Veterinarian Position Available. The JVC Veterinarian Guide Book

Veterinarian Position Available

Wouldn't life be easier if we all were given little instruction manuals to help guide us along our path in life?

What about simplifying life into parts? Say, work life?,,,,

What if there was a color by number map to follow from 9 am-5 pm? The quintessential Garmin for our day to day work life?

Here's what my veterinary work template would look like;

• Arrive at work. Say "Good Morning!" to every person and critter you meet. 

• Glance at surroundings to make sure they look and smell ready for a full day of patients. For instance, pick up syringe cap beside waste basket. Throw in trash.   

• Walk into first morning appointment. Smile and greet Mr. Jones. Remark to him that Monster is looking better today. Pat Monster on the head in passing. 

• Help over burdened client at check-out counter. Offer to carry Mrs. Granny's 30 pound bag of litter to the car for her. And, ask if she remembered to check Fluffies urine after last months urinary tract infection?"

How awesome would it be if I could install a little step-by-step programmed guide into the day of every one of the employees at Jarrettsville Vet? You know, just as a little nudge to guide and prompt them to remember manners, be friendly, and be the advocate for excellent pet care?

OK, so maybe no one really wants a little recording of me nagging at them the whole time they are clocked in to work? It is a little Big Brother meets "mother you're driving me crazy!"

And, yet training manuals have become a universal standard operating tool to train, advise, and guide employees daily. In the veterinary hospital setting we can either provide weeks of shadowing on another employees heels, offer  written bulleted lists to memorize and regurgitate, or a combination of these.

I think I have learned that a new employee is a bit of hiring on a hunch, listening to your gut, asking probing open ended questions, offering a bit of rope to see if they help someone or hang themselves, and yes, providing a tool kit, safety net, and being a nosy, hovering, overhead nagging mom.

Call it matriarchal leadership, ownership responsibility, due diligence, etc.. it's all the same. I, as the owner of Jarrettsville Vet, have an obligation to my family, my patients, my staff, and my clients. Without direction and oversight our ability to meet both our own and our clients expectations, as well as provide exemplary care to our patients, is limited, if not impossible. I have to be a mom. And every mom will tell you that this is not an easy job.

The bigger and more successful my practice has gotten the longer my list of 'mom duties' has grown.

Luckily, every mom has kids who grow up and mature and require less oversight. I am incredibly fortunate to have four veterinarians who are the epitome of professional, talented and compassionate. I have 4 kids I never have to worry about. (OK, complete disclosure; one was in a terrible car accident recently and I worry about how to keep all of the wheels turning in the face of tragedy, illness, absence and crisis. A moms worry is never ending).

Such is the prologue to this blog....

Jarrettsville Vet has hired two new vets! We are welcoming two new graduates into our family. Dr. Hensler will start in late November and Dr. Knouse, who will start in June 2016.

Like every other new family member who joins a bustling finely tuned, (although sporadically chaotic machine), there will be a transition and change. With this in mind, I thought that it might be helpful if I put some of my pearls, hard lessons, triumphs, expectations, concerns, fears, complete paranoias, pet peeves, and hard lines on paper. (And, because I have this compulsive flaw to make all of that public, why not share it with the rest of the world? Really, I am sharing it because I have to set my new kids out into the word and I am a bit petrified of these kids making the same mistakes I made. Maybe this will help our clients be a bit more understanding of the newbies?).

How do you start a training manual/instruction guidebook? Maybe the best place to start is to reiterate at our most basic principle and core value?

