Of forests and trees

It's a cliche' for a reason: You can't see the forest for the trees. It is especially apt in running a hospital, with the small complication that the trees are on fire. How much of your day is spent putting out fires? Dealing with staff issues, reworking schedules, having another talk with the associate, calling this or that rep because you're out of something that never got ordered, or discovering that the autoclave no longer works?

Whether you're the owner or the manager, that's what we spend our days doing. We do all of these things AND stitch together pets, see twenty patients, help answer phones, help with impossible blood draws, corral the freaked out aggressive dog in the back room that someone else let loose, call the plumber, answer the e-mail, call the owner with results... Wow! I'm tired from writing the list!

Whether you manage your hospital as a doctor/owner or you are the manager, you know what your days are like. And during all of those emergencies and interruptions you somehow need to put together two coherent thoughts to think about your hospital's marketing goals, set a budget and get that rolling, and think about where the hospital is going and what the next big purchase will be. You need to coherently plan staff training, plan and implement awareness months, introduce new profit centers, look at pricing and ensure that your hospital is pointed the right way.

How often do you really spend doing the second list? Really? How much of that time is high quality, with no interruptions?

Whether we want to admit it or not we all get bogged down in the daily minutiae of running a hospital. We have three dozen things spinning in our heads, and even when we sit down under our desk for an uninterrupted minute to take a serious look at where our hospital is now and what we are doing to change that, someone tracks us down and points us at another fire.

I don't care how well staffed you are, or how amazing your manager is, everyone gets too close sometimes, too buried in the details to see the bigger picture. That is why you need an outside pair of eyes to help you see what you're missing. In 2011 DVM360 recommended that veterinary practices hire a consultant.

They based their recommendation on research conducted at the University of Cincinnati that if small businesses want to avoid costly mistakes they benefit from consulting with others.

Consultants are often able to give you fresh perspective. They walk into your hospital and see it as your clients do. They can sit down with your numbers or your employees and find out where you need to change things.

A consultant can help you devise a plan to fulfill your goals. They can help you stay on track by checking in on your progress and keeping you accountable. They can also avoid the common pitfalls of doing what you've always done and expecting things to change.

A consultant doesn't need to involve a huge outlay of money or time. They can come in for a day or a week. They can help you with one aspect of your practice or help you turn the whole ship around. They can serve as a monthly reminder to staff that you do believe in education, or they can come in once and give you some small pointers you may not have been able to see, what with all the smoke in your eyes from all those fires you've been putting out.

4 Dogs Veterinary Services has been there, we have helped lead veterinary hospitals towards a better future. Please email us at 4dogsvet@gmail.com