much exercise is enough and does it really help to protect us from physical illness?

The science of exercise immunology concludes that there is a link between moderate exercise and a strong immune system for humans. However, the effects that vigorous exercise has on your immune system are less conclusive. Research indicates that the health benefits to exercise for humans mainly lie in the consistency. When moderate exercise is repeated on a near-daily basis, there is a cumulative effect that leads to long-term immune response. Research shows that individuals who walk 40 minutes per day at 70% to 75% of their VO2 max experience half as many sick days due to sore throats or colds as people who don’t exercise.1 If you’re having trouble staying consistent with your workouts, kick-start your exercise regimen by adding variety. Change your running route,

PETVET MAGAZINE

try a new HIIT workout app, keep pace with and learn new workouts from your favorite YouTube fitness athlete, or you can even download a new fitness app that you can share with your coworkers so they can hold you accountable during your fitness journey.

For Our Patients: Veterinarians evangelize about the benefits of exercise for our patients. Depending on their health status and activity level, veterinarians may go as far as to prescribe a physical fitness program as it is well known that being moderately overweight may decrease an animal’s lifespan and increase the risk of inflammatory conditions like arthritis and other conditions. Prior to starting an exercise program, a full orthopedic exam can be performed to uncover any musculoskeletal conditions so the exercise program can be tailored appropriately.

Five components of a balanced exercise program for veterinary patients include flexibility, proprioception, strength, balance and stamina. No matter what the breed or the physical ability of the animal is, these components can be incorporated into any exercise program.

One Health: Both veterinarians and their patients can

stay healthy during exercise by incorporating a warm-up prior to any physical activity. A warm-up is important for both people and animals. During the warm-up period, blood flow to the muscles increases (which carries additional oxygen and nutrients) and muscle temperature increases. Warm muscles have a greater force of contraction and greater speed of relation. The power and speed by which the muscles contract is greater and it also mitigates the dangers of overstretching.

Warm tissues help to avoid the perils of the “Weekend Warrior Syndrome” which can include muscle strains and sprains.

When muscles, ligaments, tendons and fascia are warm, they are more elastic and have a greater range of motion.

For us, a good warm-up could include a brisk walk, low-intensity movements and some stretching. For animals, it may include trotting for five to ten minutes, changing direction and moving in concentric circles. Sit-to-stand and stand-to-down exercises are also great low-impact warm-up exercises. A vigorous rub-down or massage at the end of the exercise is a great way to end the activity for us and animals as well.

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ALONE TiME For Us: If you ask a

veterinarian when the last time was that they spent time alone, they might be able to remember a few precious seconds of solitude in the middle of the day. Whether you’re surrounded by people or animals in need, the work day doesn’t allow you any time to be by yourself. However, alone time should be considered precious because it can be richly beneficial for a veterinarian’s peace of mind. In fact, the daily engagement of the staff can be so intense that everyone involved in the veterinary healthcare team is likely to benefit from some quiet time.

Science also corroborates the truism that time by yourself is beneficial. After a busy work day surrounded by people and animals, your productivity may shift towards a personal project. Studies indicate

that being surrounded by people reduces productivity.2 So, with a little privacy, people will perform better, and also help veterinarians practice better medicine.

Perhaps you’re stumped by a complex case, or you would like to spark the idea for a new innovative invention, practicing solitude may trigger creativity. Similar to how a novelist or an artist looks to escape the cacophony of a busy environment to maximize their creativity, the same spirit applies to veterinarians. When you’re alone with your thoughts, your mind may explore some weird and wonderful places.

Being alone with your thoughts gives your brain a chance to wander, which can help you become more creative.

Veterinarians often don’t get much longer than ninety seconds to establish rapport with their patients. In that tiny window, they have a mandate to make clients feel comfortable and understood and to gain their trust. That interaction is vitally important because the veterinarian is entrusted to protect the life of one of

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For Our Patients: There are different manifestations of alone time for animals. One technique that has been popularized is mat training. Mat training for our patients is loosely analogous to our alone time. In addition to fostering a spirit of independence, teaching an animal to relax on a designated mat can help to settle them mentally—particularly during episodes of excitement, anxiety and fear.

In a similar fashion, some animals need an escape from the raucousness of children or the unfamiliarity of strangers.

Many animals begin to regard this mat as their “safe place” when the doorbell rings or if there is a rapidly-approaching thunderstorm. Eventually the mat becomes a place both inside and outside of the home for an animal to seek out on their own. As time progresses, the location of the mat can be changed (i.e., placed in a different room or the car) so that the mat is the centerpiece of relaxation regardless of the environment.

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their species-diverse family members. The pressure of that responsibility can mount throughout the day and solitude can help you relieve that pressure. Solitude can be cathartic because it allows you to connect with your thoughts, opinions and emotions free from other people’s judgement and expectations.

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relaxing by a fireplace while reading a book with a pet nearby conjures images of peace and tranquility. The ability to simply enjoy a good book while your pet is in the room is an aspirational experience for many overworked veterinarians.

Relaxation, peace and creative exploration can be enhanced by having animals around you. For some, alone time doesn’t mean free from all animals and people; it just means that you want to have the right animals and people in your space that promote calm.