• Help people help their pets. Jarrettsville Vet helps pets. Above all we are a place centered on kindness coming first. The first, and most important piece of advice I can give is; should you not know what to do ask yourself "what is the kind thing to do?" and then, do exactly that. Everything else is secondary. If you abandon this principle you will lose our soul in the muck of all the other clutter and in the end you will also lose your ability to walk away with a sense of purpose. Abandonment of this will tarnish the hard work it took you to get to where you stand now. 
• Be honest. No matter how terrible the plot gets your integrity, the greatest gift you give yourself, is on the line. Never surrender that to anyone. And never convince yourself that the consequences over shadow your integrity.
• Work hard. There is no escaping this key ingredient in the the recipe for the success in life.
• Be true, true to your patients first. They are who you work for. And, then be true to your clients. Too many vets get this misappropriated. Your clients will find you if they believe that you hold their pets life and happiness above all else. (I am not even going to add the little asterisk that reminds us that pets are property and human safety is paramount. I hope you already see the oxymoron in this?).
• Never stop being a student. After a decade in practice you may have mastered spays, neuters, and sick kittens, but you will not ever master the art of human communication, emotional turmoil, and the pathetic financial compensation proportionate to educational burden. Be a student who learns from others, cases, mistakes, and pass along what you pick up along the way to empower the others around you.
• Give everyone the benefit of the doubt, but be prepared.
• General practice small town veterinary medicine is about finishing the marathon, not winning the sprint.
• Get out alive. When all else is in question don't give up everything else in life.

Sully

Day to Day Pearls;

• Trust is the cornerstone to being entrusted with a pets care. Look people in the eye.
• Say "Hello," with a smile and eye contact to every person in the room.  Walk into every appointment with a "Hello." Introduce yourself. Shake hands if you want. You are going to make an impression, make it a good one.
• Greet every pet that greets you! Acknowledge your patients. Introduce your self to them too. Making long term relationships work happens if you extend yourself to others.
• Use your brain, your hands, your gut, your eyes, your ears and yes, your nose. These are the most important tools of your trade. Your successes and failures along with your experience will be built on these. Don't start any appointment with a textbook, rule out list, or notes! You will miss important clues if you don't keep your mind open and your brain picking at the puzzling case at hand. Books should be off limits until after you walk out of the exam room!
• Diagnostics are life lines as you try to unravel the pieces of the puzzle. Use them sparingly. Talk to clients about your exam findings and why you want to take the next step to help understand their pets disease.
• Give estimates of cost with each step. Your client doesn't know you and they need to trust you.
• A pet that looks bad should be presumed to be in bad shape. I once had a new grad walk out of a room with a "trouble breathing cat" without the cat. That poor cat was suffocating and the vet was on her way to back of the clinic get a tech to help retrain it. That cat would have been dead in 5 more minutes had I not seen him on the table suffocating. True story. She left shortly after. Walk into every room expecting to be an ER vet. You are always an ER vet, like it or not.
• Ask for help if you have that tiny little voice in the back of your head telling you to "proceed with caution." You will not be alone here and you are surrounded by amazing technicians and staff.
• Call the cops if you are afraid. Seriously, never engage in a fight  (verbal or otherwise). Pick up the phone and dial 911. People forget that there is back up right down the street.
• If you have a tough case and it is bugging you and you think that a radiograph will help you and your patient sleep better at night, do it. The revenues generated by a few simple diagnostics are not worth your compassion fatigue burn-out. Run them, don't charge for them, take it out of the Good Sam Fund, whatever.. Learn to protect and preserve your psyche.
• We can make anything possible, you have limitless tools to help. Use them. 
• Walk away from every appointment only after asking your client if they;
•  have any other questions?
• Need anything else?
• Tell them the long and short term plan
• Give instructions for expected resolution,
• Next steps needed if the problem does not resolve within __.
• Leave your contact information. I leave my email, or cell phone, for clients I am worried about.
• Thank them and say that it was nice to meet them.
• Provide a Report Card/Take Home Form to all clients
• If your client doesn't leave with saying "Thank You" to you, there is a problem. Go figure out what it is. Face all potential problems head on as soon as you recognize them. My nice way of saying "make it right" and CYA.

