Written By This Author
Client Communication
It’s Not What You Say, It’s How You Say It
As my husband’s doctors tactlessly demonstrated, health care professionals of all types have much to learn about delivering bad news.
Personal/Professional Development
Find Your Own Mountain to Climb
Conquering Mount Kilimanjaro taught me that fear does not control or define a person.
Personal/Professional Development
When a Negative Can Be a Positive
Saying “no” gets easier over time when you prioritize your well-being.
Personal/Professional Development
Are Limiting Beliefs Limiting Your Life?
We can better achieve our goals and dreams if we reframe what holds us back.
Personal/Professional Development
How to Support Our Introverted Colleagues
They’re reserved and soft-spoken on the outside, but a future hospital leader might be growing internally.
Personal/Professional Development
Don’t Forget Your Sword
The veterinary profession is full of people pleasers and perfectionists, so the fear of failure can derail the desire for change.
Personal Wellness
To Grow, Sometimes We Must Let Go
Change can be difficult emotionally, but moving on from something familiar or stagnant allows us to embrace something new.
Personal/Professional Development
Rejection: One of Our Deepest Fears
Veterinary professionals know pain all too well. Fortunately, understanding how to respond to challenges helps us rebound faster.
Client Communication
Doctor, What Would You Do?
Accuracy and collaboration help us navigate the fear of misguidance.
Client Communication
Rebounding From an Honest Mistake
After panic sets in following a medical error in veterinary practice, honesty and corrective measures go a long way in preventing another mistake down the line.
Personal/Professional Development
The Daring Release of Perfectionism
Our colleagues, clients and patients are better served when we simply strive for excellence.
Patient Care
Before and After the Anesthesia Wears Off
The road to recovery is much smoother when we pay greater attention to our patients’ emotional health.
Patient Care
Smitten With Kittens
Help new cat owners fall in love with your clinic by promoting your practice’s feline features and filling clients with practical advice.
Client Communication
Streamlining the Checkout Process
Reduce anxiety on both sides of the reception desk by adjusting workflows, communicating better with clients and adopting new technology.
Patient Care
A Bird’s-Eye View of Ocular Exams
Failing to put patients at ease is a missed opportunity for clinicians trying to diagnose conditions such as KCS and uveitis.
Client Communication
The Endangered Hospital Landline
Amid a staffing shortage and heightened stress levels, your practice has modern-day options for improving the client experience.
Patient Care
Fearless Feeding
Consider these five tips to enhance nutritional recommendations and the client and human-animal bonds.
Client Communication
Take a Bite Out of Inappetence
Don’t try to solve a dietary issue over the phone. Instead, get the patient into the clinic and diagnose the underlying problem.
Patient Care
Technically Speaking, They’re Invaluable
Behind every successful veterinarian is a phenomenal and usually humble veterinary technician.
Innovation/Technology
First Impressions
Use the latest digital technology to get new pet owners to your curb or through your door and then coming back for more.
Patient Care
New Tricks for Old Dogs (and Cats)
Educate clients about metabolism changes in senior pets, especially the animal’s possible struggle to regulate body temperature.
Patient Care
Take the Fear Out of Injections
Take the extra few seconds and extra cents and use a fresh needle each time.
Patient Care
The Orthopedic Patient
An idyllic state allows for the most accurate diagnosing and treating of orthopedic patients.
Practice Management
Bond With a Pet Trainer
An outside expert can meticulously answer many of the questions your clients pose and prepare pets to be willing participants in veterinary care.
Innovation/Technology
Assisting From Afar
Telemedicine allows veterinarians to communicate with homebound clients, observe patients in a relaxed state and even suggest alterations to the pet’s environment.
Patient Care
Take the Fear Out of Dermatology
You need to get the patient into the clinic, perform diagnostic tests in a nonthreatening manner, set client expectations and schedule follow-ups.
Patient Care
Made to Order
Maximize your home-delivery platform and online pharmacy to get clients the pet behavior products you trust and sell.
Patient Care
Team Up to Tackle Pain
Too many dogs and cats don’t receive needed relief. Hospital staff should use the power of observation and diagnostics to do what is best for the patient and to build client trust.
Personal/Professional Development
7 Strategies for a Fearless Start to 2020
From sedation to communication, much can be done to make a veterinary visit less stressful for pets and their owners. Don’t forget the towels.
Patient Care
The fearless journey of a homeless pet
Veterinary practices should partner with shelter and rescue organizations to ensure that animals are ready for adoption and get the lifelong medical care they deserve. A new Fear Free program can help.
Patient Care
Happy visit, happy business
Client-led, no-charge tours familiarize anxious pets with the hospital environment. Don’t forget the treats.
Personal Wellness
Trust the Process
Reducing fear and stress in patients might require changing the workplace culture. Once you have the team’s attention and buy-in, your clients will take notice.
Client Communication
Take the Fear Out of Diagnostics
If your procedures leave pets petrified, isn’t it time to try something else?
Patient Care
Find the root cause
Fearful and anxious body language is not always behavioral in origin. In some cases, disease is the culprit.
Patient Care
Fearless Through the End
Learning to reduce anxiety and stress during hospice or euthanasia will elevate your hospital’s service and care and bring extra comfort to the patient and client.
Practice Management
Goodbye Fear, Hello Referrals
When a cat or dog shows signs of anxiety or fear, the owner might demonstrate myriad emotions herself — from shame, embarrassment or confusion to nervousness, anxiety or even fear.
Patient Care
Lost in translation
Failure to accurately assess a patient’s body language can lead to a petrified animal, an unproductive exam and poor owner compliance.
Patient Care
The road to fearlessness
Many restraints, customized to the size of the pet and the car, are available for dogs and cats.
Patient Care
The changing face of dentistry
If the patient’s mouth is painful at meal time, the animal can develop an aversion to the food or to eating in general.
Patient Care
The fearless exam room
Newer philosophies call for avoiding high-pitched baby talk when working with a canine patient and adding a soft, lower frequency music source inside the exam room.
Patient Care
The war on feline wellness
You can start to recapture feline clients if you embrace strategies designed to reduce fear, anxiety and stress at home, in the lobby and in the exam room.
Social Media
Don’t Fear the Unknown
Market your stress-free clinical approach by capitalizing on social media options and optimizing your practice website.
Client Communication
Eliminate Fear in Pets — and in Your Clients
Simple solutions start in the veterinary clinic with the initial phone call and extend to the products offered at checkout.