It has been shown that petting animals and being in their presence lowers

stress and blood pressure for both parties. Closing the door on stress opens the window for imagination and inspiration. Alone time not only benefits us, but it can be a boon to animals as well.

PREVENTiON For Us: In the midst of a pandemic, terminologies that may have existed before but were now thrust into the spotlight included “essential” and “frontline” workers. The definition of “essential workers’’ used by the CDC comprises nearly 70 percent of the American workforce, including grocery store clerks, emergency responders, medical professionals and veterinary healthcare personnel. Essential workers and frontline workers were among the first to be prioritized for the Covid vaccine to decrease the spread of infection among people.

To prevent getting sick from other people (including pet parents), a similar syllogism applies when considering the flu vaccine. Many medical professionals consider getting the flu vaccine each year because although it doesn’t provide 100% immunity, it helps the fight against acquiring the infection from other people.

The influenza (flu) vaccine can not only prevent illness that may cause a week or more of misery, it can reduce the likelihood of hospitalization in children and death in adults, according to two analyses of the CDC. Moreover, a meta-analysis—one of the most powerful methodological tools—supports current season vaccination regardless of prior vaccination history.3 Whether or not you plan on receiving the flu vaccine to protect yourself from other people, for veterinarians, the concern is greater than that. Veterinarians also have to protect themselves from animals. For dangerous zoonotic pathogens, hygiene remains the cornerstone of prevention.

Some transmissible diseases and pathogens have no vaccine and therefore use signs to keep you

faithful to washing your hands religiously.

Common items that rarely get disinfected include the stethoscope, clipboards and keyboards. Many veterinarians are so busy that they eat lunch at their desk (for those who actually have an opportunity to eat lunch) and continue to touch surfaces including their phone and computer.

To help protect yourself from dangerous pathogens, ensure that those surfaces are wiped down and sanitized at least once a day. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth; they are gateways that allow bacteria and viruses access to your body.

For our Patients: Preventing the spread of infectious disease is difficult and veterinarians need every tool in the preventive arsenal to keep animals healthy.

Vaccination remains one of the bedrocks of preventive veterinary medicine. Viruses and bacteria are extremely crafty and constantly evolving. Despite rigorous efforts and novel design strategies aimed at eradicating disease, infectious agents still can be opportunistic invaders in the absence of diligent prevention strategies.

Partly what makes fighting these organisms so challenging is the complexity of each infectious agent, their movement (transmission mode), their ability to jump from pet to pet (infectivity) and their ability to cause serious illness (pathogenicity and virulence). Individual-, populationand environmental-variability between pets makes the fight against these diseases more difficult. Importantly, some of these bacteria and viruses can cause illness in veterinarians or in their families which only further highlights the importance of vigilance and protection.

One Health: Both veterinarians and their patients can benefit from a laser-like focus on parasite prevention, vaccination and diligent hygiene.

Conclusion Staying healthy is challenging regardless PETVET MAGAZINE

of the species. The main pillars of wellness in both veterinarians and their patients can be remarkably similar. The stress levels and sociability between veterinarians and animals are different in scope and detail, but the effect on the immune system can be profound.

Veterinarians are remarkably selfless.

The daily focus of the veterinary healthcare team is on patient care and public health, so sometimes our personal health can take a backseat. Instead of choosing between our health versus our patients’ health—or worse, neglecting our personal health for the sake of our patients’—we can learn from the recommendations we make as veterinarians to help keep both our patients and ourselves healthy. 

References 1. Sreenath S. Exercise and immune system. International Journal of Physical Education, Sports, and Health. 2017; 4(1): 200-202.

2. Workspace satisfaction: The privacycommunication trade-off in open-plan offices. Journal of Environmental Psychology, Volume 36, December 2013: 18-26 3. The impact of repeated vaccination on influenza vaccine effectiveness: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Medicine.

LC Ramsay, SA Buchan, RG Stirling, et al.

January 2019.

Dr. Courtney A. Campbell has enjoyed a career as a board certified veterinary surgeon and a veterinary journalist.

Dr. Campbell specializes in orthopedic, soft tissue, and minimally invasive surgery. He currently practices at VetSurg, a specialty surgical practice in Ventura, California. On the media landscape, Dr. Campbell is a host of two podcasts, author, and daytime television veterinary medical correspondent. He is also a member of four organizations that are committed to creating a more pluralistic veterinary profession including the AVMA DEI Commission, ACVS DEI Commission, the DVMC and Pawsibilities VetMed. 13

Best practices

REASONS

Vet Students Should PURSUE BUSINESS EDUCATION

A

s a first-year veterinary student, I chose to join the Veterinary Business Management Association (VBMA) at UPenn. That decision has had the single biggest impact on my career to date.

When I started vet school, I planned to pursue an internship, surgical residency and ultimately become a practice owner. My career path didn’t end up going that direction, but the people I met and skills I learned through the VBMA have aided me at every twist and turn along the way.

