We talk about training programs for our technical staff and our client service team fairly frequently. Do we have them in place? Are we sticking to them? Do we have trainers in place? All of these questions are ones we commonly encounter in practice. Rarely, do practices talk about their associate veterinarian training plan. In fact, professional development meetings outside of case rounds seem to also be lacking in this important department of our practices.
Why is having a training/development plan for our Associate Veterinarians important? Just like every other employee, our associate vets need a structured opportunity to learn the clinic’s protocols, policies and general workflow. Just because they have extensive medical training doesn’t mean that they will be successful with a “plug and play” method.
What should a training plan for our Associate Veterinarians look like?
The differentiator between the skills necessary for successful support team members and those for our veterinarians is base medical knowledge. In a lot of states, you do not have to be licensed to work in the veterinary assistant role. Which means that we generally spend a lot more time training our support teams out of necessity.
Taking out basic medical training, what else should be included in their training plan? We’ve made this easy for you! You can download our free training list for Associate Veterinarians to help get you started on this path.
It includes these major sections:
- Orientation
- Appointments
- Drop Off/Day Care
- Diagnostics
- Surgeries
- Leadership Expectations
- Basics
Let’s break down each area and discuss the importance of why they are included. Firstly, this plan is set up for accountability with the Practice Owner and the Practice Manager. The Practice Manager can complete most of the items included. However, a routine structure for case rounds should be set up early with the associate. Having a routine structure for case rounds ensures a consistent quality of medicine is practiced. Likewise, the Practice Manager and/or Practice Owner should set up a routine structure of performance coaching. These meetings should be organized similarly to every other team member where discussion topics center around goals, projects and learning/education opportunities.
Orientation
This process shouldn’t be rushed but the actual timeline may vary from practice to practice. Having all team members, not just veterinarians shadow in other departments has many great benefits. They can see first-hand how other areas of the hospital function. They are able to get to know team members outside of the hustle and bustle of a routine workflow. They are able to really appreciate the roles that other departments contribute to the team, enhancing the team work mindset that good practices work at cultivating.
Another note for the orientation is that every employee should have an in-person meeting to go over the employee manual. Giving someone the manual to take home, read, sign and return with any questions should only be a follow-up to this important opportunity to establish the foundation of expectations.
Appointments
There are several policies that pertain to appointments that can differ from practice to practice. You don’t want your Associate Veterinarians to make up these areas as they go along. Payment policies, payment plan exceptions, and the expectations for utilization of technical staff all fall under this umbrella. For example, even if your Associate Veterinarian has a method for running their own appointments, it is beneficial to discuss important details that contribute to the efficiency at your practice. If your veterinary team is accustomed to performing their roles to the fullest and supporting the vet as they diagnose and prescribe, it may cause a culture clash to introduce a veterinarian that wants to run their own tests and enter in all their own findings.
Drop-Off/Day-Care
It is important to clarify the organization of these cases. They can vary greatly from clinic to clinic. Is there any ambiguity that may need to be discussed prior to scheduling? Also, who is expected to communicate with the owner? At what point does the veterinarian do so? Having a routine standard of care for all patients is important but especially with these types of visits where the client typically has minimal interaction with the veterinary team.
Diagnostics
It is helpful here to go into any notable diagnostics that your Associate Veterinarian will have access to, discuss any training needs and ensure follow-through is achieved. It is also a good idea to go over what the practice considers the “gold standard” of medicine and what it looks like. You also want to discuss how to have a healthy rapport for the Associate Veterinarian to ask questions and feel like they have the autonomy to practice while at the same time upholding the standards of the clinic. Setting the expectation early that cases from all doctors will be reviewed and discussed routinely to ensure quality will help to decrease feelings of resentment if this is done in an arbitrary method.
Surgeries
Discussing surgical procedure includes the communication, surgical flow/organization and role of the technical staff. Efficiency is often key on surgery days and while there is some flexibility for customization, a rough routine should be followed. Likewise, opening the discussion for tough topics such as current comfort level on complex procedures, the clinic’s stance on controversial surgeries and expectations surrounding surgical mistakes can ensure clear communication before these critical areas may occur.
Leadership Expectations
The Associate Veterinarian is often the most overlooked leader within the practice. Even if their actual managerial duties are slim to non-existent, your support team will often look to them for guidance on all areas of the hospital. It is vital that we set these expectations early. Largely, these expectations center around communication. What does it look like for communication of training related concerns? How do they approach interpersonal issues? What is the clinic’s expectation regarding conduct related to gossip? How does the practice view socializing with support team members? Even if these are more challenging areas to discuss, if the expectation isn’t set early this can be an area of contention when a situation does arise. Additionally, communicating any clinic meeting expectations at this time and what the Associate Veterinarian is expected to contribute is appropriate here.
Basics
Many would argue that it is silly to recognize a need to go over basics like punctuality with an individual with professional training. My counter-argument is the multitude of managers and practice owners who ask how to correct an associate who does not arrive to work on time. The problem is out there. Setting the expectation early and clearly with documentation is key. If it is a non-issue, they only hear it once during initial hiring – no harm done. There are other basics to discuss such as parking expectations (if relevant), details about their non-public workspace, etc.
Conclusion
Hopefully this information on how to get set up with a training outline for your Associate Veterinarians has been helpful. They definitely deserve some dedicated time to get set up on the right foot. From here, further professional development can be customized but should mirror the development that is scheduled for the entire team. The worst case scenario is leaving out these ever-important members of the team and only implementing something when a problem arises. Happy training!