The Cone of Shame Veterinary Podcast

Latest Episodes:

COS - 197 - What Happens In A Veterinary Board Complaint? Apr 27, 2023

Show notes

Dr. Beth Venit, Chief Veterinary Officer at the American Association of Veterinary State Boards, joins the podcast to discuss veterinary board complaints in the United States and Canada. Dr. Venit explains how board complaints are made, processed and communicated to doctors and technicians. She talks about what to expect at State Board hearings, and what practices are mostly likely to land someone in one of those meetings. Finally, she gives some simple "best practices" to protect your license if you are a veterinarian or technician.

LINKS: AAVSB Website: https://aavsb.org

ABOUT OUR GUEST: Dr. Beth Venit VMD is a graduate from the University of Pennsylvania's School of Veterinary Medicine, Class of 2007. Throughout the area of Washington, DC, she practiced small animal medicine, both ER and GP, as both a full-time associate and a relief veterinarian for the next 12 years. In that time, she earned her Masters of Public Health from the University of Iowa and became a Diplomate in the American College of Veterinary Preventive Medicine. She then worked at the US Department of State, first as a fellow with the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and then as a full-time project manager focused on training foreign partners on biorisk management and the prevention of bioterrorism. In 2022, she joined the American Association for Veterinary State Boards as their first Chief Veterinary Officer. In her free time, she enjoys hiking in various parts of the world with her husband (past trips include hiking the Grand Canyon Rim to Rim, the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, several 14ers in Colorado, and a successful summit of Kilimanjaro), and being lazy on the couch with her pittie mix, Eleanor Woofsevelt and maine coon / tiger mix, The Chairman Meow.

COS - 196 - When Pet Owners Don't Believe In Euthanasia Apr 20, 2023

Show notes

Dr. Mary Gardner joins the show to talk about when pet owner's don't believe in euthanasia. This can be an emotional experience full of hard conversations for veterinarians. Let's get into it!

LINKS: Lap of Love Pet Hospice: https://www.lapoflove.com/ It's Never Long Enough: A practical guide to caring for your geriatric dog: https://amzn.to/3TpvhNi Nine Lives Are Not Enough: A Practical Guide to Caring for Your Geriatric Cat (Old Cat Care and Pet Loss): https://amzn.to/40aEviE Dr. Mary Gardner Homepage: https://www.drmarygardner.com/ Dr. Mary Gardner YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DrMaryGardner All Links: linktr.ee/DrAndyRoark Links to Amazon.com are affiliate links and help support the show. (They're also much smaller than normal links and easier to copy when typing up show notes!)

ABOUT OUR GUEST: There is nothing better to Dr. Gardner than a dog with a grey muzzle or skinny old cat! Her professional goal is to increase awareness and medical care for the geriatric veterinary patient and to help make the final life stage to be as peaceful as possible, surrounded with dignity and support for all involved. A University of Florida graduate (AND ANDY’S CLASSMATE!), she discovered her niche in end-of-life care and is the co-founder and CIO of Lap of Love which has over 300 veterinarians around the country dedicated to veterinary hospice and euthanasia in the home. Dr. Gardner and Lap of Love have been featured in Entrepreneur Magazine, The New York Times, the Associated Press, The Doctors and numerous professional veterinary publications. She is co-author of the textbook “The Treatment and Care of the Veterinary Patient”, co-author of a children’s activity book focused on saying goodbye to a dog called “Forever Friend”, and the author of a book dedicated to pet owners “It’s Never Long Enough: A practical guide to caring for your geriatric dog”. Dr. Gardner also won VMX Small Animal Speaker of the year in 2020!

COS - 195 - Changing The "Lanes" Of Practice: Urgent Care, Telemedicine & The VCPR Apr 13, 2023

Show notes

Neurologist and Neurosurgeon Dr. Sean Sanders joins the podcast to talk about how General Practice is changing and must continue to change to both reduce veterinarian burnout and increase access to care. Dr. Sanders and Dr. Roark discuss how fragmenting general practice into "wellness" and "urgent care" could potentially benefit doctors, techs and pet owners. They then begin to unpack how innovation is currently being affected by requirements from states around the establishment of VCPRs.

LINKS: Booster Pet: https://boosterpet.com

ABOUT OUR GUEST: Dr. Sean Sanders is a Veterinary Neurologist and Neurosurgeon in Seattle, Washington, USA. Dr. Sanders is also involved with development, recruitment and operations of BoosterPet in the Greater Seattle area. He received his DVM degree from Washington State University and completed a residency in Neurology and Neurosurgery along with a PhD in Neuroscience relating to the study of Parkinson’s Disease. Dr. Sanders was a founding partner of Seattle Veterinary Specialists and author of “Seizures in Dogs and Cats” published by Wiley Blackwell. Dr. Sanders lectures nationally and internationally on topics related to Veterinary Neurology and Neurosurgery. In his spare time, he spends time with his wife and their pets, builds wooden boats and classical guitars, restores classic cars and enjoys, sailing, mountain biking, hiking and snowboarding.

