When designing a veterinary hospital, there are many important factors to think about. In this author’s experience, parking is not typically among the first ones that come to mind for many veterinarians. The building itself often takes center stage, which is understandable. When you have treatment designs and surgery room layouts to think about, parking can easily become an afterthought.

But consider this: Your parking lot is often the very first impression of your veterinary hospital for a client. The appearance and functionality are the first things people see and perceive upon arrival. Proper planning and designing of your parking area can enhance client experience, improve staff efficiency, and increase operations of your facility. The following factors are essential to ensure the parking areas are well designed and functional for both clients and staff.

Parking requirements are often dictated by local zoning regulations, which specify the minimum number of parking spaces that are required for the facility based on square footage and type of business. Although these regulations serve as a baseline, they may not always reflect the actual needs of your veterinary hospital.

As you go through the hospital design process, consider how many parking spaces would be ideal for your practice. Think about client parking and staff parking separately. For clients, how many spaces are needed to comfortably accommodate your clientele? Think about your average client volume, peak hours, and whether the hospital will offer urgent care or emergency services. For staff, how many people are on shift at one time? Are there overlaps of shifts? Remember to consider today’s needs as well as future growth.

Site constraints can also affect number of parking spaces. If parking demand exceeds available space, you may need to adjust the building design by either reducing the size of the hospital or opting for a multistory structure, which isn’t always ideal but is sometimes necessary. Stormwater regulations including retention and detention requirements may also limit your parking area and must be considered in the design.

In emergency veterinary hospital design, quick and efficient animal admission is crucial. Emergency parking should be located as close as possible to the entrance, allowing clients to quickly unload and admit their pets into the care of the medical team.

Emergency parking can be a pull-over area near the front door with a passing lane adjacent, or it can simply be a designated parking spot or spots near the front entrance with clear signage indicating it is reserved for emergency use. These spots can be covered or noncovered. A common covered option is to incorporate a porte cochere, a covered pull-through area often seen at hotel entrances. Advantages to a porte cochere for emergency facilities include protection from inclement weather and an architectural feature that helps highlight the emergency entrance.

By having designated emergency parking near the front entrance, staff are more likely to see emergency cases as they arrive. Some clients may need help unloading large or distressed animals in need of urgent care and if staff can see them arrive they can quickly respond as needed.

When possible, it is beneficial to separate client and staff parking. This ensures that clients, who have the added obstacle of handling pets when entering and exiting your facility, do not have to walk long distances to get to the entrance.

If your hospital has distinct entrances for clients and staff, and if the site has space available, it makes sense to position parking near the respective entrance. For instance, if the staff entrance is on the side of your hospital, you could place a row or rows of parking along the side or back for staff that is separate from the front parking, which could be reserved for clients. This helps alleviate traffic congestion and provides convenience for both groups.

Another added benefit of separate parking for staff is the ability to fence it off or securely enclose it from public access. This is especially appreciated at 24-hour facilities where staff often park their vehicles overnight while working. Small considerations like this can go a long way in recruiting and retaining staff, as security-conscious employees will feel more comfortable knowing their cars are safe.

As veterinary hospitals continue to evolve, covered parking and electric vehicle (EV) charging stations are becoming increasingly desired features in parking lot designs. Covered parking offers the dual benefit of providing shade and protection from the elements, which not only enhances the comfort of clients and staff parking their vehicles but also helps preserve the condition of their cars. For clients bringing in pets, especially in harsh weather, covered parking can make a significant difference in easing the process of getting pets in and out of the vehicle.

With the growing adoption of EVs, it is becoming essential for veterinary hospitals to consider incorporating charging stations in their parking areas. In fact, some municipalities have begun requiring a certain number of EV charging stations in new commercial developments, so integrating them into your parking design can help future-proof your facility and appeal to a broader range of clients.

