Practices and Beliefs of Private Practitioners Surrounding Discounted Veterinary Services and Products

Abstract

Impacted by educational debt and stagnant salaries, the financial viability of a career in veterinary medicine is a growing concern for many within the veterinary profession. Many veterinarians are small business owners, which requires them to learn and practice good business and practice management skills. Despite the recognized importance of business skills to the success of the veterinary profession, training in this area has been historically limited. An important part of practice management skills involves policies and practices surrounding pro-bono and discounted services and products.To assess private practice veterinarians' practices and beliefs surrounding discounted products and services, an anonymous online survey was distributed through Veterinary Information Network (VIN). Results from the survey suggest that most veterinarians regularly discount veterinary services and products. The reasons reported as most important in determining service discounts were a concern for providing the best possible care for the animal and doing everything possible for the animal. Results were similar for discounting products, but also included the additional reason of encouraging clients to try a product. Regardless of the reasons given for discounting, most veterinarians reported not tracking their discounting practices. These results suggest that despite the fact that most US veterinary schools have been offering practice management courses for many years, there appears to be low adoption levels of at least some widely accepted best-practice business models. It is recommended that providing additional training to help guide philanthropic veterinarians is critical to supporting their financial security and thereby the future of the small animal practitioner.

“Patients’ interests first, but … ”–Austrian Veterinarians’ Attitudes to Moral Challenges in Modern Small Animal Practice

“…Interestingly, Kogan and colleagues found that most of the veterinarians they surveyed offered discounts on veterinary services and products on a regular basis in order to provide the best possible solution and care for their patients [36]. This finding was not confirmed by our study.…”

Veterinarian's dilemma: a study of how Danish small animal practitioners handle financially limited clients

“…Relatedly, Kogan and others (2015) have emphasised that the types of pro bono work most often seen in veterinary medicine reflect an ad hoc, individual approach as opposed to an organised, systematic approach, and that this typically entails that private practitioners provide pro bono services of their own accord out of fellow feeling or a sense of duty. A management policy is supposed to save the individual veterinarian from having to be the judge of which client or animal ought to receive reduced fees or instalment agreements (Tannenbaum 1995).…”

“…This is apparent from several studies that found low levels of adoption of some widely accepted best-practice business models among veterinarians (Brown and Silverman 1999, Cron and others 2000, Volk and others 2005, Kogan and others 2015). Veterinary ethics and business management may appear to be opposing elements of the veterinarian's professional competence, but clearly both play a direct role in situations involving financially limited clients.…”

“…Although partly a question of veterinary ethics, handling financially limited clients also falls within the scope of veterinary business management, which has also been shown to be lacking in veterinary medical education (Walsh and others 2002, Kogan and others 2005, Henry and Treanor 2012), and given low priority among veterinary practitioners. This is apparent from several studies that found low levels of adoption of some widely accepted best‐practice business models among veterinarians (Brown and Silverman 1999, Cron and others 2000, Volk and others 2005, Kogan and others 2015). Veterinary ethics and business management may appear to be opposing elements of the veterinarian's professional competence, but clearly both play a direct role in situations involving financially limited clients.…”