Here are five reasons why business education is an important part of your veterinary journey:

1. Build your professional network.

You’ve probably heard that the vet profession is “a small world,” and “it’s not about what you know, it’s who you know.” I never realized just how true those sayings were until I began exploring opportunities for writing and speaking. Introductions from colleagues I knew well and reconnecting with old acquaintances smoothed my path into that world.

Ultimately, you may think you know where your career is headed, but interests, goals and lifestyles change over time. Having a diverse network of professionals in the veterinary industry can be advantageous as you explore different options over time. This network may include veterinarians, fellow veterinary students (who will become your future colleagues), veterinary technicians, practice managers, industry representatives and other professionals such as lawyers, financial planners and accountants who can help you succeed. Business education provides an introduction to these individuals and teaches you how to network effectively.

2. Prepare for the job hunt and learn to negotiate.

By Kate Boatright, VMD

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I was fortunate to find a clinic with exceptional mentorship to start my career. The job search skills, resume writing workshops, interview preparation and negotiation tips I learned through VBMA events PETVET MAGAZINE

No matter what area of veterinary medicine you end up in,

you will be communicating with other people – even if it isn’t a client in an exam room or on a farm. were instrumental in helping me find and land this job. Though I was nervous, I felt well prepared for my job hunt and knew how to set myself apart from other candidates during my interview. Certainly, my

medical training was a part of this, but I knew how to best present myself and my skillset effectively.

The job offer is just the beginning.

Negotiating for what you want and what

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you are worth—including pay, benefits, schedule and mentorship—lays the foundation for job satisfaction. Negotiation can be intimidating. Having the opportunity to practice these skills and gain an understanding of what industry standards are can help you succeed when it comes time to have these important conversations with your future employer.

3. Enhance your communication skills.

I love talking to clients, colleagues, staff, students…and pretty much anyone else who will listen. But even if you love talking like I do, you have to develop communication skills. There is a difference between talking and communicating.

Effective communication means having a conversation, knowing when to ask questions of the other person, when to stop and listen, and when to pause to allow everyone time to think.

No matter what area of veterinary medicine you end up in, you will be communicating with other people—even if it isn’t a client in an exam room or on a farm. While communication training has increased in the core curriculum of many veterinary schools, you can never have too much. Being exposed to different communication styles and strategies for managing different situations (e.g., delivering a poor prognosis or discussing finances and making medical recommendations) is invaluable to your success as a new veterinarian.

4. Get comfortable with leadership.

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You know what comes along with your veterinary degree? A presumption of leadership. No matter where you work, you will be looked to as an expert and a leader by your staff and clients. You don’t have to work in a clinic for years or be a practice owner to be seen as a leader. I didn’t realize

as a new grad how true this was until a trusted technician pointed out to me that the attitudes and decisions of all the doctors in the clinic impacted the staff’s morale and confidence on a daily basis.

Some people seem to be natural-born leaders, but everyone has leadership potential. Business education includes leadership training and helps you to understand the importance of skills like goal-setting, delegation and how to give effective feedback.

5. Become a stronger associate by understanding business operations.

It can be difficult to accept the financial limitations of clients—especially when it restricts the amount of care you can offer a patient—but veterinary clinics are a business, and it is essential to understand this. By no means does this make our profession “all about the money,” as we are sometimes accused. Having an associate who understands these facts and who has a

basic understanding of business operations (e.g., how prices are set, the impact of discounts and missed charges, and basic inventory management) is an asset to the practice owner and management team.

Additionally, by understanding business operations, you can be more effective when suggesting changes to protocols, the addition of new services, or requesting new medications or equipment.

A new grad colleague of mine recently shared how they convinced their clinic to invest in an ultrasound unit because they presented a plan for how to charge clients for the service and a timeline for turning this piece of equipment into a profitable part of the practice.

The current market for veterinary associates is wide open. But, it hasn’t always been this way and presumably won’t stay this way forever. Taking steps as a student to make yourself an exceptional candidate can only benefit you. Pursue education in business, communication and other

non-clinical skills during your veterinary education. And since many schools do not include much of this training in their core curriculum, externships and extracurriculars, such as the VBMA, are a must. For more information on the VBMA, visit www.vbma.biz Dr. Kate Boatright is a 2013 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania.

She currently works as a part-time small animal general practitioner and freelance speaker and author in western Pennsylvania. Her clinical interests include feline medicine, surgery, internal medicine and emergency.

Dr. Boatright is passionate about mentorship and wants to see the veterinary profession move toward a more positive and sustainable future. Outside of the clinic, she is active in the AVMA, and her state and local VMAs. In 2011, she served as the VBMA National Vice President and was a founding member of the VBMA Alumni Committee.

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PETVET MAGAZINE

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beyond the stethoscope

LESS MORE

By Angela Demaree, DVM, MPH, CHPC

W

hy did you enter the veterinary profession? Was it to help people and their pets, ensure a safe and humane food supply, or prevent the spread of zoonotic disease?

Perhaps it was something else entirely.

However, was your reason to be of service in some way?

If we entered this profession to serve, when did the worry, stress and anxiety step into the picture? After all, that wasn’t part of the plan.

Scroll through your social media channels and you will easily find the stress and overwhelm plaguing the veterinary profession front and center. So, how do we change course to live happier, more fulfilling lives?