COS - 194 - PANOQUELL - CA1 For Acute Onset Of Canine Pancreatitis Apr 10, 2023

Show notes

Susanne A. Heartsill, DVM, DABVP (Canine and Feline Practice) is the Director of Companion Animal Veterinary Services at Ceva Animal Health. She joins Dr. Andy Roark to discuss Panoquell-CA1, the new drug conditionally approved for acute onset of canine pancreatitis. This episode is sponsored and made possible ad-free by CEVA Animal Health

LINKS: CEVA Connect: www.cevaconnect.com PANOQUELL-CA1: IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION: The safe use of PANOQUELL®-CA1 has not been evaluated in dogs with cardiac disease, hepatic failure, renal impairment, dogs that are pregnant, lactating, intended for breeding or puppies under 6 months of age. PANOQUELL®-CA1 should not be used in dogs with a known hypersensitivity to fuzapladib sodium. PANOQUELL®-CA1 is a highly protein bound drug and its use with other highly protein bound medications have not been studied. The most common side effects in the pilot field study were anorexia, digestive tract disorders, respiratory tract disorders and jaundice. PANOQUELL®-CA1 is not for use in humans. Limited data is available on the potential teratogenic effects of fuzapladib sodium. Therefore, anyone who is pregnant, breast feeding, or planning to become pregnant should avoid direct contact with PANOQUELL®-CA1. Conditionally approved by FDA pending a full demonstration of effectiveness under application number 141-567. It is a violation of Federal law to use this product other than as directed in the labeling. Dr. Andy Roark Exam Room Communication Tool Box Team Training Course: https://drandyroark.com/on-demand-staff-training/ Dr. Andy Roark Charming the Angry Client Team Training Course: https://drandyroark.com/charming-the-angry-client/ Dr. Andy Roark Swag: drandyroark.com/shop All Links: linktr.ee/DrAndyRoark

ABOUT OUR GUEST: Susanne Heartsill, DVM, DABVP (Canine and Feline Practice) is a 1999 graduate of Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine and is the founder of Downtown Animal Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. Dr. Heartsill currently serves as the Director of US Companion Animal Veterinary Services at Ceva Animal Health. Dr. Heartsill joined Ceva as a Veterinary Services Manager and Level 3, Fear Free Certified Veterinarian in 2018. In 2020, Dr. Heartsill became the U.S. Cardiology Technical Marketing Manager for Ceva. In this role, she spearheaded the creation and implementation of cardiology education for the U.S. commercial team in preparation for the launch of CARDALISTM. Using experience gained over two decades of clinical practice, she developed cardiology educational resources for the practicing veterinarian and played an integral part in the launch of CARDALISTM. Due to her work in cardiology for Ceva, Dr. Heartsill won the Ceva Circle of Excellence Award in 2020. She has authored and co-authored multiple publications. In 2021, she completed credentialling and is a Diplomate of the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners (DABVP) in Canine and Feline Practice. In early 2022, Dr. Heartsill was promoted to Director of US Companion Animal Veterinary Services at Ceva Animal Health. While running her busy small animal practice, Dr. Heartsill served as a key opinion leader for several veterinary advisory councils including Virbac, Q-biotics, and Novartis Animal Health and has been a Regional Field Advocate for IDEXX Laboratories. She has lectured nationally on topics ranging from inventory control and pharmacy management to cardiology, parasitology, laser surgery, behavior, dermatology, pancreatitis and zoonotic diseases. Dr. Heartsill was recognized by the Memphis Business Journal as one of Memphis' Top 40 under 40 and holds a city sponsored beautification award by the Memphis Blue Suede Brigade for her part in real estate and business revitalization in the Memphis Pinch District. Now residing with her family on their hobby farm outside of Auburn, Alabama, Dr. Heartsill enjoys horseback riding, farm life, and the great outdoors.

COS - 193 - How AI Will Change Vet Med In The Next 5 Years Apr 06, 2023

Show notes

Dr. Adam Little joins Dr. Andy Roark to discuss what the recent launch of powerful AI tools like ChatGPT will mean for veterinary medicine in the next 5 years. They discuss how AI will impact communication with pet owners, customer service, building practice systems and protocols, and making accurate diagnoses.