Buster

Behind the Scenes; Pearls of Practice;

• It is far safer for everyone if you and the techs hold the patients.
• If a pet is scared ask the client to wait outside. Often a pet is protecting the client, or, they get away with intimidating behavior around the owner. Diffuse the situation before it escalates.
• Pay attention to body language. A wagging dog tail is willingness to engage. Not friendly or curious sign language. Licking lips, tense body composure, and anxiety cause injuries and a client and patient who will be reluctant to return.
• If a client insists on holding, makes demands you are not comfortable with, or escalates an encounter, walk out of the room and take a breathe. Take a moment to think. Don't be forced or intimidated into anything. I have stopped appointments when horns get locked. You are responsible for everything that happens under our roof. Live in worst case scenario world, and be prepared for it. A fractious dog and a demanding pushy client are setting you up for the worst experience of your professional life. I promise your pride will survive if you walk away and say "No."
• Euthanasia's. Remember it is always about the pet. I know that no one wants to miss a vein when performing a euthanasia, but, taking a dying pet away from a grieving family is a question for you to ask, not the tech. Lay out a plan before the pet arrives, or talk to them when they do arrive. Talk about the procedure, ask about their concerns, sign pertinent forms, and check out before you touch their pet. Sedate a scared pet, take your time so that the clients don't walk away grieving more than they did walking in. Alert the staff that there is a pet passing away. Keep the clinic as quiet as possible, provide time, support, and compassion. 
• You do not work for a person, You are the vet you want to be. The person you dreamed to be. If you do not feel right about doing what is being asked of you share your voice. I will not euthanize a treatable pet. We have placed pets in homes, treated pro bono, and moved monumental mountains to hold this pillar of care true. If you still think that the impossible is not possible stick around a while. The more we try to make miracles happen the more commonplace they have  become. There is no room for skepticism, laziness, excuses, or disposable views here. 
• Everyone puts a little skin in the game. If you want to help a pet, or a person in need, we will support you. We ask in  return that everyone participate by putting a little personal skin in the game. Discuss expectations early on. 
• Give stuff away. It builds trust, diffuses pointless exhausting arguments, and keeps clients coming back. I do most re-checks free of charge. I also have a '3 second waiting room' rule. If I have seen the pet before and it takes me less than 3 seconds to dismiss worry I give a 'free visit' pass. Tiny bug bites, tick scabs, broken toe nails, better safe than sorry worried parents who just need to hear us say that "it will be ok, just watch it," don't need a $50 visit charge. I appreciate their proactive nature and they appreciate not being punished for it.
• Treat each client the same way you would your friends and family. If you are successful in doing that they will become a friend for life and you will cherish this above all else.
• JVC is not all about the money. We all deserve to be paid well for our time and talents but we never take advantage and we never use scare tactics to elicit compliance. 
• Give options. Lots and lots of options. Recommend 'Gold Standard' for the best care possible to be provided to your patient. Be honest about cost, prognosis and expected course of recovery. If 'Gold Standard' is not feasible talk, offer, and work until you get some treatment plan in place. Do not abandon your patient because of any obstacle. Find me if you run out of options. Practicing medicine successfully is about effective client communications and negotiations.

Going Home At Night;

• Check on every staff member. Check that they are OK. Say "Thank You" for their help.
• You are in charge of the people, pets, and property. If someone or something isn't working step up and say something. The staff is expected to follow your leadership at all times. I recognize that no one likes confrontation but you have to keep this place running smoothly and sometimes that requires being a mom.
• Check on every patient. Make sure that all treatments are done.
• If a pet is not calm, comfortable, and stable send them to the ER. They should not be alone at night, and no staff member deserves to come in to find a deceased pet. It is not fair to anyone.
• Lock up, be safe.

I have your back. Every single step of the way. Call me, or Joe, or Diedra.

This is the first job of the long hard journey you worked so hard to achieve. Be Brave, Be Compassionate, and Be the dream you always imagined yourself to be.

Welcome To Jarrettsville Vet Megan and Lindsey!

Kira

Related blogs;
Living and Working in the Land of Liability.

The Power of the First Impression.

Which Kind of Vet Would You Be?

How Do Our Perceptions Lead Us?

Compassion Fatigue.

Olivia,,(who is looking for a home).

If you would like to talk to me about your pets care or needs you can find me on Pawbly.com. Pawbly is a free online community dedicated to helping pet people provide the care and support they need. It is free for all to use.