No matter where you find yourself today, I challenge you to raise your ambition for a better future. Ambition is not a four-letter word. Ambition is the motivation that drives us to serve more and live a more vibrant, fully-charged life. Isn’t it a good thing to be happier and more joyous around our family, friends, clients and patients?

Here are a few science-based ideas on how you can easily hack your brain and start living that vibrant life of purpose you desire

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and deserve. If you are reading this thinking, “Nah, I’m good,” these are also easy ways to kick the happiness, joy, life satisfaction and career impact up a notch, too.

1. Let go of perfection and change perspective.

There is a reason it’s called the practice of medicine; mistakes will happen. That’s why it’s essential to take time and ask yourself each day, “What might trip me up and how would my best self handle that situation?”

We can never know what will go wrong, but if we constantly worry about what might happen, that’s a clue. If that big scary worry monster did happen, how would you adapt and overcome that situation? Who can help you navigate that situation more effectively?

I learned this the hard way while running for office. I pressed myself to do every interview, even though I didn’t feel ready. I wanted to support a local high school newsroom and agreed to an on-camera interview, during which, I forgot a very simple and basic term in the middle of my sentence. It just flew out of my head. A total deer-in-the-headlights look was caught on

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Have a and learn from your setbacks. camera, and it’s still up on YouTube to this day. It was one of my most embarrassing moments.

A few years later, I worked a veterinary relief shift and met a young man who shared with me that he had googled my name when he saw I was the doctor on the schedule. He watched that embarrassing interview and shared that he didn’t even really notice my mistake, loved the message that I shared and wished he had lived closer to help me during the campaign.

Wow! My most embarrassing moment was one of his most inspiring moments.

If you do your very best in every moment, you should be proud of your efforts and keep working to improve your skillsets. Simply asking, “How might others view this more positively?” can help you see things from another perspective and flip that situation on its head. Or perhaps you can remember a time when you were in a similar

20

situation—reminding yourself of how you overcame obstacles in the past can set you on a more positive trajectory for the future.

Do you want to feel more motivated each day to tackle that difficult task? Having a growth mindset and learning from setbacks could be related to intrinsic motivation and help you do just that.1

2. Keep positive thoughts at the forefront of your mental dashboard.

The research is clear on this one. Bryan Sexton’s research out of Duke University revealed that a mere 14 consecutive days of identifying three things each day that went well and how you were involved in each favorable outcome had long-lasting, positive results.2 This intervention may be more effective than selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) to treat provider burnout and depression.3

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It seems crazy that something so simple can have such profound results; but hey, who are we to argue with science? The brain is amazing and has neuroplasticity so we can retrain and hack our brains to feel more positive emotions, even on the most challenging days. Having a more positive mindset enables us to make better decisions for the clients and patients we serve.

long-lasting and positive effects on our mental health for up to a year after only two weeks of this daily practice.

If you can’t find ten more minutes in your day, here’s a time-neutral way to fit these hacks into your busy day: Trade ten minutes of social media consumption to find time for this activity and see how good it feels to recognize yourself for a job well done. 

3. Stop Comparing.

References:

Social media can be a great tool to connect with friends and promote our businesses; however, it can also be detrimental to our wellbeing when we see photos of everyone’s vacations and impeccably clean homes. But really, who is going to take a picture of their foyer after a week or month’s worth of mail and Amazon packages have piled up?

You have a unique voice and perspective that the world needs right now more than ever. When you feel like you don’t fit in or aren’t like everyone else, remind yourself that you offer an important perspective and are a valuable team member. After all, if you weren’t there, your unique voice and perspective wouldn’t be there to advocate for your patients’ wellbeing either.

Often, uncertainty and stress can arise from simply not living in alignment with our values or trying too hard to be like everyone else to fit into any given situation. Others don’t need to appreciate or like you for you to appreciate you.

The three good things (3GT) practice described above can help here, too.

When we focus and pay attention to all of the good we are creating in the world, there’s less time for stress, worry or playing the comparison game.

Researchers found that limiting social media use, across all platforms, to 30 minutes or less per day resulted in an improved sense of wellbeing.4 Spending just ten minutes a day thinking or journaling about the three good things that happened today and how we were a part of that can have

1. Ng, B. (2018, January 26). The Neuroscience of Growth Mindset and Intrinsic Motivation. Brain sciences. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/ articles/PMC5836039/ 2. Roth, B. (n.d.). Three Easy Ways to Find Your Resilience. Duke Today. https://today.duke.edu/2016/02/resilience 3. Sexton, J. B., & Adair, K. C. (2019, March 1). Forty-five Good Things.

BMJ Open. https://bmjopen.bmj.com/ content/9/3/e022695

4. Holmes, L. (2018, November 14). This Is How Much Time You Should Spend On Social Media Per Day. HuffPost. https://www.huffpost.com/ entry/how-much-time-on-social-media_n _5be9c148e4b0783e0a1a8281 Dr. Angela Demaree is the CEO and Principal Consultant for PAWS Consulting, a public health and political consulting firm. Angela recently retired as a Major in the United States Army Reserves, is a Certified High Performance CoachTM and the host of Beyond the Stethoscope, the podcast for veterinarians and busy professionals who want actionable, implementable solutions surrounding work-life balance, accomplishing your goals and living your dreams. She spends her free time with her horse, Tommy and teaching her Quaker Parrot the Purdue Fight Song. You can connect with Angela on Twitter and LinkedIn @DemareeDVM.