Although covered parking and EV stations can come with higher up-front costs, many veterinarians are opting to include them in only a small portion of their parking spaces, balancing initial investment with long-term value. If these features are out of budget, it may be worth planning for their inclusion in the future as your infrastructure allows, ensuring that your practice stays relevant and responsive to changing client needs.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, many businesses, including veterinary hospitals, introduced the concept of parking lot waiting. Clients often park in designated spots and wait in their cars until it is time for their pet’s exam. Traditional waiting rooms can sometimes be uncomfortable environments for pets and owners. The coming and going of unfamiliar smells, sounds, people, and other animals can cause stress and anxiety. Parking lots give clients the option to choose a more private, comfortable, and familiar environment for their waiting experience, which in turn may help reduce anxiety and improve the overall client experience.

If your hospital offers parking lot waiting, make sure to designate specific spaces for this purpose. Give your clients clear instructions with steps to follow upon arrival to ensure a smooth check-in process. These waiting spots should be close to the entrance for easy access when it’s time to bring the pet in for an appointment.

Similar to the interior of your hospital’s waiting area, the parking lot environment should be designed for comfort and aesthetics. Consider positioning waiting spots near landscaping features such as gardens, fountains, or attractive murals. Give them something pleasing to look at while they wait.

Finally, don’t forget landscaping. A welcoming, well-designed landscape can make all the difference, transforming a mundane concrete or asphalt expanse into a warm, inviting space. By incorporating thoughtful landscaping elements, you can soften the space and create an environment that reflects the care and attention your practice gives to both pets and people.

Trees are one of the most effective ways to improve the look of your parking lot. Not only do they provide much-needed shade for parked vehicles but they also add visual interest with height variations, and if they are deciduous, their natural color changes with the seasons can bring a sense of tranquility. Flowers are another way to add pops of color and vibrancy, drawing attention to your facility. Additionally, integrating native plants or local vegetation can further connect your practice to the community and offer environmentally sustainable solutions.

Adding a designated dog relief area near the parking lot can also greatly enhance the client experience and may even help reduce unwanted marking behavior on your other landscape areas. Many dog owners will appreciate having a convenient and accessible spot for their pets to relieve themselves before entering the building, especially if they’ve traveled a distance to get there.

Thoughtful parking design is a critical component of a successful veterinary hospital. By considering the number of spaces, emergency access, staff-client separation, evolving and innovative needs, and the aesthetic quality of your parking area, you can create an efficient, comfortable, and welcoming environment for both clients and staff. The right design not only improves functionality but also contributes to the overall experience, ensuring that pets receive the best care and owners feel supported and valued.

Articles

The appearance and functionality of this essential space is important for a good first impression

Parking considerations for optimal client and staff experience

hosted by Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, chief veterinary officer of dvm360, and edited by 

’sCaitlin McCafferty, featured a wide variety of veterinary topics and guests throughout the past year. As 2024 draws to a close, 

 is looking back and celebrating the Top 5 podcasts, as measured by audience interest and engagement. Through, New Year’s Eve, 

is counting down the Top 5 podcasts by sharing 1 of these episodes per day.

The following podcast is #5 on the list and features guest Ricky Walther, DVM, chief medical officer at Pawlicy Advisor. Walther takes a deep dive into trends and misconceptions surrounding pet insurance, and discusses how veterinary teams can educate clients on pet insurance to help them better understand the importance of having it. 

: One of the things that we're seeing in veterinary medicine in general is increased stress and anxiety of owners due to finances, right? So people are coming in more are aware of the money that's in their pocket given the way that the world has been recently, and the veterinary prices are increasing, kind of with that inflation, and medical inflation is even higher than standard. And so because of those things that we're seeing where owners are coming and asking for these financial solutions. So as veterinary team members, right, like we ultimately want what's best for the pet and so helping owners financially prepare allows us to do our part and make sure that pet gets the care that they need in the future. 

So I think having these conversations in puppy visits [and] annual wellness visits for young healthy pets are extremely important so the people here at multiple times. A couple of other reasons why I recommend that veterinarians and veterinary teams have something prepared to say about insurance is because when AVMA did their study on pet insurance, a couple of years ago, they found that 65% of pet owners who purchased insurance did so because the vet recommended it.

