Business

Once I discovered mountain climbing was something I could do, I wanted to push myself," says Dr. Michael Andrews. "When I was 20, I never thought I'd be doing something like this."

I'm going to sell my list of 1,300 active clients to a practice located about five miles from mine.How much should I charge?

Not every client lives in a gated community. And when I look at benchmarks for fees, I think they're out of line with real-life practices-at least in our area.

Vet Medicine's December 2006 Radiography supplement REVISED

Getting paid for your services and staying in clients' good graces don't have to be mutually exclusive goals. Try these tips to collect fees quickly and with grace.

As we communicate more through e-mail, electronic etiquette is evolving. Make sure you're evolving, too.

The U.S. Army Veterinary Service Corps considered cancelling its 90th-anniversary celebration when the first veterinarian since the Vietnam conflict was killed in action May 18 as a result of a roadside bomb in Iraq.

Few pets miss their regular test or get behind on their medications at Lost Mountain Animal Hospital in Marietta, Ga. That's because Tiffany Gluckman, a receptionist, sends out reminders to clients to make appointments for procedures, tests, and medications, such as T4 levels and phenobarbital screens every six months, heartworm medication every year, and regular dentals.

Laminated educational review sheets for annual wellness exams engage clients and save paper. With National Pet Wellness Month around the corner, it's a great time to spice up your wellness exams.

Editor's Note: DVM Newsmagazine asked Cheryl Weber, a grief counselor from the University of Illinois, to share her expertise and advice when a doctor is asked to euthanize a sick animal.

Our busy four-doctor mixed-animal clinic developed this phone message template to help receptionists take more effective messages.

Twenty-seven percent of respondents to our survey say yellow page ads rank among their most effective marketing tools. But that's not enough to bank on.

Evolving technology continues to make veterinary diagnostics and treatment increasingly similar to human medicine. But your opinions on industry issues diverge dramatically.

Study data shows that for every 100 job openings, only 96 veterinarians will be ready to fill the spots.

Step back-so you can put your best foot forward

Specialty practices offer services that are sometimes more than a primary care facility can handle. But more primary care practitioners are branching out.

With just two hands-and so many hours in a day-delegating tasks that don't require a DVM makes sense. Yet our study shows doctors spend several hours each week performing tasks they could pass on.

Clients often ask me what they should feed their pets. What should I say?

Looking for some art to fill those empty walls? Check your mailbox! You probably receive a wealth of great artwork from clients every month, says Cheryl Dyer, practice manager at Noah's Ark Animal Clinic in Kansas City, Mo. When patients recover from a serious illness, their pet parents often send a note of thanks with a picture to the practice. Dyer says they frame these photos and hang them in the practice's front lobby.

After 30 years of practicing small animal and exotic medicine, I found myself doing exploratories on the business of veterinary medicine.

You like people and you like animals. This phrase was probably on your job application, and it's what you tell people when they ask you why you chose to work at a veterinary practice. But is it true? Oh, I know you like pets, but what about people?

Are new grads' expectations about quality of life and child rearing changing the veterinary workweek?

The message isn't new-pets are still missing basic care. This updated data shows how the issue affects your bottom line.

Respondents say yes. Female veterinarians face unique challenges.

Your colleagues face the same struggle about how and when to help those in need. Here's how they balance the needs of their businesses with their compassion for pets and people.

Elimination of pain is an effective focus and client motivator.

Give the last clients of the day the same warm reception the 40 clients in front of them enjoyed.

Half of veterinarians surveyed think their facilities and medical equipment are better than the other practices in their area. But how do they really know?

Next time you walk into an exam room, look down. Are there curious little faces looking back? They may be small in stature, but children are an important ingredient in pets' health, says Cindy Adams, MSW, PhD, associate professor of communication and epidemiology at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada.

25 percent of practitioners say they start seeing resistance when a bill lands between $200 and $400. But there's no way to know which clients will opt for your "A" plan.