LINKS: ChatGPT: https://chat.openai.com/chat

ABOUT OUR GUEST: Dr. Adam Little works at the intersection of accelerating technologies and veterinary medicine. His career has spanned areas of focus ranging from artificial intelligence to telemedicine to connected devices. He is the co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of GoFetch Pay where his team is helping create a safety net for every pet. Prior to co-founding GoFetch, he served as the first ever Director of Innovation & Entrepreneurship for Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine where he spearheaded such initiatives as the Veterinary Innovation Summit and the Veterinary Entrepreneurship Academy. Dr. Little holds a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the Ontario Veterinary College He is a past Board member of the Ontario Veterinary Medical Association, Veterinarians without Borders and the Vet Futures Commission

COS - 192 - BONUS: Lessons Learned from Making Your Own Path Apr 03, 2023

Show notes

In January, Dr. Cassi Fleming (of the Vetfolio Voice Podcast) interviewed Dr. Andy Roark on lessons he has learned in his strange and wonderful career. That epsiode of Vetfolio Voice is presented here.

LINKS Vetfolio Voice Podcast: https://www.vetfolio.com/pages/podcast-landing-page

ABOUT OUR GUEST: Dr. Andy Roark is a practicing veterinarian, international speaker, author, and media personality. He is the founder of the Uncharted Veterinary Conference and DrAndyRoark.com. He has been an award-winning columnist for DVM360 and his popular Facebook page, website, podcast and YouTube show reach millions of people every month. Dr. Roark has received the NAVC Practice Management Speaker of the Year Award three times, the WVC Practice Management Educator of the Year Award, the Outstanding Young Alumni Award from the University of Florida’s College of Veterinary Medicine, and the Veterinarian of the Year Award from the South Carolina Association of Veterinarians. His greatest achievement however involves marrying a bad-ass scientist and raising 2 kind and wonderful daughters.

COS - 191 - Making Practice Easier With Automation Mar 30, 2023

Show notes

Mira Johnson CVPM CPA joins Dr. Andy Roark to talk about opportunities many veterinary practices are missing to lighten their load and speed up their work through automation. In this episode, Mira discusses the benefits of decreasing human interaction in systems that are repeated (or simply are not enjoyable). She talks about identifying bottlenecks in practice and how to get started with the "core systems" a practice runs on. Dr. Roark explores how practices can calculate ROI for investing in automation, and asks about the most common pitfalls that practices fall into when beginning a path to greater efficiency through automation.

LINKS: JF Bell Group - https://cpasforveterinarians.com

ABOUT OUR GUEST: Mira Johnson holds a Masters' Degree in Financial Management and Accounting is a CPA, and is a Certified Veterinary Practice Manager. She is a managing partner in the JF Bell Group, CPAs for Veterinarians. Mira's passion is helping veterinarians to start, manage and grow the practice of their dreams. She embraces the use of apps to help automate the business side of their practice. Her articles about financial automation and employee motivation have been published in Today’s Veterinary Business and dvm360.

COS - 190 - Representation And DEI In Practice Mar 23, 2023

Show notes

Dr. Niccole Bruno joins Dr. Andy Roark to talk about an outstanding event she put on at the VMX conference, A Day in Veterinary Medicine, and her company Blend.Vet. Niccole discusses the "pipeline problem" in veterinary medicine, and the lack of progress we have made (compared to the aspirations of our schools and profession, at least). She talks about what representation and inclusion look like in our education process and also in our practices. Andy and Niccole talk about the intersection of DEI and hospital culture, and the opportunities for growth commonly found in veterinary clinics. Finally, Niccole lays out some clear action steps that practices can make to improve their culture and support equity and inclusion in our profession.

LINKS: Blend - DEIB Certifications: https://www.blend.vet/ Pawsibilities - https://www.pawsibilitiesvetmed.com/ PRIDE VMC - https://pridevmc.org

ABOUT OUR GUEST: Dr. Niccole Bruno is the CEO & Founder of blendvet, a veterinary hospital certification program in diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB). She became interested in veterinary medicine as a child but lacked mentorship until she attended Tuskegee University for her undergraduate studies. Seeing representation and receiving support from her professors and classmates made the dream of pursuing veterinary medicine a reality. She attended Cornell University for veterinary school and along with her classmates became the founders of VOICE, a student organization to promote and celebrate diversity and inclusion. VOICE is now a national veterinary student organization and has since changed its name to Veterinary Students as One Inclusive Community for Empowerment. Dr Bruno graduated from Cornell University School of Veterinary Medicine in 2006. Dr Bruno has practiced in small animal medicine and surgery for over 16 years, both in NYC/Long Island and Houston, TX. She has served in hospital leadership roles for over eight years. Dr Bruno realized the value leadership has in creating a diverse and inclusive hospital culture. As Medical Director, she became intentional in recruitment and retention of diverse individuals while creating a space for them to thrive. She continues to pay it forward by dedicating much of her time to speaking and mentoring students from all stages of the pipeline to increase representation for Black, Indigenous and People Of Color (BIPOC) students into the profession. Following completion of the Purdue University Diversity and Inclusion certificate program in 2020, her awareness, continual exploration, and study into the diversity deficiencies of our profession, ignited her vision to create blendvet. Dr Bruno hopes that blendvet can be transformational, creating a space for collaborative learning for individuals and teams in diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB). Through blendvet, Dr. Bruno will be executing pipeline programs at veterinary conferences to help promote and advance veterinary medicine for underrepresented students. Dr. Bruno currently remains a member of the Cornell University Advisory Council, serves as an Advisory Board member for Pawsibillities, a mentorship platform and is a facilitator for MentorVet. In her spare time, she enjoys activities with her husband and two children, Cole and Addison. She loves traveling, her Peloton, football and binge-watching her favorite shows. She has a 15-year-old Shihpoo named Jimmy Choo and a Siamese mix cat named Sushi Roll.