Williams A, Coble KH, Williams B, et al. Consumer preferences for Pet Health Insurance. Published online 2016. doi:10.22004/AG.ECON.230144

Podcasts

A Top 5 episode of dvm360's The Vet Blast Podcast is revealed in our 2024 countdown. 

Top 2024 dvm360 podcasts: #5

 editorial team is counting down our Top 20 news stories and articles of the year, from January 1, 2024, to November 15, 2024. Rank was determined by measurable audience interest and engagement.

A spotlight is shining on 1 article each day through New Year’s Eve, when the No. 1 dvm360 story of the year will be shared. The following article is No. 5 on this list:

The future of veterinary medicine is here

Artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technology are rapidly moving health care forward with the recent evolution of telehealth serving as an example. Along with other modern technological innovations, veterinary care providers should expect to see much more innovation to come in the next decade and at an even faster pace, according to Daniel Kraft, MD, founder of NextMed Health and the digital database Digital.Health, which includes Veterinary.Health. “It’s an interesting time,” he said.

American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM) Forum

 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Kraft delved deep into the various ways that digital and AI technologies are being combined with medical knowledge and research to create new ways to manage health care for humans and animals. But first, he demonstrated to the audience just how these modern technologies can be adapted for many different uses by playing a song he created using AI that celebrated the veterinary professionals in attendance. “It’s not bad for a first pass,” he said.

According to Kraft, a human medicine doctor who specializes in pediatrics, modern technology offers the promise of health care tools and resources that are more intelligent, digitized, personalized, data-driven, precise and preventive, democratized and equitable than ever before. He acknowledged that pet owners and human patients are already using AI services such as ChatGPT to self-diagnose medical conditions. A proponent of crowdsourcing information, Kraft noted the ease in which medical communities can also share research and innovation. One example he used is the crowdsourced Dog Aging Project.

Kraft’s lecture itself also demonstrated the value of technology and the ability to drive crowdsourcing with its livestream broadcast from Minneapolis. In the session’s digital chat, audience members provided locations from which they were virtually watching throughout the US and Canada, as well as from countries around the world that included The Netherlands, Germany, France, Ireland, Switzerland, South Africa and Australia.

For more on this story, including information on virtual and augmented realities, genomics, and home health, view the full article here: 

https://www.dvm360.com/view/the-future-of-veterinary-medicine-is-here

dvm360 is counting down the Top 20 news stories and articles from 2024 with this series of spotlights

2024 veterinary news in review: #5

My career has come to an end. After some 47 years of practicing veterinary medicine, I have hung up my stethoscope, sold my practice, and now have only the memories to keep me company. I look back upon a career that saw me treating large and small animals, owning 2 different clinics, employing scores of employees, volunteering and leading many different veterinary groups, writing a self-help book, and serving on veterinary college committees. Did I wake up each morning and jump out of bed, heading off to work in total ecstasy, exhilaration, and enthused anticipation? Absolutely not! However, there was rarely a day when I doubted my choice of profession and my undeniable gratitude for having received that acceptance letter from Cornell University on April 25, 1973.

With this as a preface, it is an understatement when I state that a recent American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Chart of the Month,

 whose source is 2023 Merck Animal Health Veterinary Wellbeing Study IV,

 grabbed my full attention. The topic was veterinary team job satisfaction and indicated that 56% of the surveyed veterinarians expressed an “extremely/very satisfied” rating for their job, 11% gave their job a “not too satisfied” rating, and the remaining 33% rated their job as “somewhat satisfied.” Frankly, to give your job a “somewhat satisfied” opinion is not what I call a ringing endorsement. That being said, if I add the 33% and the 11% responses, I now have 44% of our veterinarians stating that they are not terribly excited about their chosen profession. The survey noted that younger veterinarians (those aged less than 34 years) have the lowest level of satisfaction. The Merck study goes into further detail on some of the topics, which define job satisfaction and lack thereof: burnout, well-being, mental health, coping skills, clinic culture, work-life balance, income, career pride and positivity, and student debt.

