The adage “two steps forward one step back” fits the theme of DVM Wendy Hauser’s article about creating and improving a culture of preventive care. The Covid-19 pandemic and new pet demands put some veterinary teams into a Dragnet-like “just the facts ma’am” triage mode. This created significant variability in how preventive care was discussed, if at all.
Many veterinary hospitals provide preventive-care services but don’t explain the importance to clients.” – Wendy Hauser, DVM
Hauser advocates stepping back, resetting and involving staff to create an ingrained culture of preventive care where a core belief is the critical need for client education.
Source: Today’s Veterinary Business, October 2021. Link. Ultimately the objective is for the veterinary team and pet owner to become equal partners in the well-being of pets.
Weaving a culture of preventive care into a hospital’s daily operations becomes a vital part of client management and determines how employees view their contributions to patient health and their commitment to partnering with clients. Fewer pets will be in crisis because proactive health care results in better-managed patient care.
INSIGHTS: Preventive care is a topic for animal health pros at all levels. Clients are the experts in their pets’ lives and want to learn to make the best medical decisions, says Hauser. It’s our job as animal health pros to help them understand and implement preventive care proactively.