Carolyn O'Hara shares perspectives on the dynamics of a team member who acts as if they are not on the team. This isn’t simply frustrating. It can affect your entire group’s performance. Source: Harvard Business Review, April 21, 2017. Ignoring the issue often ends up only making it more acute. When working with the person and team here are some principles to … [Read more...]
Trichobezoars debunked
Hairballs are disgusting, especially when you step on one with a bare foot. Dr. Eric Barchas discusses hairball myths and fallacies. This article would make good content for a website, newsletter, social media or blog post. Source: Catster, April 23, 2013. Swallowing hair in and of itself is not what causes hairballs. They’re occurring because the gastrointestinal tract … [Read more...]
Don’t overlook pain management for gastrointestinal conditions
Gastrointestinal conditions are common, but associated pain management in these patients is often overlooked. Refresh your memory about treatment options with this article. Consider using it as a team exercise at an upcoming staff meeting. Source: Clinician’s Brief, September 2015. The clinical manifestations of abdominal pain in dogs and cats can be subtle and easily … [Read more...]
Rabbits, ferrets, sugar-gliders, hamsters and ? – oh my!
I often wonder how veterinarians serve animals considered in exotic. The relatively few encounters has to be a limiting factor. But, my eyes were opened by this article about preparing a practice specifically for the exotic companion mammal sub-group. The numbers of alternative pet types is growing and with it a new specialty from the Association of Exotic Mammal … [Read more...]
Don’t wait to be asked: Lead
Leadership skills are needed at all levels of interactions inside companies as well as with customer engagement. It is easy to point a finger at what is wrong or needs improvement. The real solutions to problems come when the finger-pointers start offering solutions. Professor Harry Kramer says leadership doesn’t require direct reports or a long tenure at an organization. You … [Read more...]
Carprofen: fast facts
The history of carprofen dates back to January 1997 when Pfizer Pharmaceuticals first introduced Rimadyl® (Carprofen) to veterinarians. The generic for Rimadyl, Carprofen, was marketed much later. Consider the number of veterinarians, vet technicians and staff persons in your location that graduated after 2007. Then share this information and your experiences with them at a … [Read more...]
Stop apologizing for delayed email responses
“With email, we treat everything as if we’re in a hurry,” behavioral economist Dan Ariely explained. “There’s a huge difference between important and urgent.” Source: Science of US, April 18, 2017. How many people who email you are truly expecting an instant reply? Sometimes people make this clear, explicitly noting that they need an answer by the end of the day, or week, … [Read more...]
Leaders also follow
The roles of leader and follower are interchangeable and depend entirely on the situation at hand. In most successful practices, the person closest to an issue at hand regularly provides the leadership when it falls into their area of expertise. In other situations, that same person is the follower. Effectiveness at both disciplines is one of the keys to a practice’s overall … [Read more...]
NAVTA launches bi-weekly service
The National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America recently launched a service tool named Animal Health Bi-Weekly for its members. The familiar format seeks to provide NAVTA members with a sampling of some of the more recent news stories that affect the profession and veterinary community. Source: NAVTA, April 11, 2017. INSIGHTS: NAVTA provides multiple … [Read more...]
Top 5 client pet peeves
Jessica Goodman Lee, CVPM, shares her perspective on how clients view practices and the annoyances that work against client satisfaction. Source: Veterinary Team Brief, April 2017, page 33. Lee’s top 5 client pet peeves: Lack of information Lack of education Failure to provide documentation Lack of caring Failure to delegate INSIGHTS: Note the take … [Read more...]
Update your LinkedIn profile
How to update your LinkedIn profile based on what you've done and where you want to go. Source: The Muse, March 2017. Figuring out what story to tell at different points in your career can be a challenge. But, you need more than keywords to impress on LinkedIn. Get creative as you update your profile and capture your “So what?” factor using elements that others tend to … [Read more...]
Changing pet owner perceptions of veterinary hospitals
AAHA Chief Executive Officer Michael Cavanaugh, DVM, DABVP (Emeritus), presented new research data during the opening session at the AAHA yearly conference. Pet owner perceptions of veterinary hospitals are declining, while awareness of veterinary hospital accreditation has increased. Source: AAHA Press Room, March 30, 2017. While the news of overall pet owner perception of … [Read more...]
How mindful are you?
In our information-saturated workplaces, mindfulness is becoming as important as emotional intelligence and technical skills. Research shows that people spend almost 47 percent of their waking hours thinking about something other than what they’re doing. This impairs their creativity, performance, and well-being. Source: Harvard Business Review, March 29, 2017. Take the … [Read more...]
Live by Ancora Imparo
“In retrospect,” often begins a story about missed opportunities, augmented with regrets. The story ends with the admonition to “not make that mistake.” Occasionally, “in retrospect” will yield worthwhile advice that contains one real nugget. “6 Pieces of Advice Leaders Wish They Could Tell Their Younger Selves” is this kind of piece. Source: Forbes, September 19, … [Read more...]
Swine Science Online offers opportunity for students, current producers
Leading universities are collaborating to ensure the pork industry is led and managed by individuals who have broad educational and production experiences that prepare them for these roles. The effort, Swine Science Online, teaches scientific principles and management skills involved in pork production for an efficient and sustainable operation. Source: National Hog Farmer, … [Read more...]