These statistics caught me by surprise and should be great cause for concern for anyone who cares about the health and future of our profession. It is discouraging to recognize the years of preparation and planning that each veterinary school applicant has experienced, not to mention their hopes and prayers for their own letter of acceptance, and then read these findings, which detail a profession under stress. Correcting these significant challenges to career satisfaction requires a multidimensional approach. Financial, career, and mental health counseling would all serve a positive role, as would guidance for a healthier work-life balance. Or perhaps a change in location or even a totally different branch of veterinary pursuit. Personally, my stress levels plummeted the day I started at a new practice where the large animal work did not include equine medicine. And we all know classmates who switched their employment from clinical to nonclinical, and that can make all the difference. Although these approaches are available and warranted, there remains one more therapeutic piece that might fill the greatest need when striving to increase this level of job satisfaction: mentorship.

Mentorship is nothing new. I would even argue that our profession has relied more than most others on its utilization and delivery. This concept brings with it the ideals and aspirations associated with a variety of characteristics. Perhaps the most shared word when referencing this term would be guidance. For me, however, it goes much deeper. A mentor is one who offers the irreplaceable wisdom of experience, the knowledge of what works and what fails, the learned lessons of confronting and solving the same repetitive dilemmas, the genuine ability to instill confidence and positivity, the coaching that turns the obscure into the obvious, and the sound reasoning that bolsters and restores strength and hope for a successful career.

Our profession and its leadership have already developed a variety of mentorship programs. They are digitally designed and delivered. A few examples would be the AVMA-endorsed MentorVet Connect program, Ready Vet Go, Veterinary Information Network’s Veterinary Mentorship Academy, and a variety of programs offered in-house by corporate practice groups. However, I still see a significant void, which when addressed, might very well boost that “very satisfied” percentage. That would be face-to-face mentorship.


We, as a profession that cares seriously about its own, need to create more opportunities for our students and our most recent graduates to converse in person with those who have survived and flourished. Our baby boomers, Generation X, and even Millennials have a wealth of knowledge, experience, and sound advice that surpasses any online auto-tutorial, costs nothing, and is infinite in value. There truly is no replacement for such a one-on-one opportunity. Just as we all had that extra set of guiding hands on our very first spay or the astute advice and support of a senior clinician for treating that first diabetic cat, I see no better option for confronting the woes, fears, and challenges facing our youngest members and prospective members than sitting down in the same room with one of the many who have already been there.


To accomplish this hands-on mentorship I suggest the following:

Create space in the veterinary school curriculum to allow frequent mentoring sessions with alumni and invited practitioners. These occasions may be organized as part of the business courses offered or simply as stand-alone events.

Do the same for our national, state, associations at their conventions, meetings, and continuing education (CE) gatherings as well as other CE conventions and events held by veterinary college alumni associations.

Our larger veterinary facilities, which have a staff of 20 or more veterinarians, should hold and encourage frequent in-house mentoring events.

The guidelines for veterinary school externships should encourage mentoring, internships, and residencies. Postgraduate veterinary medicine is not all about diagnosis, treatment, and surgery.

The format of these mentoring events should be structured as small groups of 1 to 5 attendees per mentor. Depending on the attendance there are several different paths at this point. Where the number of mentees is small it might work best to have groups of 1 or 2 who sit down with a mentor and converse for an hour or longer on numerous topics. Where the turnout is larger, a preferred option might be to have a number of tables, each with a different topic posted, and have the mentees rotate every 15 minutes to a new table of their choice, limiting the number per table to 4 or 5 individuals. The mentors will need to decide among themselves how to delegate the topics. Examples for discussion might be stress, family and work-life balance, staff issues, feelings of incompetence, career transition, practice ownership, finding a mentor, mental health, client disputes, and so on.

Prior to the event, it would be advisable to have some guidelines provided to the mentors. These might take the form of a handout, online education, or simply a sit-down presentation. There are many excellent guides for best practices in mentorship. A recommended example would be found in the 2023 American Animal Hospital Association Mentoring Guidelines.