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team management

Developing Priceless Team Members

By Louise S. Dunn

I

n a veterinary practice, one of your most substantial expenses is your team—yet they are also one of your greatest assets. Having poor performers on your team not only reduces your assets, but it also raises your expenses. It’s important to take some time to polish your team into “shining assets” for successful patient care and business growth.

We often forget about our team, paying more attention to those “priceless” puppies or that “priceless” Mrs. Smith (yes, sometimes said with sarcasm). Even though we have been told how important the team is to the success of the practice, have we really spent much time assessing, acquiring or developing this critical asset?

What is Gold Worth?

We all love having that invaluable team member.

You know the one—irreplaceable; worth their weight in gold—if you could clone them you would have done so years ago. Does that priceless team member just show up at your door? Alternatively, is it possible to develop that type of team member within your current ranks? What if you could initiate certain activities that would lead to engaged team members, innovative thinkers and strong leaders? Would you jump at the chance to develop an entire team of “priceless gems,” or do you simply hope they will walk through your door?

It is essential to look at this vital aspect of your 22

business—that primary asset for delivering services and bonding with the clients—no, not technology, but instead, your team members. We often pay more attention to metrics detailing technology, services offered and client satisfaction while ignoring the fact that the employee plays an intricate role in the success of those metrics. Ignoring the team can cost you money.

Diamond in the Rough Your team members are gems just waiting to shine.

For some, you knew their worth as soon as you hired them. For others, it was a process wherein they developed over the years. And yes, there are some that you almost consider a lump of clay that may never take shape. So, what tools and techniques are available to you to mold that clay or polish that gem?

Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos, is quoted as saying, “In addition to trying to ‘WOW’ our customers, we also try to ‘WOW’ our employees….We believe that this creates a virtuous circle, and in our own way, we’re making the world a better place to live.”

Wowing your clients requires effort on your part, such as monitoring the level of their engagement and learning what their needs are so you can make changes to your practice to satisfy them. But what about your team members? Can you wow them? And how much effort must you exert to polish them?

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[ [ To polish your “diamonds in the rough,” it will be helpful to use three toolboxes:

TRAINING/DEVELOPING NETWORKING CONTRIBUTING TO PURPOSEFUL WORK

Polishing and wowing the team is more than merely making sure they are happy. Disengaged employees hurt client satisfaction and business productivity.

Therefore, all those efforts to analyze your services and client satisfaction are a waste of time if you have the wrong people on your team.

practice are made known for developing talent to carry out those initiatives.

Your networking toolbox is all about staying connected. Consider tools for connecting employees with each other and with the business via mobile access and specific social media tools. For example, time and attendance apps for your team where you make the schedule available online and the team can track changes in business scheduling needs, respond to any scheduling change requests and monitor their attendance are paramount. Other tools, commonly seen in Human Resource Information Systems (HRIS), may be utilized by your business, such as tracking training modules completed by the team or acknowledging those who have achieved a performance level based on completed skill and knowledge levels.

The third toolbox is the contribution toolbox. In this toolbox, you have tools to help with work/life balance, improve the workplace culture, connect with

the strategic plan of the business, gauge client experiences, and be empowered to handle client requests and complaints.

This final toolbox brings together business operations with the purpose of coming to work every day.

Many business publications talk about employee “engagement” or “satisfaction” as if there are medications to give to your team members. In reality, it is about you (the practice owner and management team) working hard at polishing your talent into wonderful “gems” you do not want to lose.

Platinum Level If you are going to take the time to polish those old rocks into nice, shiny gemstones, then you need to monitor your progress. Management must be informed about employee engagement and even trained on how to monitor employee engagement since this influences all aspects of performance, dedication to the practice mission and client service.

Using Your Toolboxes To polish your “diamonds in the rough,” it will be helpful to use three toolboxes: Training/developing, networking, and contributing to purposeful work.

Each of these toolboxes has specific tools in them to help with polishing your gems (team members).

The train/develop toolbox contains tools to help build a valuable team. A mapping tool to plan a career path for each individual, even advancing into areas of credentialing and licensing team members, is invaluable. However, do not forget the power of on-the-job training and creating internal “Subject Matter Experts” based on your unique business and the services you want to offer.

A tool for expanding an individual’s work duties means progressing through training and being more accountable to the business. Accessible training and being self-directed will allow your team members to progress at their own pace.

Having a designated Learning Officer will ensure that strategic initiatives of the

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[

It is a common statement that many employees quit a job not because the job is complicated or the work environment is problematic, but because of issues with the manager.

Employee engagement is not just about their satisfaction with their employment. Consider the following items for an employee scorecard: • Communication • Physical environment • Rewards and recognition • Training and development • Alignment with the practice’s mission • Personal development and feedback To consider moving beyond “gems” and to the “platinum level,” one must look at developing people (not just being satisfied with a warm body).