If you would like to meet me in person I, and our stellar vets, can be found at Jarrettsville Vet in Harford County Maryland.

I am also on Twitter @FreePetAdvice.

New Grad Seeking First Job, What Not to Say and Do

OK, this blog needs to start with laying some ground work; the forepart provides credibility, and the second half provides apologies..

I have owned my practice for 10 years. In that decade I have hired 11 veterinarians. I have also  'elected to not retain' all but 4. Now, I am the first person to admit that these numbers are bleak.

Here's my justification for this; I have exceedingly high standards. I am always looking to hire a life long employee. The practice I bought was built on a foundation of this. Jarrettsville Vet has been in existence for almost 80 years. In those 75 plus years I am the third owner. I have a legacy of providing care to generations of families that I hold with great pride and humbling responsibility.

The backbone and ultimate success of providing exceptional care to veterinary patients lies squarely on the shoulders of the veterinarians. The cogs of the practices' engine are powered by the technicians and support staff but the life, death and direction lie in the hands of the vets. My practice is my ultimate responsibility and the amount of trust and liability that is employed by the vets I hire will make or break the practice.

It is a matter of perspective and position.

It is also the preamble to this blog..

I am again in the arduous place of finding a new vet to add to our roster. I have found that this is becoming a more difficult task with each passing year. The list of qualified candidates seems to be dwindling. There are fewer and fewer exceptional vets looking for new jobs. I also know what I am looking for someone who will seamlessly integrate into our existing bustling quirky family. I have gotten much faster at weeding out potential veterinary candidates.

Established veterinarians seek higher paying jobs with fewer hours and more restrictions. Their expertise pulls a higher price tag and a longer list of requirements. Jarrettsville Vet is a place that doesn't turn away pets in need. We are not about the money, therefore, I cannot hire a vet whose primary purpose is monetary compensation. More and more veterinarians are females and more of them have families. They want day work exclusively and in general seem to not want to do much, if any, surgery. I feel obligated to provide evening hours to our clients and we are open 7 days a week. I also want a vet who will be willing to do an emergency surgery when needed instead of punting it to the emergency clinic every single time. I am determined to hold on to a traditional veterinary hospital as we advance our services, reach, and assistance. I am also unwilling to sacrifice exceptional care and medicine. Our clients pay for, trust us, and return expecting these.

When you work as many hours as we do you have to maintain a healthy happy practice. Vets at Jarrettsville Vet have to be liked and likable on top of being intelligent, compassionate, and capable.

So, here I go again looking for a new vet...

There are a few veterinary specific career sites available for posting veterinary openings. This is the ad I posted a few weeks ago;

Small animal, 4 doctor, 7 day/week practice with high quality medicine, equipment, staff, and dedication to caring for our patients and clients. Excellent pay or commission, benefits, and work schedule. Must be proficient in surgery, taking great care of our clients and patients. We provide a happy, healthy, fulfilling place to work, without micro-management. We are a clinic with a big heart and dedication to living by our motto "compassion comes first." Please fax a resume to 410-692-6283, visit jarrettsvillevet.com, or stop in to say hello. 

This time I excluded "DVM equivalents," a choice I had allowed in previous postings. A DVM equivalent is usually a foreign trained veterinarian. Although I do not question their ability or proficiency I have not found any in our rural area. They are vets who live far far away (often the other side of the country, or another country all together). I am incredibly reluctant to hire someone to have them move to the quiet rolling hills of Maryland when I am not confident they will pan out.

That leaves me to getting applicants who are primarily new graduates within our area.

New graduates have their own set of advantages and disadvantages. They universally lack experience, but they do arrive ready to work hard and with the stamina that youth provides. They are malleable and genuine. They also often lack communication skills and the intuition of a seasoned vet. There is also a huge expectation for a commitment on the practices part to hand holding and mentoring.

New graduates are accompanied by a resume laden with graduation dates and locations. It is a short list of mostly irrelevant skills with no corresponding real-life meaning. A new graduates resume only needs two things for me to decide whether or not I will offer an interview. Location and school. The rest is fluff that will hurt a candidate as much as the candidates mistakenly believe it will help them.