 I will add, however, that from my experience mentoring is more an art than a science. There is no single format that would serve as the gold standard. What is universal are the key words and phrases which each mentor should express during their conversations. The mentee needs to hear: “How are you doing?” “What are your challenges?” “How might I help you?” “I understand,” “I know what you are feeling,” “There is a solution,” and “Here is my advice.” As these events conclude, they must not end. It is important to exchange contact information and encourage continued communication and support. During the sessions there will be questions that need some form of follow-up. The mentor should anticipate this occurrence and assure the mentee that he/she will send along the proper answers in short order. This usually takes the form of a link to a website or the email address of someone who may provide the requested information.

What about the online approach to mentoring? Wouldn’t this work just as well? I cannot dispute the convenience of such a format. And, yes, digital delivery allows true professionals in this field to participate. However, for online mentoring to succeed, you must rely upon the prospective mentee to take that first step and assume the experience, and sound advice that surpasses any online auto-tutorial, costs nothing, and is infinite in value. There truly is no replacement for such a one-on-one opportunity. Just as we all had that extra set of guiding hands on our very first spay or the astute advice and support of a senior clinician for treating that first diabetic cat, I see no better option for confronting the woes, fears, and challenges facing our youngest members and prospective members than sitting down in the same room with one of the many who initiative for searching out such programs. On the other hand, when face-to-face events happen at veterinary meetings, other organized veterinary events, in-house veterinary facilities, and veterinary colleges, we have the ability to reach out directly and individually to our prospective mentees. Those in charge at these gatherings should make every effort to grab these younger attendees by the hand and personally persuade and encourage them to attend. We have the opportunity to truly extend happiness and career satisfaction to so many through mentoring. We just cannot wait and hope for them to take the initial step. We must be proactive.

Another obstacle that some of the online courses cannot avoid is a fee. We must keep the face-to-face mentorship cost-free. Additionally, the in-person events allow the mentee to converse and learn from a number of different mentors during the same hour or two. Advice takes many forms. The ability to gather a variety of opinions from a single session only boosts the value and advantages of this personal experience.

There are challenges to any mentorship program. Signing up the participants on both sides of the table will take time and effort. The value and rewards for each group must be advertised and promoted. The mentors should be knowledgeable, energetic, generous, and supportive. The mentees should be excited, curious, and receptive. The time commitment for mentee and mentor may pose an obstacle. Fortunately, our profession is one steeped in the tradition of giving and supporting our own. It is also one which finds its members constantly striving for improvement and seeking answers. These qualities should serve to bring both groups together.

Early in my career I worked as an associate at 2 different animal hospitals. They were quite representative of the 1970s and 1980s in that they both were small, independent facilities and each was owned by a solo veterinarian. The environment was warm and friendly. All the employees regarded each other as family. As I was new to the profession, the owners of these hospitals continually went out of their way to bolster my confidence and instill a sense of positivity and fulfillment. They were always by my side offering advice and wisdom. You could tell that they were genuinely interested in my well-being and my professional growth. They were true mentors. Perhaps they wanted to nurture my success and hope that one day I would buy into ownership. But there was more than that. I honestly felt that they each had experienced their own local, and affiliated veterinary fragility and insecurity upon graduation and now felt obligated to foster my happiness and success.

But that was then. Our profession is changing. We need to ensure that as the corporate sector grows, so does this same personal and supportive mentorship. Regardless of the practice type, the problems facing the recent graduate remain the same. In fact, the present growth of corporate ownership provides a new opportunity and an additional pathway for delivering in-house and hands-on mentorship.

One final observation. Another look at the Chart of the Month reveals that the percentage of “unhappiness” for our support staff is even greater than that of the veterinarians. Our technicians, receptionists, and administrative employees are experiencing their own set of challenges. Our support staff is vital to our profession and cannot be overlooked. Although I have not addressed this deficiency, we must not forget them either when it comes to mentoring and support. We need to include the whole workforce in this process.

In summary, our profession is fortunate in that so many of us have the wisdom and experience to advise and support others who might be struggling and who might be questioning themselves and their choice of this dream career. The 56% of individuals in our profession who have obviously figured it out, and who have expelled the demons, are an untapped potential that we must bring on board if we are to pass on and bequeath to others the well-being and happiness that so many of us have already found.