It really is about staffing and future staffing needs for your practice. It is about developing high-potential employees and succession planning for the future. It is about aligning with the mission of the practice and developing a team with the right capabilities for delivering exceptional medical care and excellent client service.

Retaining Your Team

It is a common statement that many employees quit a job not because the job is complicated or the work environment is problematic, but because of issues with the manager. An analysis by Compdata and Monster cited the need to earn more money as the main reason employees quit a job. At the same time, The Work Institute identified career development, work/life balance and bad managers as the top reasons.1 Many of these are within management control and deserve time and attention.

Given these facts, owners and managers must take responsibility and be held accountable for developing and engaging employees. The only way to do this is to develop some workforce analytics (SWOT) to monitor your team.

Now for the role of Open Book Management; report your findings to the team and involve them in any corrective projects. Say, for instance, that an assessment points to an unusually

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high number of employees not taking advantage of continuing education seminars.

Involve the team, either with additional surveys or with brainstorming sessions, to get to the root cause of the problem.

Perhaps it is the lack of funding paid by the business, maybe it is the business culture not welcoming new ideas for change or perhaps it is confusion on what courses are the most beneficial to perform the job.

In any of these scenarios, management must take action through either policy changes or leadership initiatives.

In the end, monitoring the level of satisfaction and engagement of your team will effectively assist you with improving your productivity levels, and enhancing your ability to recruit and retain top performers, as well as help you to mitigate unnecessary turnover, and enable you to increase client bonding and loyalty.

References: 1. Maurer, Roy. Why Are Workers Quitting Their Jobs in Record Numbers?

December 12, 2018, https://www.shrm. org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/talentacquisition/pages/workers-are-quittingjobs-record-numbers.aspx Louise Dunn is a renowned award-winning speaker, writer and consultant. She brings over 40 years of in-the-trenches experience and her business education to veterinary management.

Louise is founder and CEO of Snowgoose Veterinary Management Consulting. SVMC works with veterinarians who want to develop a strategic plan that consistently produces results. Most recently Louise received many awards including the WVC Educator of the Year numerous times and VetPartner’s The Life Time achievement Award in January 2016. Besides all aspects of practice management and mentoring, Louise’s passions include her husband, Joel, her English mastiff Therapy dog, Zuri, her little sister, Annabelle, as well as kayaking, opera and New England Patriot’s football.

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industry news

Developing the

Veterinary drugs

i wish i had years ago

By David Bruyette, DVM, DACVIM

O

ver the past 40 years, I’ve been fortunate to work in a lot of different fields in veterinary medicine. When I was in academia at Kansas State University in 1989, I learned about the entrepreneurial side of the profession and was able to be a part of a veterinary startup that created an FDA-approved product to treat Cushing’s disease and cognitive dysfunction in dogs. It felt extremely rewarding to be able to bring this product to market so veterinarians like myself could use it in their everyday practice.

When I began working as a Medical Director at the VCA West Los Angeles Animal Hospital in 1996, I saw dogs coming in almost every day with diseases for which options were limited and had not changed in 30 years. One of those diseases was lymphoma. After delivering the heartbreaking diagnosis, I only had two options for owners: One, we could walk downstairs to the oncologist who would offer them standard-of-care therapy using a chemotherapy protocol called CHOP. And, while this protocol is associated with the longest survival

26

times, it is rarely curative. In addition, for many clients, there are concerns regarding cost and the potential for side effects. The only other option I had was to prescribe steroids as palliative care, providing the owners with a limited amount of time to cope with the fact that they were going to lose their pet.

I felt that there had to be a way to create another alternative for lymphoma treatment, as well as several other unmet pharmaceutical needs in the veterinary community. Lucky for me, a young but experienced entrepreneur named Dylan Balsz felt the same way.

And after he sent me a cold email message through LinkedIn asking if I knew anything about dog diabetes, we met to discuss how we could find and develop drugs more rapidly and for less money. Looking back, I’m sure glad I didn’t ignore that message—and I’m sure the 700,000 dogs diagnosed with lymphoma each year are too.

Anivive Lifesciences was started in 2015 with the idea that we could get veterinary therapies to market faster and cheaper by leveraging the tremendous amounts of data that

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exist surrounding medications being developed for diseases in man. This is where our Chief Technology Officer, Cody Arbuckle, PhD, came in. He was able to create a software that sifted through the 30,000 drugs that various researchers had in development for numerous diseases. This allowed us to discover and develop LAVERDIA™CA1 (verdinexor), the first and only oral tablet to treat lymphoma in dogs.

LAVERDIA-CA1 is special for several reasons. Given the main obstacles to any cancer treatment are cost, convenience and concerns over side effects, we wanted to develop a therapy that could increase access to care for more lymphoma patients.

LAVERDIA-CA1 is the first veterinary SINE inhibitor on the market, and its mechanism of action results in lymphoma cells being targeted while normal cells are spared. This results in the drug’s demonstrated efficacy and safety in studies involving pet dogs with lymphoma. In addition, treatment does not decrease the pet’s quality of life which is very comforting for pet owners and veterinarians when prescribing a therapy for a fatal disease.

