Archive for August, 2009

An Afternoon with Dr. Ettinger
Stephen J. Ettinger, DVM, FACC, DACVIM, FAHA, wrote the textbook on veterinary medicine—literally. The prestigious author of the internationally acclaimed “gold standard” for veterinary internal medicine was the guest of honor at Pet Partners’ august Roundtable Discussion of Specific Veterinary Topics.

This interactive discussion also featured veterinary expert, Amanda Donnelly, DVM, MBA and financial guru, Fritz Wood, CPA, CFP. Also in attendance was field veterinarian Dr. Christopher Pappas, director of the technical services department at Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health, who shed light on the new canine influenza virus (CIV) vaccine.

Click here to read Dr. Ettinger’s interview with dvm360.com.

Our First Roundtable Discussion
Pet Partners held its first Roundtable Discussion on August 26, 2009—and with 100% of its hospitals in attendance, the event was declared a resounding success.

The panel of experts was impressed with the Pet Partners veterinarians and staff, even the prestigious Dr. Stephen Ettinger who paid kudos to the group’s extensive knowledge and insightful questions—this coming from a man who visits veterinarians all over the world and critically analyzes their professional capabilities.

Also at the event was financial guru Fritz Wood, who discussed trends in the veterinary world during the current economic downturn. He provided a wealth of information expressing optimistic statistics and data pulled from more than 20 years experience in the veterinary industry.

Veterinary practice expert, Dr. Amanda Donnelly, delved into tips on executing a positive client experience. She stressed the importance of knowing the right things to say, when to say them, and how to make a client feel special. The communication template Dr. Donnelly outlined could be used as an effective tool for increasing a client’s procedural compliance.

Dr. Christopher Pappas, director of the technical services department at Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health, talked at length about the canine influenza virus (CIV) vaccine. His discussion was neutral and fair, packed with interesting and helpful information.

Pet Partners’ next continuing education event will be a veterinary ophthalmology seminar on September 9, 2009 presented by Dr. Jennifer Hyman, a board certified ophthalmologist with Eye Care for Animals in Annapolis, MD.

Friends, colleagues, employees and especially Practice Managers,

A few weeks ago I received a note from one of our Practice Managers who informed me that we consistently speak about all of the people associated with Pet Partners and never mention the work or recognize the expertise of those with the responsibility to manage the business in each practice.  So I wanted to be sure that this oversight was corrected and that I not only mentioned these hard-working individuals but that I also applauded the awesome job they do.  In fact we will be recognizing one of our best Practice Managers this coming month as Employee of the Month, and that should speak to our recognition of this group.

The Practice Manager is the business leader of the practice.  In the past they he or she has been under the direction of the Operations Support Center (OSC) located in Wilton, NY.  There, the function was to support administration, human resources, accounting, purchasing, information technology and all questions from the practices, and there was a direct line to the Practice Managers.  With the continued growth this year and the plans to expand consistently into the future, we now turn to our four Regional Managers to be the direct conduit to the practices and their managers.  The OSC now supports the Regional Managers, and the success of our operations is supported and nurtured by our regional team.  This allows a closer and more concentrated communication to all aspects of the practices.  These Regional Managers also work with our veterinarians to help this professional group better understand how their medicine drives their business and how their medicine thrives on good business practices.

This past week, these Regional Managers met with me in our offices in Wilton and we worked hard to better understand the individual personalities and needs of our practices.  This group has united as a team to bring the best business practices to their individual hospitals, while allowing them the community identity they have always had.  The ongoing continuing education headed by Dr. Tom Butera and our colleagues compliments this in more ways than ever conceived.  Last week’s meetings, along with meetings with our strategic partners at IDEXX, Purina, Pfizer and Butler, comprised a great week of analyzing and planning for the rest of the year.  With our business better than expected in this economic climate, our Board of Directors was most complimentary of our approach and our results.  A morning with Fritz Wood, CPA, CFP proved enlightening, stimulating and right on the mark.  We welcome Fritz anytime to participate in our operations discussions. An afternoon at the Races at Saratoga culminated a full week of work, bonding and camaraderie.  I look forward to the weeks and months ahead.  What a great team of people!!!

