Your wellness plans meme well ...

Our clients love their pets, but love may not be enough. To ensure their pets live long and prosper, owners must commit to regular healthcare. Offering preventive healthcare plans help, but how many practices have taken the plunge? VHMA asked its members in a recent survey and 261 respondents weighed-in.

As consumers, we're constantly bombarded with inducements to buy and take advantage of special offers and services. The question: Do practices offer inducements to clients to promote preventive care plans? With 33 percent reporting the services in the plan aren't discounted, the real benefit of opting into a plan appears to be the convenience of making monthly payments. 

Although respondents believe that preventive plans offer budgeting convenience, encourage more patient visits and improve the health of pets, they also believe that clients don't understand the concept of preventive care and confused the plans with health insurance. The plans have been slow to catch on, with respondents reporting that between one and five percent of their clients have signed up for the plans.

As a concept, preventive care plans make sense-a prescribed schedule for treatment, manageable monthly payments and healthier pets. But between concept and acceptance, a wide gulf exists that interferes with practices' ability and willingness to offer these plans and clients' willingness to buy into the plans.

Ready to get serious about wellness plans? Check out the team discussion guide to plan your successful program. 

Christine Shupe, CAE, is the executive director of the Veterinary Hospital Managers Association. The association is dedicated to serving professionals in veterinary management through education, certification and networking.