Opinion
We’re referencing four complementary sources in this post. Virtual veterinary care is advancing at warp speed. Still, some veterinary clinics struggle with moving from a courtesy service approach to charging for telemedicine services as clients embrace the convenience.
Creating clear boundaries between “courtesy services” and what is considered a “paid service” is an imperative step in the process. You deserve to be paid for your work!” – VVCA
Jessica Vogelsang, DVM, pragmatically reinforces four main points to keep in mind as veterinary teams embrace and integrate virtual care:
- Telemedicine isn’t new. It’s as old as the telephone.
- Understand what you want your technology to do.
- Decide if you want an all-in-one solution or a do-it-yourself approach.
- Let everyone* know you’re offering the service . . .
*including clinic personnel
Clients are willing to pay for remote care. We generated 4.8% of the clinic’s revenue from #telemedicine exams in May!” – Aaron Smiley, DVM
Source-1: Veterinary Virtual Care Association, LinkedIn, May 30, 2021. Link.
Source-2: Today’s Veterinary Business, May 2020. Link.
Source-3: Aaron Smiley, DVM, LinkedIn, June 1, 2021. Link.
Source-4: WHY should I care? Patrick T Malone, AHD, May 25, 2021. Link. If they (your clinic team) do not know why a new action is necessary, they will not be motivated to help.
INSIGHTS: Voglesang’s article is more timely today than it was 12 months ago. The WHYs now seem clear, including taking better care of human resources.
Success is being demonstrated when teams embrace the WHYs and learn the HOWs. Answering who, what, when and where simply fall into place as team members see and feel the results.