COS - 189 - The Future Of Independent Practice Ownership Mar 16, 2023

Show notes

The days of veterinarians owning the majority of veterinary practices seem to be permanently behind us. Does this mean that practice ownership by veterinary healthcare providers is coming to an end? Economist Dr. Matthew Salois joins the podcast to discuss the future of ownership and equity in veterinary medicine.

LINKS: Veterinary Study Groups: https://www.veterinarystudygroups.com

ABOUT OUR GUEST: Matthew Salois, PhD is currently the President of the Veterinary Study Groups, Inc. (VSG), where he is responsible for enhancing the economic and cultural success of more than 1,800 veterinary member practices. Most recently, Matt was the chief economist and head of the veterinary economics division at the AVMA between 2018 and 2022, where he applied his skills in economics, business, and communication to support the daily lives of veterinarians. From 2014 to 2018, he served as director of global scientific affairs and policy at Elanco Animal Health, supervising a team of scientists in veterinary medicine, human medicine, animal welfare, economics and sustainability. His group devised and executed scientific engagement strategy, and built collaborative partnerships with universities, non-profit associations and scientific societies. Matt is also an adjunct professor of applied economics at the University of Florida, where he previously taught and advised graduate and undergraduate students. He earned his Ph.D. in Applied Economics from the University of Florida and holds an M.A. in Economics and a B.S. in Health Services Administration from the University of Central Florida.

COS - 188 - Master's Degrees, Mid Level Practitioners, And The Future Of Veterinary Technicians Mar 09, 2023

Show notes

Dr. Bonnie Price, Director of Lincoln Memorial University’s Master of Veterinary Clinical Care Program, joins the podcast to discuss LMU's new master's program for technicians, its objectives and the pushback against the program. Dr. Price and Dr. Andy Roark also discuss the current state of technician credentialing and what the future looks like for the technician profession.

LINKS: LMU Master's of Veterinary Clinical Care: https://www.lmunet.edu/college-of-veterinary-medicine/graduate-programs/master-of-veterinary-clinical-care

ABOUT OUR GUEST: Dr. Bonnie Price has worked in veterinary education eight years and currently serves as the Director of Lincoln Memorial University’s Master of Veterinary Clinical Care Program, the first MS program in the US designed specifically for credentialed veterinary technicians to build on the knowledge and skills learned in AVMA CVTEA accredited programs. Dr. Price is the former chair of the LMU’s Department of Veterinary Health Science and Technology at LMU and led the department through curriculum revisions, new program development, and enrollment growth. Dr. Price has lectured for undergraduates, graduate, and professional students across multiple disciplines (including veterinary technology, pre-vet, pre-med, nursing, conservation biology, master’s students, medical students, and veterinary students) with the goal of creating interdisciplinary collaborations and developing leadership skills very early in students’ training. Before training in veterinary public health, they completed their undergraduate work in anthropology and biochemistry and participated in primate fieldwork and conservation studies throughout Central America and West Africa, which fostered a strong commitment to culturally competent and multidisciplinary approaches to improve health and wellness at the interface of animals, humans, and the environment. Dr. Price serves on the Board of Directors for Pawsibilities VetMed, which aims to actively increase the diversity of the veterinary profession based on gender, race, ethnicity, non-traditional career path, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, religion, disability status, and veteran status through a novel pipeline approach to recruitment and retention. Dr. Price is also an active member of PrideVMC’s Mentorship Working Group and DEI Working Group, which exists to promote and uphold PrideVMC’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion among its members, the larger LGBTQ+ community, the field of veterinary medicine, and all communities served by veterinary medicine. Dr. Price earned a BS in Biochemistry, a BA in Anthropology, and a DVM and MPH from the University of TN.

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