Thanks for stopping by again to say hello.  The summer appears to be flying by and vacations are prominent in all of our practices.  It is always good for our staff members to have time to pause and recharge the energy and passion we all have in caring for the pets and family members of our clients.  Our doctor core throughout our 23 hospitals is the best we have ever seen and I want to personally welcome Dr. Rebecca Austin of Coolridge Animal Hospital in Camp Springs, MD, Dr. Jody Schumacher at the Animal Clinic & Wellness Center in Williamsburg, VA, and also Dr. Emily Buskey at High Peaks Animal Hospital outside Lake Placid, NY.  These are experienced practitioners and great additions to their respective teams and communities.

It continues to be important to communicate the differences between Pet Partners and what we call the “others.”  As one can see from the list of our hospitals, we do not brand.  Each hospital was brought into the Pet Partners affiliation as an individual community hospital.  I never quite understood why we would change that, as they were quite successful before we met them and our goal is to foster their ongoing success in that same community after our affiliation.  This came into my mind as I spoke with the editor of Veterinary Economics this week regarding the re-development of all our practice websites.  Much of what our practices do daily is unique in many ways or at least is special to that practice.  Then there are those processes in regard to business and administration that are common throughout all our practices.  Each practice and each website associated with the practice will mirror that philosophy.  Each practice has its “hand and fingers” that look generally the same as every other Pet Partners practice, but each practice also has a “fingerprint” that is unique to that practice.  We recognize and foster this in everything we do.

As I speak with my colleagues throughout our practices, the one thing that stands out in their minds is the continual provision of first-class continuing education in a way that provides credits, can be completed in the local environment and is profoundly cutting-edge medicine.  My partner, Dr. Tom Butera, has created and continues to create and deliver interesting topics provided by specialists and experts in every field.  We have covered everything from the management of diabetes in the cat to communication with clients.  These programs are proprietary to Pet Partners’ staff and continue to inspire the notion that we are all about the medicine and that good business is a byproduct of top class, efficient medicine.  Medicine is our core focus!

Again, thanks for stopping by and hopefully through my communications you can get a better feel for who we are and what we are about.
 
Best regards,
 
Ted Sprinkle, DVM, Cofounder and CEO Pet Partners, LLC

It is estimated that 60% of new veterinary clients come from referrals. To a hospital of any size, that is a tremendous opportunity. That’s why Pet Partners is starting a new referral program in six of its hospitals – Albemarle Veterinary Health Care Center, Bay Hill Cat Hospital, The Cat Hospital of Auburn, City Cat Doctor, Cypress Creek Animal Hospital, and North Ridge Veterinary Hospital.

At these hospitals, clients will be encouraged to tell everyone they know about the extraordinary care their pets have received from the doctors and staff. In addition to promoting the program with reception area signage, e-blasts and newsletters, clients will be provided with take-away cards to share with friends, family, co-workers and neighbors. If the practice procures a new client as the result of a current client’s referral, that client will receive a thank you gift as an expression of the practice’s gratitude and as an incentive to continue spreading the word.

Loyal clients are instrumental to a veterinary practice’s continued success—which is exactly why Pet Partners is focused on creating new incentives and fun rewards to keep them engaged and involved.

Veterinary group to update all its Web sites
New sites will feature blogging by doctors and news and tips updated monthly.

Jul 31, 2009- Many veterinary practice Web sites are just static online brochures. And there’s nothing wrong with that, says Dr. Ted Sprinkle Jr., CEO and cofounder of Pet Partners, a privately owned group of more than 20 veterinary practices in at least nine states. “But it’s just the first step,” he says.

Click here to read the full article…

Alabama Stakes at the Saratoga Flat Track

CVC Central Conference, Kansas City

http://www.thecvc.com/cvc/v42/index.cvn