There's been some strife in the veterinary profession. This blog post pretty much sums it up.
http://vetsbehavingbadly.blogspot.com/2012/04/we-are-small-business.html?showComment=1335923717881#c9139934313993372603
Showing posts with label veterinarian. Show all posts
Showing posts with label veterinarian. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Wowza
With the sudden increase in appointments seen, also comes a sudden increase in "What the heck?!" moments; sometimes I have multiples a day even. Here are just a collection of short rants to my most favorite people:
1) No you can't be seen today. Especially when you call at 3:00pm demanding your horse be vaccinated before 5:00pm. Please don't give me attitude when I schedule you for the next day and tell you your Coggins won't come back for a week unless you pay double to have it overnighted. You have a YEAR to get these things done. It's not my emergency when you wait until the day before you need them.
2) Don't call my personal cell phone 5+ times then leave a message saying "So sorry to bother you, but..." You ARE bothering me. You're calling my personal cell phone. You're calling my personal cell phone 5 or more times.
3) When you page a veterinarian for an emergency at 12:05am, please do not keep me on the phone for 30 minutes talking about your chronically foundered horse's life story. He's foundered again because you gave him unlimited access to green grass. Yes I am sure. No I do not want to come out at 12:30am to come see him. I can put you on the schedule for tomorrow morning (or is it this morning?). No, you don't want that?? Ok. Then why'd you call the other vet in the practice the next day saying you'd "rather have a male vet" while giggling like a total creep. Wow.
4) I can only get to emergencies as fast as I can drive. When I say that I'll be there in 30 minutes, don't say "That's not fast enough!" Would you like me to jump in my personal helicopter?? Lord knows I'd much rather be sleeping than seeing your horse at 11pm on a Wednesday, but I'm still doing it. Don't be a total jerk.
5) When I see your downed horse that is a BCS of 2/9 and is so dehydrated that its eyes are sunk in, don't waste your breath trying to convince me that you take care of it. Obviously, you don't.
Among these righteous, annoying, and downright rude people, there are plenty of clients who are polite, kind, and altogether wonderful. Thank God for those people, otherwise I'd be quite bitter towards the world in about 3-4 workings days.
1) No you can't be seen today. Especially when you call at 3:00pm demanding your horse be vaccinated before 5:00pm. Please don't give me attitude when I schedule you for the next day and tell you your Coggins won't come back for a week unless you pay double to have it overnighted. You have a YEAR to get these things done. It's not my emergency when you wait until the day before you need them.
2) Don't call my personal cell phone 5+ times then leave a message saying "So sorry to bother you, but..." You ARE bothering me. You're calling my personal cell phone. You're calling my personal cell phone 5 or more times.
3) When you page a veterinarian for an emergency at 12:05am, please do not keep me on the phone for 30 minutes talking about your chronically foundered horse's life story. He's foundered again because you gave him unlimited access to green grass. Yes I am sure. No I do not want to come out at 12:30am to come see him. I can put you on the schedule for tomorrow morning (or is it this morning?). No, you don't want that?? Ok. Then why'd you call the other vet in the practice the next day saying you'd "rather have a male vet" while giggling like a total creep. Wow.
4) I can only get to emergencies as fast as I can drive. When I say that I'll be there in 30 minutes, don't say "That's not fast enough!" Would you like me to jump in my personal helicopter?? Lord knows I'd much rather be sleeping than seeing your horse at 11pm on a Wednesday, but I'm still doing it. Don't be a total jerk.
5) When I see your downed horse that is a BCS of 2/9 and is so dehydrated that its eyes are sunk in, don't waste your breath trying to convince me that you take care of it. Obviously, you don't.
Among these righteous, annoying, and downright rude people, there are plenty of clients who are polite, kind, and altogether wonderful. Thank God for those people, otherwise I'd be quite bitter towards the world in about 3-4 workings days.
Monday, March 12, 2012
Old Timers
It's been over a week since I last posted. This was mostly because Blogspot wasn't cooperating with my Internet Explorer, and I was always too rush to figured out how to make it work. This morning I finally buckled down and made it work.
