Will emergency relief veterinary practice continue to grow?

Photo: SeventyFour/Adobe Stock

Editor’s Note: The author is chief medical officer for VetTriage, a veterinary telehealth service.

Over the past 2 decades, the veterinary field has seen a drastic increase in relief veterinary practice.¹ Many doctors are choosing to change their career trajectory from practicing as full-time veterinarians and creating a robust clientele in their community at a single hospital to becoming relief veterinarians at general practices, urgent care facilities, and emergency hospitals.

The factors most commonly reported to have a strong effect on mobile or relief veterinarians’ decision to leave their previous job include administration, hospital culture, leadership, feeling their voice was heard, and workplace schedule.1 Furthermore, the majority of mobile and relief practitioners report feeling satisfied with their work-life balance (mobile, 78%; relief, 91%) as well as availability for children (mobile, 84%; relief, 84%) and other family members (mobile, 85%; relief, 87%).¹

However, based on discussions with emergency hospital practice owners, the per diem trend may be drying out for this subset of the industry. The financial weight of providing travel and hotel accommodations for relief veterinarians in emergency practice can be stifling, and dedicating salaries for such positions no longer appears justifiable for some practices.

Anecdotally from the viewpoint of relief veterinarians in the general practice and urgent care settings, despite anticipation that the veterinarian shortage will worsen,² the gap in veterinary care, or at least the need for relief veterinarians, may have plateaued or even be decreasing. In emergency care, for example, some veterinarians are desiring more permanent roles, so fewer hospitals are utilizing emergency relief doctors. With that comes natural shifts in hospitals and clinics to adjust their requirement for permanent emergency veterinarians to be more in line with current trends and practitioner desires. More emergency hospitals are requiring a commitment of three 12-hour shifts per week to provide relief veterinarians with a more consistent work-life balance while providing clients and patients with more consistent veterinary care, standardizations in training, and consistency in policies and procedures.

The following lists provide more insights into the challenges and benefits of relief veterinary medicine, from the perspectives of hiring practices and practitioners:

Sources of frustration among practices seeking relief practitioners

• There can be a lack of consistency and loyalty.
• Clients tend to prefer veterinarians with whom they already have an established relationship, especially when de-escalating an unfortunate situation with a case.
• Cases needing/desiring continuity of care or that are chronic are hindered.
• Hospital protocols and standards of care are not honored.
• Attempting to accommodate each relief veterinarian’s schedule can be laborious.
• Each relief veterinarian has their limitations.
• Compensation can be difficult to keep in line with Internal Revenue Service requirements regarding independent contractor pay.
• Some cases require diagnostic workups or rely on diagnostic submission to an external laboratory.
• Requesting they tackle laboratory results and review prior records for a particular case brings additional stress to the practice.
• Revenue for the practice can be underwhelming.

Benefits for practices seeking relief veterinarians

• Clients who do not need/desire to see a veterinarian whom they already have an established relationship with value are happy being seen by any veterinarian.
• Urgent/emergency concerns and walk-ins are taken care of by relief veterinarians.
• A sudden departure of an associate veterinarian can be covered.
• Relief is provided for solo practitioners.
• The practice is maintained while seeking permanent associate veterinarians.
• Losing clients can be prevented.
• Because providing DVM relief often results in relief for the entire team, the permanent staff is retained.
• Practices that can leverage in-house diagnostics can leverage the relief veterinarian diagnostician skills.
• Associateveterinarians can take time off.
• A facility can be accommodated in its growth phase when it is not in a financial position to support an associate veterinarian.
• Relief shifts can function as a “working interview” for practices looking to hire and relief veterinarians looking for permanent work.

Negative attributes of relief work for veterinarians

• They maintain their own bookkeeping and billing.
• They can face long commutes.
• There is occasional unwanted pressure to be hired by the facility.
• Appointments can be scheduled inappropriately so that the relief DVM is unable to complete their medical records before their shift ends or must charge the practice for overtime.
• Variations in practice standards and professional/personal ethics may not match their own.
• There may be a lack of feedback on cases.
• They may lack personal interactions with clients.
• There can be a lack of closure with cases.
• Veterinary-client-patient relationship guidelines are challenging.
• Practice/DEA licensing/licensure applications are a hindrance and can limit how much work can be given.

Benefits to relief veterinarians:

• They can rejuvenate their passion for veterinary medicine.
• A sense of worth, appreciation, camaraderie, and personal fulfillment can result when giving their colleagues relief.
• There is flexible scheduling.
• There can be a satisfactory salary.
• They gain exposure to how different practices operate.
• They can expand their professional prowess.
• They can achieve/maintain their desired work-life balance.
• If permanent work is desired, relief work allows the DVM to investigate local practices, deciding on a work environment that fits them.
• Typically, there is a lack of exposure to negative cultural aspects of a practice.
• There are no substantial management duties or expectations, and no involvement in ordering and maintaining supplies/inventory.
• There are traveling opportunities to explore new areas outside of work.

Takeaways

As the field of veterinary medicine evolves, schedule flexibility and work-life balance will likely increase in importance, making careers in nonpractice settings more desirable.¹ Traditional brick-and-mortar clinics should note that dissatisfaction with administration and office/hospital culture might drive their employees to pursue other career avenues such as relief or mobile practice.¹

Shadi J. Ireifej, DVM, DACVS, received his bachelor of science degree in biology from Binghamton University, State University of New York, and his doctoral degree at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine in Ithaca, New York. He participated in small animal medicine and surgery internships at Angell Animal Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts, and Long Island Veterinary Specialists (LIVS) in Plainview, New York, and achieved his board certification in small animal surgery by completing a 3-year residency at LIVS. After operating for almost 10 years at LIVS, Ireifej continued building his career in surgery in Nevada and California, also performing surgeries at emergency and specialty hospitals across the country. Ireifej now serves as chief medical officer of VetTriage. He has also been published in scientific and medical journals and enjoys lecturing to a variety of audiences.

REFERENCES

1. Kogan LR, Rishniw M. Relief and mobile veterinary careers may offer a path towards improved quality of life. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2023;262(2):209-215. doi:10.2460/javma.23.07.0422.
2. Tackling the veterinary profession shortage. MARS Veterinary Health. August 2023. Accessed January 15, 2025. https://marsveterinary.com/tackling-the-veterinary-professional-shortage/