Case in point; The sweetest well-dressed soon-to-be new graduate arrives with resume in hand, demure shy smile on her hopeful fresh face. Her resume has no date prior to her college graduation. She, and her overwhelming desire to be a vet, do not appear to exist prior to May 2012.

And so begins her interview;

"So, why did you choose a foreign vet school?" I ask.

"I was getting ready to graduate (from college) and I had missed the fall entry application times for the US vet schools. So, I applied to a foreign school and was accepted."
No qualifications or experience needed. Apply, get accepted, start 2-3 months later. I am left pondering.. Who decides at the end of college that they want go to vet school? Then impetuously decides to fill out an application.... Small road block in timing? It's OK apply to the paid ad that pops up first anytime you type in "vet school". Voila! for profit vet school at your service.

Question number two; "What are your interests within veterinary medicine?"

"I wanted to focus on Zoo Medicine but that takes really good grades. So, now I think I want to focus on physical rehab."
We don't have this at my practice, nor was there any mention of whether or not we might be interested in providing it.

Question number three; "What kind of practice are you looking for?"

"I am hoping to find a practice with a good mentorship program."
Every new vet, especially those without a shred of experience outside the classroom setting, wants and needs this. I admit I was one of these graduates. Any conscientious new vet needs to admit this. I suppose it would be far scarier to have a new vet so cocky that they thought they didn't need coaching? Every time I get an application that says "I love animals" as the 'reason for interest in this position' I want to throw something. "Mentorship" is on par with "I love animals."

As a practice owner I know every new grad need needs to be trained, A LOT. I sat listening to her blossuming excitement to enter a field she appears to know little about, has a path long and bumpy in front of her, and I am still baffled that she never spent a second learning about her career choice before she got herself $200,000 plus in debt.

I offered advice. I knew I shouldn't have, but I was burgeoning with empathy. She probably took it as chastising but this girl is entering a world that can break her heart, or kill her.

I am incensed by the lack of investment and parenting her vet school provided her as they set her out into the real world? It is, in my opinion, criminal.

"Do you have any experience in surgery?" This was a clear requirement in my job ad. There is no mention of it on her resume.

"I have assisted in surgeries, spays and neuters. I am a hard worker and willing to learn anything. I am hoping to find a mentor to help in this area." The overall mood was growing more somber.

"My clients and their pets are a responsibility I hold dear. I am not going to feel right about an inexperienced vet performing surgery on them. I am as worried about your skills as you are." This statement is met by an awed realization.

This is not going well. I cannot lie and assuage her. She was not prepared for honest bluntness. She will either walk away from this interview having learned a few things, and more prepared the next time, or, she will find an employer who knows how to provide alluring smoke and mirrors and make her feel all warm and fuzzy. She will jump on that job, that will either pay her peanuts, which she will now willingly, and knowingly accept, then get dumped on with ridiculous hours without that promised mentor by her side. She will be thrown to the wolves like so many of us are. Or, she will find a practice with other new graduates who will at least provide her comradery amidst the abuse. She will not likely find her utopia.

She will not however be very hard pressed to find, excellent pay, mentorship, and the vital training she needs with transparency. Not unless she works for a family member. No one else can invest the time and attention needed when they are already short handed.

"Do you have any other questions for me?" Our time was running out and the interview was closing.
We had intentionally not talked about money. An employer can tell much about a candidate by omitting key questions. I don't omit to be harsh, I omit to allow her to speak up, stand up for herself, and become assertive. She will need to learn it someday.

"Well, I know I need to ask about salary. Although I know nothing about it." She says, full on smile.

OK, honesty is always the best policy, but, please, don't go to an employer without knowing a few key important facts.

"Here are my concerns. I am assuming that you are in debt from attending the most expensive veterinary college on the planet. For this job to work for you long term you need to know how much you need to make to pay off your debt in a reasonable fashion. If you can't pay your bills you will not be happy here. Do you know what your numbers are?"

Blank stare.