Treatment is also convenient as tablets are easy for owners to administer from the comfort of their own home without having to put their dogs through unnecessary and inconvenient trips to the veterinarian.

Getting this first approval was huge for Anivive. It provided internal (our Anivive team) and external (veterinary professionals and pet owners) validation of our strategy. It also allowed us to now focus on our pipeline of other therapeutics. One of the exciting products in that pipeline, that likely will result in our second approval, is an anti-fungal vaccine to

LAVERDIA™-CA1 (verdinexor), the first and only oral tablet to treat lymphoma in dogs.

prevent Valley Fever.

Valley Fever is an infection caused by inhaling Coccidioides fungal spores found most commonly in the soil of the Western and Southwestern United States.

Symptoms in humans resemble those of the flu, but dogs are more likely to develop severe disseminated forms of the disease.

Because of climate change, Valley Fever, which was originally isolated to Arizona, is now in the Southwest and Northwest and, by the end of the century, will be everywhere west of the Mississippi, all the way up to the Canadian border.

This is why it is becoming more and more crucial to find a preventative.

There is also the potential to use this same technology to develop other fungal vaccines for diseases such as histoplasmosis and blastomycosis which occur in the more eastern parts of the United States.

We also get calls almost every day from pet owners and veterinarians asking about our investigational treatment (GC 376) to treat the feline coronavirus FIP. This would have a huge impact on cats, cat owners and the veterinary profession as, world-wide, there are no treatments for this disease, and it is 100% fatal. It could also potentially lead to a path for human use, which, as coronaviruses continues to evolve, would be nothing short of groundbreaking.

Throughout my years as a veterinary professional, I have strived to provide the animals I treat with the best quality of care. Anivive has allowed me to take this one step further by bringing new, trailblazing solutions to the veterinary industry.

We are determined to solve the unmet needs of the animal health community and LAVERDIA-CA1 is just the start of something greater. 

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David Bruyette, DVM, is the Chief Medical Officer at Anivive and oversees all medical and therapeutic development related initiatives. He is one of the country’s most well-respected veterinary experts and recently served as the editor of the leading veterinary textbook on internal medicine.

To learn more about how Anivive is working to address unmet needs for pets, visit anivive.com.

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petvet profile

DR. JA SON COE Relationships Are At the Heart of Veterinary Care By Jen Phillips April

V

eterinarians pursue the profession because of a deep-seated love of animals; however, as every veterinarian knows, they also work with humans…and humans are complex communicators.

Jason B. Coe DVM, Ph.D., is a professor and leading expert in veterinary clinical communication at the Ontario Veterinary College (OVC).

Since 2003, he's studied interpersonal communication among the veterinarian community.

"It started with the relationships of the veterinarian in the examination room. How does the veterinarian communicate with clients, and how does that affect the pet's health?" he says.

Over time, his work has expanded to also address the relationships and communication outside of the examination room, including the practice manager, the vet techs, the kennel assistant, and everyone else who makes up an effective and productive veterinary practice team.

"I look at the social side of veterinary medicine and how people within veterinary practices work, the relationships they have with 28

each other, with their clients, and patients.

Relationships are the basis of the veterinary profession, and they affect the outcomes for all involved," Dr. Coe explains.

The Ontario Veterinary College was one of the first veterinary colleges to make this study of veterinary clinical communication part of the curriculum. And by using the Calgary Cambridge Guide as a framework, Dr. Coe coaches veterinary students through simulated conversations. Using role-play, participants experience replicated, everyday client interactions and practice communication skills that improve relationships.

In some cases, rephrasing a question can change the dynamic of a vet/client relationship. For example, it's a common practice for a vet to ask clients what kind of food they feed their pet. Dr. Coe’s research team has shown that clients often respond with limited nutrition-related information and can sometimes become defensive to this common question.

Rather, Dr. Coe discovered a better way to

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Communications training was run virtually at the Ontario Veterinary College this year. The communication lab pictured is part of a course called the Art of Veterinary Medicine 2 at OVC. open up communication regarding pet nutrition by asking a broader question: "We found instead of asking what the pet eats, we got better information if we asked, 'Tell me everything your pet eats throughout a day, starting from first thing in the morning right through to the end of the day.'

The client shared approximately three times more nutrition-related information."

Such a discussion can lead to a larger conversation around pet nutrition, including discovery of food items relevant to pet food allergies or obesity, while also creating an opportunity to discover common ground between the veterinarian and the client.

Dr. Coe became interested in communication while participating as a clinical instructor of a wellness rotation at the OVC in the mid-2000s.

At the time, he was coaching and mentoring veterinary students by observing them in the examination room via a two-way window.

"There was a student interacting with a brother and sister that had brought in their sick cat. I was observing the interaction through the 30

two-way window and could see the brother and sister were tense with worry. So, I stepped into the examination room to support the student, and at that time offered an empathetic response to the clients that acknowledged how scary it can be to have a sick pet. At that moment, I could see their body language relax right away," he shares.

