Overheard at the NAVC Ignite! talks

We've condensed five 10-minute talks to five 10-second takeaways. Read and enjoy:

On connecting with the next generation:

“With iGens, social media is going to be the only way they communicate.” -Heather Pendergast, RVT, CVPM

On cognitive computing:

“We're in the midst of a data epidemic. About 2.5 billion gigabytes of data are created a day, and 80 percent is unstructured. And 90 percent of data that exists was created in the last two years. … Medical imaging accounts for two-thirds of all data created,” Jamie Carroll, President and Chief Executive Officer of LifeLearn Inc. says. “The result is that time is our antagonist. … What we need is man and computer symbiosis.”

On the potential role of nurse practitioners in veterinary medicine:

“The nurse practitioner role in veterinary medicine could help serve rural areas that aren't easily reached. They can focus on areas like wellness and ringworm and 3 a.m. broken toenails and let the doctors focus on chronic kidney disease, heart failure and abdominal surgery,” says Kenichiro Yagi, BS, RVT, VTS (ECC, SAIM). “This could increase patient care and increase revenue. … My challenge to you is if you have technicians who aren't fully utilized, give them a try and let them do more and identify their capacity and see if you have technicians who can grow into larger roles.”

On how to unplug from technology for your health-and for better sleep:

“Use these steps to unplug. One, schedule time away. Two, alert and report your contacts. Three, establish your emergency contacts. Four, unplug and smile,” says Eric Garcia of Simply Done Tech Solutions in Lutz, Florida. “The side effects may include jitters, phantom phone noise, curiosity, FOMO-fear of missing out-and the fear that the world might be ending.”

On identifying workplace bullying:

“Think of bullying as domestic violence in the workplace with a paycheck,” says Charlotte Lacroix, DVM, JD. “It's bullying if it's done in a repeated fashion to threaten, humiliate and embarrass. … It can be overt, such as yelling, or covert-for example, sabotaging a technician by hiding needed equipment. Employee surveys are a good way to detect it. What should you do prevent it? One, define it in your employee manual. Two, train and sensitize your team. And three, enforce a policy that reprimands bullies so they don't engage again.”