Paige Jordan In the Trenches

Money & Clients: Can We Give Gold Standard Care in a Recession?
The job description of a veterinarian should include financial advisor and salesperson in addition to medical professional. It is rare for an appointment to conclude without some sort of financial... Read More »

Balancing Motherhood & Work
The common saying is that there is never a “good” time to start a family. There are always financial constraints, job situations that could be better, and too many personal commitments to... Read More »

Production-Based Salaries
I am paid a base salary, plus 20% of my monthly production. This is the best arrangement according to what we were told in my business management courses in school. It makes sense. A straight salary... Read More »

Coworkers: When the Honeymoon is Over

Comments (2)
September 10, 2009

The first year of a new job is a lot like the first year of any personal relationship, except this is group “dating” on steroids. When you first meet your colleagues, their best attributes are what stand out the most. One technician has a great empathy for the clients, an assistant is able to make most animals feel at ease, the receptionist is able to multitask admirably, an associate is able to clearly and directly educate her clients about the diagnosis and treatment plan. This is similar to the initial courtship period in a romantic relationship.

When Personal Lives Don't Stay at Home

Comments (1)
September 16, 2009

The other day we had an incident during morning treatments that profoundly upset the morale of our veterinary team. One of our technicians, who I will refer to as John, was getting a cat out of its cage when the cat became extremely fractious. This was not an unexpected event as the cat had been showing signs of aggression previously and John was prepared with leather gloves. However, the cat’s behavior escalated to bouncing off the walls in a furious ball of teeth and nails.

What Cheese & Veterinary Clinics Have in Common

No Comments
October 5, 2009

I’ve been thinking a lot about cheese lately—Swiss cheese to be exact. I first heard about the “Swiss Cheese Model” from my husband. This model is used by his workplace to analyze outcomes with unfavorable or even deadly results. Unfortunately, I also see this model in action more frequently than I would like to in my own clinic.

Vets Who Love Maternity Leave

Comments (1)
October 8, 2009

Maternity leave has been a wonderful experience so far. Falling almost exactly on the 1-year anniversary of when I started my first job out of vet school, I feel that the timing is a blessing in disguise. The honeymoon phase with my workplace is definitely over. The stress of interacting closely with a small number of diverse personalities in a high-stress environment was making me feel jaded and unsure about my chosen profession, or at least with my current workplace.

Communicating With Clients About Euthanasia

Comments (3)
October 16, 2009

Death is a daily part of life for a veterinarian.Our profession is in the unique position of being able to “play God” a bit by ending the suffering of our patients. It is a part of the job, regardless of how we feel about it. In a lot of ways, I actually enjoy doing euthanasias. I am not a morbid person who loves death, but someone who takes pride in being able to ease suffering at the end of a life, for both the animal and the owner.

The Medicine is the Easy Part

Comments (1)
July 1, 2009

One year ago, I received my DVM and accomplished a goal that I had been pursuing, both directly and indirectly, for the past 30 years of my life. Like many little girls, I loved animals and wanted to be a veterinarian.

Communication: Are We Valuing Other Opinions?

Comments (2)
July 1, 2009

Lack of communication is a big problem in the practice where I work, as I am sure it is in a lot of practices. It is amazing to me how many problems can be solved by the simple act of people talking to one another. I feel that a veterinary clinic is only as good as the morale of its staff. An unhappy staff affects client relations and patient care. The source of poor morale often stems from a simple misunderstanding and the feeling of not being heard as a contributing team member.

Why Clients Lose Trust

No Comments
September 18, 2009

As a pregnant woman who has made many visits to the doctor over the last 9 months, I have experienced from a patient’s perspective, what happens when a medical office does not communicate effectively.

For the first part of my pregnancy I had no health concerns. Therefore, there were no problems concerning the continuity of my medical care. However, a week before my due date I began to have some bleeding. I ended up seeing 3 different practitioners over 5 days and my experiences did not instill a great amount of confidence in my medical care.