During the past 18 months, nearly every veterinary practice has experienced unprecedented demands and challenges. Throw in the reality of an historically-tight job market, with few available veterinarians and vet techs to go around, and you’ve got even more problems. These difficulties have caused considerable professional (and personal) burnout, with many colleagues not knowing how they could possibly take a break. That’s where relief (or locus) veterinary staff could help heal your practice ills.

Hosts Dr. Ernie Ward and Beckie Mossor, RVT are joined by Dr. Cindy Trice, Founder of Relief Rover, an online service that connect veterinary clinics with relief help.

Dr. Trice shares how she started in relief work, what led to the formation of ReliefRover.com, and how impactful leveraging relief staff can be for an overworked team.

Viewfinders, you know we’re compactly lamenting the fact that you’re overworked, underpaid, and under appreciated. Here’s a solution we think could help you (at least) get a break to recharge your spirit (and body, relationships, etc.).

What have your experiences with relief vets or vet techs been? Is this something you think would help your clinic? Share your thoughts (and a 5-star review) over on Apple Podcasts or our social media! Thank you!

This week we are honoring the often unsung heroes of a veterinary clinic, the veterinary receptionists or CSRs!

Hosts Dr. Ernie Ward and Beckie Mossor, RVT have a “Conversation of Celebration” detailing the many amazing and inspiring abilities of the support staff that allow vets and vet techs to be their best!

Dr. Ward Ability marvels at how veterinary receptionists are able to recognize pets by their family’s cars! He also explains how receptionists/CSRs CSRs represent the clinic personality, mission, and standards and are integral to client loyalty. He also explains why we need to train and pay our receptionists better.

Beckie shares her recent experiences taking both her sister’s and her own dog the vet and how a receptionist really made her feel welcome.

Dr. Ward shares why he believes our receptionists are so essential to a successful client experience because “they own:”

• The client’s first impression

• The first smile

• The first “Hello”

• Are asked the first question

• The last goodbye

• The client’s last question

• Provide the last reminder

Viewfinders, this week we hope you’ll take time to celebrate and recognize your clinic’s “Jack or Jill of All Trades.” Our veterinary receptionist are true multitaskers and multi-disciplinarians. Every day, they deal with conflict management, sometimes serve as grief counselors, and are responsible for emergency triage. All while answering phones, billing out, scheduling, and fetching meds - ALL WITH A SMILE! I’m exhausted reading this!

Viewfinders, let us know how you’re celebrating National Veterinary Receptionist Week!

Happy New Year! 2021 is here… now what?

This week hosts Dr. Ernie Ward and Beckie Mossor, RVT share their lessons from 2020 and how they each set - and accomplish - goals for the new year.

The duo reflect on the wins and losses for the veterinary profession in 2020 and what they’re looking forward to in 2021. Dr. Ward expresses his hope for a better post-pandemic world and Beckie offers practical advice for anyone who wants to level up their lives in 2021.

We think you’ll find simple ways to set goals and find inspiration in the lessons learned from 2020.

Stay safe, Viewfinders, and we’ll talk to you in 2021!

This week we’re celebrating FOUR YEARS and 208 EPISODES of the Veterinary Viewfinder Podcast!

Thank you for your loyal listening, sharing with colleagues, and being the best bunch of friends we could hope for!

We take a brief stroll down memory lane this week and share the many reasons why we still love talking with you (and each other!) each week for the past four years.

We then discuss the tremendous amount of feedback we received from last week’s podcast, “The Rise of Veterinary Influencers: Controversies and Opportunities.” You definitely want to hear this!

We also share our tips for surviving the “pandemic holidays,” why Beckie calls it the “Pan-damnit!” and how to remain positive despite the many challenges this year poses. Dr. Ward once again reminds us, “Tilt toward optimism” by using his simple gratitude practice.

Beckie gives us an update on the Veterinary Industry Giving Tree and Dr. Ward reveals how their 25th Annual Calabash Community Christmas Tree Lighting and Parade will go on this year…with quite a creative twist!

Viewfinders, we hope you enjoy this wide-ranging celebration episode. We really appreciate everyone who reached out and gave us feedback on last week’s episode. We definitely hit a professional pain point that needs more attention!

We hope you have a wonderful - and safe - Thanksgiving holiday! Can’t wait to talk to you next week!

Veterinary clinics around the country are reporting more confrontations with angry pet parents. This week, we dive into why this may be happening and what your veterinary team can do to help.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to challenge veterinary professionals around the world. On disturbing trend is increased conflict with frustrated and angry, sometimes violent, clients.

This week, hosts Dr. Ernie Ward and Beckie Mossor, RVT tackle why veterinarians may be seeing more angry clients and steps to de-escalate a tense client interaction.

Viewfinders, this is an excellent discussion on a wide range of topics and tactics concerning conflict resolution. Please share it with your team or colleagues you think could use a little help or inspiration.

If you have a tough topic you’d like us to tackle, let us know on Instagram (@VeterinaryViewfinder) or Facebook (/VeterinaryViewfinder)!

Chances are, you’ve got plenty of people to thank for helping you attain the goal of working in the veterinary profession. Host veterinarians, Drs. Ernie Ward and Cyndie Courtney, along with registered veterinary technician, Beckie Mossor, share the tales of who mentored them, what mentoring means to them, and how you can become an effective mentor in your clinic. Dr. Ward frankly discusses why many veterinary clinics don’t hire high school students or participate in veterinary school externship programs. The panel shares the ways mentoring has positively impacted their lives and how to find — and become — the best mentor. Finally, the trio ask if virtual or online mentorship counts? What role does social media, internet, books, podcasts, and more play in shaping and developing our careers and professional lives?

This week our hosts discuss how should veterinary professionals work with other pet care providers? Drs. Ernie Ward and Cyndie Courtney along with registered veterinary technician Beckie Mossor contemplate the roles and responsibilities veterinarians and veterinary technicians have when referring to pet care individuals such as trainers, groomers, pet sitters, and boarding facilities. What should the veterinary profession do about unlicensed, non-credentialed, uneducated individuals offering advice on animal care? How can we determine which non-veterinary providers are safe for our patients and clients? How can we foster collaboration between veterinary professionals and everyone else? As Dr. Ward states, “This is an incredibly important topic that touches us all.”

This week host veterinarian Dr. Ernie Ward and veterinary technician Beckie Mossor are talking disaster preparedness for veterinary teams with ASPCA official Gina Manke. Learn how Gina got started with the ASPCA, what the top deployments are for ASPCA teams and volunteers, and how you can help in this week's podcast.