Last week I ran into a common frustration many of us young, whipper-snapper vets run into. The old timers. We all learn many things for those people who have been in the profession for 40, 50, even 60 years. However, sometimes the standards they set us up for just, well, suck. Last week I was having a conversation about the cost of vaccination. The client had 5 horses they wanted to vaccinate. Vaccinating a horse isn't cheap-- even our cost for vaccines has sky rocketed in the last 3-4 years. To make matters worse, these people have no business owning 5 horses. At any rate, I quoted them a price (well over $500) and they were shocked. They tried to reason with me, "But Dr. Old Timey used to let us use vaccine by weight and we split the dose of vaccine three ways for the ponies. Then in half for the horses. And he only charged $6 for each dose." *Facepalm* Obviously, if you know anything basic immunology, you can't split a full dose of vaccine 2-3 ways and expect it to be protective. Furthermore, I have no clue what he was selling these people for $6. There are no vaccines that are even close to that price, even at our cost.
To make a semi-long story short, I tried to talk to this clueless lady about some theory of immunology to explain why we couldn't do this now. (Dr. Old Timey unfortunately suffered a stroke last summer and is no longer practicing. Because of this we are picking up quite a few of his clients. So stories like this are becoming more common). Not surprisingly, the people didn't make an appointment to vaccinate their horses, even for the minimum of vaccinations.
While I respect these old timers, I think it is also important to maintain a CURRENT idea of science and medicine. That's your job. From friends and my own experiences, I've heard stories about different old timers doing things like re-sterilizing single use disposable needles and disposable surgical gloves (and treating post-surgical infections routinely); charting medical cases with a date then describing the patient's visit with a simple check mark for notes; treating a severe colic with a shot of penicillin and leaving the horse to die instead of recommending euthanasia. I'm sure all of these things are well meaning. It just makes it really hard for other vets to come in and do the right thing when the preexisting standards for care and cost were set in the 1950s and haven't changed since.
Last week I ran into a common frustration many of us young, whipper-snapper vets run into. The old timers. We all learn many things for those people who have been in the profession for 40, 50, even 60 years. However, sometimes the standards they set us up for just, well, suck. Last week I was having a conversation about the cost of vaccination. The client had 5 horses they wanted to vaccinate. Vaccinating a horse isn't cheap-- even our cost for vaccines has sky rocketed in the last 3-4 years. To make matters worse, these people have no business owning 5 horses. At any rate, I quoted them a price (well over $500) and they were shocked. They tried to reason with me, "But Dr. Old Timey used to let us use vaccine by weight and we split the dose of vaccine three ways for the ponies. Then in half for the horses. And he only charged $6 for each dose." *Facepalm* Obviously, if you know anything basic immunology, you can't split a full dose of vaccine 2-3 ways and expect it to be protective. Furthermore, I have no clue what he was selling these people for $6. There are no vaccines that are even close to that price, even at our cost.
To make a semi-long story short, I tried to talk to this clueless lady about some theory of immunology to explain why we couldn't do this now. (Dr. Old Timey unfortunately suffered a stroke last summer and is no longer practicing. Because of this we are picking up quite a few of his clients. So stories like this are becoming more common). Not surprisingly, the people didn't make an appointment to vaccinate their horses, even for the minimum of vaccinations.
While I respect these old timers, I think it is also important to maintain a CURRENT idea of science and medicine. That's your job. From friends and my own experiences, I've heard stories about different old timers doing things like re-sterilizing single use disposable needles and disposable surgical gloves (and treating post-surgical infections routinely); charting medical cases with a date then describing the patient's visit with a simple check mark for notes; treating a severe colic with a shot of penicillin and leaving the horse to die instead of recommending euthanasia. I'm sure all of these things are well meaning. It just makes it really hard for other vets to come in and do the right thing when the preexisting standards for care and cost were set in the 1950s and haven't changed since.
Monday, February 27, 2012
Taking the Leap
Ok. So I think I'm going to make the first big equipment purchase-- a digital radiography system. This is a leap, but I think it will pay off. Like a farrier once told me, "If you can't invest in yourself, why would anyone else invest in you?"
