Illustration by Phil Bliss
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Have you ever enjoyed the pleasure of riding in a car with an on-board navigation system? Imagine you're traveling solo to
a strange city and you're picking up a rental car. You desperately wish you could teleport to your hotel, but here you are,
facing the drive alone at night. You sigh as you turn the key. Just then you spot a small computer screen in the dash. And
in minutes, after you enter your destination address, a calm voice gently guides you to your hotel.
This voice tells you when to turn, as the map shows you labeled streets and landmarks. It even predicts the time of your arrival.
If, by chance, you make an incorrect turn, the system recalculates and figures out the steps to get you back on track.
Just as you trust the navigation system to make recommendations that keep you on track and safe, your clients trust you to
guide them to healthy choices for their pets. The clients' and pets' needs are your end destination. And you and your team
develop the directions and the maps to show clients the way. These recommendations, grounded in pets' needs for maximum health
and quality of life, are the lifeblood of any hospital.
Use your expertise to blaze a trailAs the software of the hospital's navigation system, you, the doctor, determine the standards of care that team members follow
as they lead the client's pet to health. You can accomplish this by creating maps for your team so everyone—receptionists,
technicians, kennel personnel, and veterinarians—knows how a visit will progress and what a pet could need depending on its
lifestyle, life stage, and genetic risk. (See "The Diagram of a Team Approach" for a sample chart.)
The right questions
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Establishing set standards ensures that everyone's on the same page. So whether you're treating a puppy, adult, or senior
pet, every team member's taking into account the same things, sending the same messages to the client, and reinforcing those
messages. You're providing the best care for the patient because you're building in fail-safe mechanisms. You know you'll
talk about topics such as genetic risk, nutritional needs, and exercise. And you're protecting your patients and their owners,
because you're touching on lifestyle situations that put people at risk, such as pets sleeping with children.
This could seem like a lot for your team members to remember. But your team has a map to follow. When you train your staff
members to promote the care you recommend, they understand the importance of all wellness procedures—including vaccinations,
exams, ovariohysterectomies, neuters, senior care, dental care, and so on. And they're prepared to talk to—and educate—clients
about these issues.
Your next step: Institute healthcare plans in your practice. Otherwise known as estimates, these plans also help ensure that
you're recommending all the care your standards require.
Without established standards of care and healthcare plans, you risk each team member pulling out his or her map of whichever
city they happen to be carrying around and making recommendations that could confuse the client. When you develop these tools
for your team, you've marked the path to healthier pets and given team members the directions.
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