Transitioning at work
With the acceptance of transgender people on the rise, more employers are adopting specific policies for workers who are transitioning. Julie Cook Ramirez shares one person’s story and discusses the trends in dealing with blurred gender-line realities. According to the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2017 Corporate Equality Index, 82 percent of all Fortune 500 companies … [Read more...]
Lead, Coach, Manage
In my experience, the most effective and successful practices have a clear leader and effective coaches. Together, they efficiently manage the entire operation. We have written about leadership and management before. Today’s focus is coaching. Source: LinkedIn Pulse, March 12, 2017. The great sales coaches that I have known see teaching and training as a continuous need for … [Read more...]
Improve your finance skills, even if you hate numbers
If you’re not a numbers person, finance is daunting. “If you can speak the language of money, you will be more successful,” says Richard Ruback, a professor at Harvard Business School. Source: Harvard Business Review, March 31, 2017. Finance and accounting are very simple. It’s mostly addition and subtraction and occasionally some multiplication and division. There’s no … [Read more...]
Organic or conventional – what’s better?
It’s hard to discuss organic versus conventional without using the word,“better”. A new paper written by University of British Columbia researchers looked into some of the pros and cons of each management style. Their summary helps shed light on some of the “betters” associated with both. Source: Hoard’s Dairyman, April 3, 2017. Specifically, this study looked at … [Read more...]
New information about chronic pain in declawed cats
Declaw once soared in popularity in the U.S. as more cats were now being kept indoors. Declaw was then, and is still thought by many, as a way to prevent indoor-only cats from damaging the home, therefore preventing relinquishment and unnecessary euthanasias. Steve Dale, CABC, shares a history of declawing pros/cons and discusses new information related to pain and … [Read more...]
Reverse zoonosis is an important global issue
Food animals are transported widely and interact with wild species that they would never encountered naturally. With rapid growth in animal production and an increase in movement of animals and people, a human pathogen in an animal could potentially move thousands of miles in just 24 hours. On top of increasing animal trade, we have a growing pet industry. Understanding how … [Read more...]
5 myths about the circus
Ringling Bros. announced the closure of its circus earlier this year and the Big Apple Circus filed for bankruptcy in in 2016. Janet M. Davis, a professor of history and American studies at the University of Texas at Austin, debunks five myths about the circus and offers a perspective of how animal rights activity has affected the industry and society in general. Source: … [Read more...]
Backyard chicken basics always in order
Interest in raising chickens in backyards continues to grow. Bryant Gill with the Farm Report with Pam Jahnke interviews Ron Kaine, a University of Wisconsin Extension poultry specialist, to learn about backyard chicken basics. Source: Farm Report with Pam Jahnke, April 4, 2017. I usually tell people to choose one that you like because that’s going to make it more … [Read more...]
Test yourself: Define your sense of humor
Just for fun! Psychology researcher Rod Martin took a different tactic to measure humor, an amorphous, multifaceted concept, in a scientific way. Modeling his approach after recently developed tests to measure anxiety, he focused not on the jokes themselves, but on how respondents used humor in everyday life. The end result would become his signature work: the Humor Styles … [Read more...]
The reasons why dogs fight with cats
Not all dogs and cats have to get along with each other to live happy lives, but it is important to know which dogs can live with cats and which ones can’t. This is especially critical for shelters seeking homes for dogs, because nobody wants to adopt a dog who will terrorize their cat. Source: The Bark, April 1, 2017. A recent study has increased what we know about which … [Read more...]
April is stress awareness month
There is a calendar event for almost everything these days. For 25 years, April has been stress awareness month. Industries such as animal health have become aware of stress in the last two years or more. Fueled by the loss of colleagues and friends, animal health pros are working hard to make changes in how we work, our expectations, physical limits and to provide resources to … [Read more...]
Make time for strategic thinking every day
No matter what your level, strategic thinking is a critical skill. It can always be improved. To hone your capacity to see the big picture, start by making sure you have a solid understanding of the industry and business drivers. Be proactive about connecting with peers in your organization and in your industry to understand their observations of the marketplace, and share … [Read more...]
HR changes to watch for in 2017
Katherine Dobbs, LVT, CVPM, PHR, says paying attention to these regulations would be wise as employment laws get reviewed by the new administration: Fiduciary rule CEO pay ratio Affordable Care Act Overtime rule Pay equity Parental leave Predictable scheduling Source: Clinician’s Brief, March 2017. Employment law has never been easy to keep up with, … [Read more...]
The quirks of working with goats and sheep
Goats live on about 128,000 farms in the United States, according to the 2012 Census of Agriculture, with a population of about 2.6 million. Sheep are on fewer farms, 88,000 with a population of about 5.4 million. Veterinarians in small ruminant practices also tend to llamas, alpacas, deer, elk who live on thousands of farms. Source: JAVMA, April 2017. Veterinarians who … [Read more...]
There are diets for pets at each life stage
Nutrient needs of dogs and cats change with age, so veterinarians should consult established guidelines and give clients clear direction to help them select the appropriate pet food at each life stage. Deborah E. Linder, DVM, DACVN, shares the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) guidelines and considerations at various ages. Source: Clinician’s Brief, … [Read more...]