So true! Here goes nothing :)
So true! Here goes nothing :)
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Professionalism
I think that professionalism, manners, and etiquette are all going extinct. What makes me the most infuriated is when another veterinarian can't extend any professional etiquette to me. IS IT REALLY THAT HARD?? Sometimes I blame myself; maybe they don't respect me because I'm young, maybe it's because I'm a lady, maybe it's because they think I'm a push over. However, the more it happens, the more I think it's not really my fault. Instead, I think they're just jerks.
Recent consult from local veterinarian VIA TEXT MESSAGE:
Dr. Classy: Hey, I think that CuteHorse with massive, slow healing wound needs some attention.
Me: Why what's going on?
I attempt to call to discuss the case like professionals. (No answer, no return call.)
Dr. Classy (14 hours later via text): Don't worry, it was a hard case.
Uhhh? What?! It took 3 phone calls to the owners and a subsequent visit to CuteHorse to determine that the wound was actually healing quickly and extremely well. Dr. Classy just hadn't seen it before and thought it looked "weird" because it was an open wound. Wouldn't have a professionally placed phone call the asking proper questions cleared up this misunderstanding easily?
If you can't offer professionalism and etiquette to your colleagues, who do you offer it to? I hear it all the time from seasoned vets: "But Vetchick, I'm just too burnt out, too tired to do that." Perhaps I'm just intolerant, but if you're too burnt-out to treat people with respect, then you need to find another profession, or at least take a LONG sabbatical. Being burnt out is NEVER an excuse for poor service, poor medicine, or just plain laziness. Take care of yourself and do your job.
*Step down from soapbox.*
Recent consult from local veterinarian VIA TEXT MESSAGE:
Dr. Classy: Hey, I think that CuteHorse with massive, slow healing wound needs some attention.
Me: Why what's going on?
I attempt to call to discuss the case like professionals. (No answer, no return call.)
Dr. Classy (14 hours later via text): Don't worry, it was a hard case.
Uhhh? What?! It took 3 phone calls to the owners and a subsequent visit to CuteHorse to determine that the wound was actually healing quickly and extremely well. Dr. Classy just hadn't seen it before and thought it looked "weird" because it was an open wound. Wouldn't have a professionally placed phone call the asking proper questions cleared up this misunderstanding easily?
If you can't offer professionalism and etiquette to your colleagues, who do you offer it to? I hear it all the time from seasoned vets: "But Vetchick, I'm just too burnt out, too tired to do that." Perhaps I'm just intolerant, but if you're too burnt-out to treat people with respect, then you need to find another profession, or at least take a LONG sabbatical. Being burnt out is NEVER an excuse for poor service, poor medicine, or just plain laziness. Take care of yourself and do your job.
*Step down from soapbox.*
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Welcome! Now don't waste my time!
Alright! I finally can knock this off my bucket list: starting a blog. After spending 4-5 intense days of researching, reading, and following several medicine related blogs (a few from ER doctors, one from a vet), I decided that I could also add to the internet blog-issphere. I have plenty of sarcastic remarks, funny stories, complaints that I could input. So here we go. What the world desperately needs: a blog from an equine veterinarian, finding her way through the world.
I'm going to start with a story that happened today. A message was left for me regarding someone seeking a personal reference. Occasionally we get calls from rescue organizations wanting references for people seeking to adopt a new horse. I called the place back expecting this. After some awkward questions, the caller explained that the reference was for a dietician position for someone who isn't one of our clients. Hmmmm...that's weird. I'll ask Bossman about this. I'll remember that for my next job; put name of someone I don't even know as reference. Recipe for success! Why do people insist on wasting my time??
I'm going to start with a story that happened today. A message was left for me regarding someone seeking a personal reference. Occasionally we get calls from rescue organizations wanting references for people seeking to adopt a new horse. I called the place back expecting this. After some awkward questions, the caller explained that the reference was for a dietician position for someone who isn't one of our clients. Hmmmm...that's weird. I'll ask Bossman about this. I'll remember that for my next job; put name of someone I don't even know as reference. Recipe for success! Why do people insist on wasting my time??
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