Goodness am I worried about this fledgling.

She departed quickly. We both know that we aren't a good match. I sincerely wish her well.

If you are a new graduate looking for your first job here is my advice;

• Ask about your predecessor? Ask the boss, the other vets, and the staff. If there is not a consistent answer doubt the bosses perception.
• If the employer brags about "all of their fancy equipment" consider this smoke. Look for a mirror, they are lying around somewhere. The real heart of a practice lies in the people, not the stuff.
• Listen and take notes during your interview. I never see a new grad arrive to an interview prepared. They get so flustered and overwhelmed they forget to ask important and relevant questions. We all takes notes during an exam, key pieces of information to formulate our diagnosis, and yet, every candidate I have ever met with sits idly by nodding their heads. Poor SOAP practice.
• Stay unemotional. This is a big decision. Be objective.
• Invest time in knowing what you are getting into. It is unimaginable that so many new grads make a decision after an interview and a few hours on a working interview. We advise our clients to spend hours, days, and even foster a pet for weeks, before making a knee jerk decision to buy, adopt, make a life long commitment to their pet, and there we go being just as impatient and uneducated.
• Don't list other interests that do not pertain to your current job seeking quest. Why would I, or anyone else, want to hire you, mentor you, train you, and then have you leave in a year or two to pursue Zoo medicine, or physical therapy? At least talk to your potential employer about investing in you and a new modality to add to the practices repertoire.
• If you are graduating from vet school in debt you should have a very good idea of how long it will take you pay that off. There are rumors of federal law changing to require schools to discuss the debt you will acquire if you attend. Much like the reforms made to home ownership and credit cards. Consumers should be cognizant of the financial impact of the decisions they make. I know how blind desire to go to vet school can be. But, you will graduate and there will be a life after school. Five years into practice I promise you will be worried about how you will ever get out of your student debt.
• Research the vet, practice, and learn as much as you can before you show up for an interview. Google, Yelp and investigate the Facebook page of the vet practice. Sell the assets you share with the practice and the vets who work there. 
• Remember that a great practice will see you as an incredible asset. You are an investment and there has to be a return on our investment. If you don't fit in it affects the bottom line. If the practice cannot profit from you we will be forced to find another vet.
• Finding a job is equivalent to being a participant on a dating site. You show me your good side, I show you mine. Except I am eHarmony.com, I want a life long relationship based upon trust and knowing each other. Too many new grads unknowingly get wooed into a one year stand with an initial blissful courting period lacking a foundation for a career long commitment. 365 days later those yearling grads are left feeling a little jilted, over promised under-delivered, taken advantage of and left walking away looking for that second boyfriend with the complete opposite qualities that that first boyfriend had. Second jobs are too often rebounds. Spend the time answering the "436 questions to find your perfect match." And, be the smart other half to any healthy relationship, stay out of the minefield of unsupportable debt. Don't want the boyfriend with crippling credit card debt? Then don't be the DVM girlfriend with bankruptcy proof inescapable educational debt.

Important information for new grads.

AVMA guide to Financing Your Veterinary Medical Education.

AVMA Survey Reveals Bleak Situation for New Veterinary Graduates. 2012

Veterinary Practice News, Too Many Indebted Veterinary Chase Too Few Jobs. July 2012

High Debt and Falling Demand Trap New Vets. Ross student owes more than $300,00 after graduation.

DVM 360, Finding Your First Job.

My related blogs;

Too Afraid To Fail. When your fear costs your patients.

My Top 10 Advice to New Vets.

Compassion Fatigue

The Holes In The Safety Net. Suicide in Veterinary Medicine.

I am interested in your thoughts. Please leave a comment about your first job experience, or your thoughts on the veterinary career paths of your friends, I want to hear about your experience.

If you have a pet question you can find me at Pawbly.com. Pawbly is a free online advisory platform to help people and their pets.

If you would like to know more about Jarrettsville Veterinary Center please visit our website or Facebook page.

I am also on Twitter @FreePetAdvice, YouTube and Meerkat @FreePetAdvice.