Chart of the month: veterinary teams and job satisfaction. American Veterinary Medical Association. Published August 20, 2024. Accessed November 11, 2024. https://www.avma.org/blog/chart-month-veterinary-teams-and-job-satisfaction

Volk JO, Schimmack U, Strand EB, et al. Work-life balance is essential to reducing burnout, improving well-being. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2024;262(7):950-957. doi:10.2460/javma.24.02.0135

2023 AAHA mentoring guidelines. American Animal Hospital Association. June 27, 2023. Accessed November 11, 2024. https://www.aaha.org/resources/2023-aaha-mentoring-guidelines/

Discover the ways that mentor support can lead to better staff well-being

Mentorship may help improve job satisfaction

A spotlight is shining on 1 article each day through New Year’s Eve, when the No. 1 dvm360 story of the year will be shared. The following article is No. 6 on this list:

Veterinarian files whistleblower and retaliation lawsuit against former employer

Veterinarian Mariana Pardo, BVSc, MV, DACVECC, and her attorneys filed a federal whistleblower and retaliation lawsuit against Animal Surgery Center of Long Island (ASC) and its founder Tomas Infernuso, DVM, DACVS. According to the complaint filed in the United States District Court Eastern District of New York,

 Pardo accused Infernuso and ACS of medical misconduct as well as discriminating against staff.

In 2022, Pardo was recruited to join ACS as its emergency and critical care medical director but was reluctant to do so based on the proposed terms of her employment that the clinic initially offered. However, Infernuso later promised Pardo that a new contract would be finalized eventually while assuring her that she would receive all the benefits and compensation she had sought as terms of her employment. According to the complaint, Infernuso had not delivered on any of the promises made to Pardo.

Shortly after starting her career at ACS, Pardo noticed medical misconduct and harassment of other staff members, according to the complaint. Pardo also stated in the filing that she became aware that the clinic was using unlicensed veterinary technicians for procedures, providing substandard medical care, and engaging in unsafe administration of controlled substances, while Infernuso engaged in mistreatment of fellow staff members. Pardo also stated, through the complaint, that she advocated for better treatment and conditions for employees at ACS continuously with Infernuso. When Pardo brought the issues to Infernuso’s attention, he was allegedly reluctant to address the issues which led her to create a spreadsheet where she wrote down in detail all that she witnessed or became aware of.

For more on this story, including references, view the full article here: 

https://www.dvm360.com/view/veterinarian-files-whistleblower-and-retaliation-lawsuit-against-former-employer

2024 veterinary news in review: #6

Merry Christmas dvm360 readers! As a present to you, we are dropping this Christmas episode to bring you into the world of exotic medicine. Our host, Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, welcomed Rachel Siu, DVM, to share what it is like to be an exotic veterinarian, debunking some myths about costs and care, and providing tips to help professionals be more comfortable when treating an exotic pet in their clinic. 

What would you say to those that are tuning in that say, like, Oh, I'm still a little leery about it. I don't know if they say, oh my gosh, are rabbits coming down? I don't know, you know. Like, what would you say to some of those listeners out there?

I would say your critical thinking and research skills are super important. If you know, you have a rabbit coming in, for instance, make an hour long appointment, or even hour and a half you're really uncomfortable with them. Make sure you have enough time to really do your exam very slowly if you nee, do your research on which drugs are safe to give, and I know have the resources available, whether that be, you know, exotic textbook or VIN, or, you know, there's like the favorite, the Carpenter's Exotic Animal Formulary is, you know, one of the exotic Bibles. So make sure you have those resources available to you and really research, you know, things through before you just go prescribing things willy nilly, because I have seen other veterinarians prescribe, you know, antibiotics to rabbits and Guinea pigs that have killed them because it wasn't a safe medication. 

So, you know, I want people to be comfortable and start seeing exotics, if that's what they're passionate in, but make sure you you research things either ahead of time or, take the time during your appointment to to really make sure you're comfortable with what you're doing. 

Enter the world of veterinary exotics with our host Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, and Rachel Siu, DVM