Opinion on the evolution of veterinary practice

At the outset, what I’m about to say may be interpreted as yet another retiree railing against this younger generation who ‘don’t do things the way we did when I was in practice!’ However, I have had a lengthy career involved in nearly every aspect of veterinary medicine. I also remain reasonably connected with current issues facing the profession, because everything I’ve done these past decades has been to help this calling thrive. Sadly, I believe that we’ve allowed this wonderful vocation to be in a troubled state. Clearly, practitioners are brilliant, our schools are state-of-the-art, and practices are providing the utmost in care. But unless I’m completely out of touch, my sense is that our profession is burning at the edges.

All things evolve. We once were merely horse doctors, then farm veterinarians, then mixed animal practitioners, ultimately becoming species or systems specialists. We are proud to have reached such an apogee of expertise. Yet what I hear from colleagues and read online are disturbing reports about dissatisfaction resulting in many veterinarians and nurses/technicians leaving the profession. Many practices are desperately trying to find doctors and nurses/technicians; there is a perceived shortage in our profession (and in many others). The question is, do we simply let these trends continue or do we try to redefine, perhaps reboot a return to what we feel in our heart and soul, what it means to be a veterinarian?

The issues cause us to play the blame game, e.g., veterinarians wanting work-life balance and more females graduating. These are not the real problems, however. As a father/husband who worked 24/7/365 in the early years of practice I applaud the current state of life-to-work. Well done! As a grandfather of 3 granddaughters, I’m overjoyed to see our institutions work towards gender equality in education. Regarding the cost of care, I advocated higher veterinary fees when I established a consulting service and audited clinic finances to see how little we charged — and that was not long ago.

For blame, I think we as a profession must assume full responsibility. We established multiple clinics and hospitals in every community rather than build on the human health care model of a central hospital and doctors’ clinics. We tend to be individuals, keen to have our own ‘dream practices.’

During the increase in facilities, I worked with likeminded professionals to try to convince groups in communities to merge, to centralize costly services and equipment to reduce fee increases. Instead, collaborations were limited to emergency practices, facilitating time off for family and life away from practice. However, they also enabled even more separate competing practices!

As animal care became an evident multi-billion-dollar industry, entrepreneurs purchased practices; a company owning many practices could economize, scale, and make profits. Several of the originators were people whom I admired for their ingenuity and integrity. In time, though, money became an essential driver. Practices sold for high prices, salaries increased, and cost of care inevitably rose. As a management consultant, my advice was to never raise a fee unless the perceived value of the item was raised as well. However, I fear that fees for veterinary care have exceeded perceived value.

Today, Dr. Google is becoming the first call for medical advice. Tomorrow, the Web may become a far more useful alternative, as Artificial Intelligence (AI) becomes more effective. We don’t seem to realize that we are inexorably driving caseload away from our businesses. Some feel that pet insurance will resolve gaps between cost and care. However, insurance premiums will rise commensurate with the cost of care, resulting in unaffordability. We risk becoming an “elite service for the wealthy.” Too many friends and family tell me they will not replace their last pet because they can no longer afford care.

Our doctorate allows us to care for every animal species on the planet except for one. All of that work ultimately is for the benefit of that creature we don’t treat. Our penchant for consumerism and excessive environmental footprints endangers most of the animals for which we are responsible — and drives our profession in the wrong direction. Climate Change and AI are existential threats to the existence of far too many endangered species, to the existence of our profession, to the very existence of our own kind. However, the good news is that veterinarians are key to solutions!

No problem cannot be solved (pardon the double negative) and the opportunities for the veterinary profession are immense. There are gifted practitioners in practice, agriculture, wildlife, etc. More graduates will address deficiencies, but will we be sending idealistic veterinarians into a profession they won’t love and won’t want to work for? I despair to hear that young veterinarians are leaving our profession or worse, considering suicide.

These past few years, I’ve enjoyed mentoring young entrepreneurs entering into areas like cybersecurity and AI. New challenges (opportunities) never cease. Chas Povey and I created LifeLearn to help veterinarians keep abreast of growing medical knowledge and stay connected with every changing technology. I certainly want us to be at one with the times.

However, we seem to be struggling, thanks to allowing our profession to evolve away from the calling of the special “bond” between humans and animals. I think that spirit still drives every veterinarian; they vehemently desire that compelling love for what they do for a living. Unfortunately, we’ve created an environment that makes that more difficult to sustain.

Rebooting and reinventing the profession would be a monumental task, requiring concerted efforts from every facet of veterinary medicine. I hope there is dialogue and actions that can mitigate what I worry will continue to be a decline in our image as a profession. If not, this diatribe will simply be an opinion and Time and Trends will win.