The kiss of death: DVMs 'bungled' the bundle

George silently pads to the kitchen searching for a cup of coffee. Gladysis already sitting at the kitchen table making a list of "to do"items for the day.

George's eyes narrow, "You never make lists. What's up?"

"I need to talk to you about Ginger. She started limping last weekand this morning I noticed that she wasn't eating as much as usual. Andlast night the kids noticed an awful rash on the top of her hips. She isgetting older and I am worried about her."

George listens somewhat absent-mindedly. He wonders to himself if shemay be overreacting. Thinking out loud he offers to Gladys, "But 'Ginger'has always gotten her shots."

Gladys gets up and moves to the refrigerator where she last saw Ginger'svaccination reminder. She found it buried among the potpourri hanging fromnumerous magnets.

"Good grief, this was sent eight months ago."

She immediately calls Acme Animal Clinic. Judy Nelson, a longtime employeeat Acme, quickly answers.

"Judy," she blurts, "I need to make an appointment toget Ginger's shots. She is overdue. How much will that cost?"

Judy kindly gives her the answers and books a slot for Ginger.

As she hangs up the phone, she tells George that while she is there,she will point out these other issues to Dr. Cavaness.

Zero hour

An hour later Dr. Phil Cavaness looks over the chart before enteringthe exam room. Cheryl, the new animal assistant, has written down that Gingerneeds her 'shots'. All the vaccinations are drawn and ready to go just asshe was recently trained.

Dr. Cavaness, bone-tired from a late night emergency, greets Gladys witha smile, asks some cursory questions and quickly vaccinates Ginger.

It is at this time that Gladys springs the surprise.

"Doctor, I also have noticed some other problems," she says.

Only now does Gladys describe, in some detail, what she had previouslyrelayed to George just a few hours ago.

Options

What are Dr. Cavaness' options?

A. Make a note to scold someone before sitting on a stool to getsome shut-eye. Respond to Gladys when awakened.

B. State that there will now be a consultation charge added beforeany queries will be answered.

C. Apologize to Gladys for not asking more leading questions andfor not thoroughly examining Ginger.

D. Listen and go about answering her questions. Then proceed withfurther treatment as if everything is hunky-dory.

E. Ask her to come back tomorrow so that Dr. Cavaness can separatethe vaccinations from the examination and thus charge her for a full consultationand subsequent treatment.

The answer is C.

Many of you might say that the real answer is missing: i.e. Listen, answerand charge a reduced office call.

Note that an office visit had not been included in the price quoted byJudy. If you charge a reduced office call, the client base will be splitbetween understanding the added charge and not understanding the added charge.Your goal is no misunderstandings. Sorry folks, but Dr. Cavanass is goingto have to swallow some pride. You would be surprised at the overall gooda little humility will do for you when dealing with clients. Most clientsare pleased that you would have liked to have done a better job and willgladly dismiss the oversight completely. Therefore, the answer is still(c) with the proviso that a lot of changes are in order after Ginger leaves.

Rule not exception

Most veterinarians are faced with this situation daily but refuse tomake the changes that will make this type of client visit economically viable.

First, we as veterinarians must come to the realization that the previousdrama is more often the rule and not the exception. Busy people like Gladysare drowning in the minutia of life and will tend to make appointments basedon the obvious oversight on their part (vaccinations) and are oblivious(and rightly so) to the financial structure in a professional office. Whatchanges need to be made?

First and foremost we must unbundle the product/service bundle. (Seerelated article on page 18.)

Product/service bundling

Veterinarians must never forget that their time is always valuable.

Vaccinations need to be priced according to real worth and your timealso should be charged according to its true value.

One of the first benefits to unbundling the vaccination from the examis that it results in a better examination of the pet. If you are charginga fee, you will feel much more inclined (and obligated) to be thorough.This is part of Dr. Cavanass' problem. He derives no economic benefit fordoing a better job when a number of problems are revealed after Ginger isvaccinated.