It takes practice to develop communication skills that help people feel engaged, respected and positive. Dr. Coe's goal with his study of veterinary clinical communication is to help veterinary practices develop greater sustainability in their business practices and improve mental health and general wellbeing. Aligning with that goal, he will hold a new chair at the University of Guelph's OVC to further this work.

Believed to be the first of its kind, a new one-million-dollar VCA Canada Chair in Relationship-Centred Veterinary Medicine acknowledges the importance of relationships and communication within the veterinary profession.

Supporting this chair is Calgary-based VCA Canada. VCA Canada runs over 100 veterinary

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Overall, his goal is to help people within the veterinary profession build resiliency and ensure they have the support they need to excel.

enduring support for people and animals.

I feel privileged to be a part of the veterinary profession and to be in a position to help the profession continue to make the world a better place for people and animals,” Dr. Coe concludes.

hospitals across Canada and is part of Mars Veterinary Health, a Mars Petcare division.

"The chair is an extension of what I'm doing. It's an opportunity to leverage some of the things we've been looking at to support veterinary teams. It also increases our capacity to pursue an evidence-based approach to veterinary relationships and outcomes.

I see this as the start of a piece that will develop over the years and hopefully continue to build on the veterinary profession positively," Dr. Coe says.

The chair also provides other opportunities. "I'm excited about this new journey because it gives opportunities to contribute to the profession and for collaboration," adds Dr. Coe. Aside from studying mental wellbeing and developing interpersonal skills within veterinary practices, Dr. Coe keeps an eye on technology. He shares, "We're in a period of change. With new technologies like AI, how does that impact the health and care of our patients?"

Overall, his goal is to help people within the veterinary profession build resiliency and ensure they have the support they need to excel.

In addition, Dr. Coe was recently awarded the 2021 Bustad Companion Animal Veterinarian of the Year Award. Named for the late Dr. Leo K. Bustad, former president of the Delta Society and dean of the Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine, the award is one of veterinary medicine’s highest honors, recognizing the outstanding work of veterinarians in protecting and promoting the human-animal bond.

“It is an unexpected and genuine

A web writer since 2005, Jen’s written over 1,000 articles on pet-related topics.

She works with veterinarians and pet professionals around the world to help them attract and retain customers through effective content marketing practices. Passionate about both pets and digital marketing, you can find out more at jenphillipsapril.com. When not working with her fabulous clients, you can find her eating tacos and practicing her Spanish in her adopted home of the Riviera Maya.

honor to be acknowledged with this award,” said Dr. Coe. “Dr. Bustad was a forward-thinking leader for our profession. I became aware of Dr. Bustad very early in my career because of my interest for the human-animal bond and I feel privileged to be associated with him through this award. It has been my own personal experiences and relationships with animals that have driven much of what I do and, as for many people, these relationships have been essential this past year.

“Although many challenges have arisen this past year, veterinary practices and their teams have shown great resilience, rising above the challenges to provide

MEOW WOW!

A COMPLETE GUIDE TO FELINE GROOMING!

Learn the best practices to create a safe environment for both groomer and feline from an educator who wants you to succeed—DANA CHAVEZ-REY, ICFS, IGMS!

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Ten things to DO

Check out MightyVet’s new video, in partnership with Not One More Vet (NOMV), #EarsToVets, a discussion about mental health in the veterinary profession, at mightyvet.org

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WANT TO spend

Less time typing

& more time caring for pets and connecting with clients? Try Talkatoo (talkatoo.com), a desktop dictation solution that augments your workflow by using speech-to-text capability.

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4 are you familiar with

food synergy?

Basically, combining certain foods together may be more beneficial than eating them separately.

An example of this is tomatoes and broccoli. In a study, the combination was more effective at slowing prostate tumor growth than either was alone.

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5

jazz up your patients’ casts & wraps with bandage art!

Artist and emergency department technician in human medicine Jack DeWees launched an Instagram page (@ bandageartists) and a website (www.bandage-art.com) to serve as a community hub for artists, allowing them to showcase their work and legitimize the practice of utilizing bandage art in all fields.

is national Immunization month.

Get your patients back on track with an extra reminder to update vaccinations by sending out a mailing or through a special post on your social media pages.

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this month

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need some

Mental support

at a moment’s notice?

Download the Vets In Mind app which provides veterinary professionals free 24/7 access to mental health resources.

take a trip out west & gain some ce credits!

The Wild West Vet conference takes place in Reno, NV, October 6th-9th, and offers over 150 hours of CE hours!

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8

update your home

looking to or office space?

Ready to be entertained

70’s retro style is going to be popular again in the 2022 interior design trends.

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by some off-the-wall

veterinary stories?

Dr. Sage Silverkiss recently released her third installment of Las Vegas Veterinary Stories: Laugh, Cry, and Be Amazed: Stories of a Las Vegas Veterinarian. Order a copy for yourself or a coworker on Amazon.

September 23rd is Remember Me Thursday®,

an international social media awareness day that brings attention to the millions of adoptable pets waiting in shelters and remembers those pets who never got a second chance. Promote an adoptable pet or encourage your clients to share their rescue pet using #RememberMeThursday. 

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