More culprits

Vaccination visits are not the only culprits here.

Clients often call in for nail trims, anal gland evacuations and groomingand flea control issues that will often result in the giveaway of a freeexamination and consultation.

Primarily, it is the 'bait and switch' tactic that the client in mostcases innocently imposes on the hospital as last minute questions. In noway is the client to blame. Our procedures and bundling have fed into ourown economic problem.

Our goal is to eliminate misunderstandings and to make pet vaccinationvisits (and all product-oriented visits) to the veterinarian economicallyviable. The tradeoff for the client is that, in fact, your service sidewill improve through more thorough examinations and staff communication.If you think that your practice has too many product/service bundles andwant to start to unbundle your product service mix, here is where to start.

Fee schedule

Life is too complicated to just add fees to your fee schedule, but thisis something that makes sense and thousands of veterinarians are finallyaccepting this line of thinking.

If you are currently not charging some form of vaccination exam fee duringyour annual visit, then add one and use it.

Next, reduce your annual vaccination package by a similar or lesser amount.While you are at it, add professional fees for ectoparasite, pre-surgical,boarding, and late night special services. At first, make these fees aslow as you want. It is a fact that if one makes these fees too high in thebeginning you will refuse to charge these fees. You can then claim thatthis doesn't work 'in your hospital'. For some, charging real, actual professionalservices other than an 'office call' is a hard thing to do. It needs tobe done.

Proper staff training

The receptionist must dig a little deeper.

On the phone, clients are often disorganized in their approach to petproblems and needs. The receptionist must ask the kind of leading questionsthat determine all the needs a pet may have and write them down for theveterinarians. Quoting prices should always include some form of professionalservice fee-whether this is called an office call, exam fee or consultationis not that important. On the other hand, I personally dislike the words'office call.' It is non-descriptive and suggests to the client that thisis some sort of an 'overhead' fee. Also, describing every service fee asan examination dictates that some form of exam must be given even when aclient merely wants to discuss a problem. Exam/consultation is a more appropriatename for what we really do for our client.

Once the client is informed fully the only thing your receptionist needsis full cooperation of the owner/veterinarian. This can sometimes be difficult.

Your receptionist needs from the veterinarian:

* Uniformity in your approach to charging service fees.

* Reliability that you will charge what she quotes to the owner.

* Certainty when the client is discharged that you, in fact,did a thorough exam and consultation-otherwise they will hear about it.

Exam room technician

The tech should start by telling the client that the doctor will be into examine the pet and to answer questions that they have. This sets theclient up for the exam/consultation and more importantly prepares them aheadof time for the fact that this is not just a product or vaccine-relatedvisit but a real professional service visit.

Next, the technician must translate what the client has told the receptionistinto language that will have more meaning to the veterinary staff. For instance,a client will state, "She hasn't eaten a thing in three weeks."The tech must try to separate the client's emotion and hyperbole from realityand determine with some degree of accuracy what is really happening to thepet's appetite. This will take some further digging. Asking questions ina way that reveals underlying truth is a learned behavior. The accuracyof your technician's written summary will add value to your client's experience.

Veterinarians

As a veterinarian the only thing that you can bring to your patient isknowledge and experience.

Products are only tools to help create positive outcomes from your knowledgebase. This base has come at great expense to you in time and financial outlay.Clients realize this and appreciate it.

Don't hide your ability all bundled up in some product or other service.Charge for knowledge and experience every time you see your patient. Youthen have an obligation to give your patient and client the very best thatyou can muster. It is only fair to both.

Dr. Lane is a 1975 veterinary graduate of the University of Illinois.After graduation he practiced as an associate in California before movingto Carbondale, Illinois and establishing Lakeside Veterinary Hospital in1978. Dr. Lane completed a master's degree in agricultural economics in1996. He is the author of numerous practice management and economics articles.