Hospital Design

General practitioners launching their own practices often start small, hoping to afford a larger space eventually. Not so with specialty/emergency practices, say Drs. Gary Block and Justine Johnson, husband-and-wife owners of Ocean State Veterinary Specialists in East Greenwich, R.I.

Drs. Buddy Smith and Benet Sandell started their building project reluctantly. Although they had contemplated renovating or rebuilding before relocating, a big push from a road project forced Hill Country Veterinary Hospital to build on a new site on the outskirts of Austin, Texas, 1/2-mile from their previous site. Today they practice in a 3,100-square-foot, award-winning facility.

Drs. Tia Greenberg and Heidi Tschauner admit that patience is not one of their virtues. With a bit less than 10 years of practice experience, the doctors joined forces to start their own veterinary hospital in a brand-new, 8,815-square-foot facility. "Our experiences working in other practices taught us how important it was that our floor plan to promote an efficient flow of traffic and that we wanted a facility that felt warm and welcoming," Dr. Tschauner says. The product of this vision, Westminster Veterinary Group in Westminster, Calif., earned the 2002 Hospital of the Year award in the 37th annual Veterinary Economics Hospital Design Competition.

When he moved his practice from the converted home it had occupied for 42 years, Dr. Rickey Broussard wanted to maintain the comfortable feel of the practice by building a facility that resembled Grandma's house. And judges of Veterinary Economics' 2001 Hospital Design competition agree that the homey front porch with brick accents gives the facility's dramatic entrance and lofty ceilings the warm appeal Dr. Broussard strived for.

From the butterfly garden to the rattan furniture, the high-touch environment at Chico Hospital for Cats in Chico, Calif., reflects the emphasis on client comfort and reassures clients that team members treat their cats with dignity.

Dr. Richard Piepgras started working at Lakeland Veterinary Hospital his senior year of high school. During the summer visit to his family's vacation cabin, he worked in the kennel, mowed the lawn, and even assisted in surgery. "I've been here a long time," says the 1967 Iowa State graduate, chuckling. Little did he know that he would someday own the practice-and build an award-winning facility to house it.

Q. I'm a female practitioner, and I want to borrow about $250,000 to start a practice. Do I qualify for any special small-business loan programs for women?

Dr. Bill Wodiske, a 1982 Washington State University graduate and owner of three veterinary hospitals in the greater Phoenix area, has worked with architects and contractors to complete five separate building projects, including three leasehold designs, a leasehold remodel, and a free-standing facility. And apparently, the fifth project was the charm: Mountain Park Ranch Animal Hospital and Pet Resort took home a Merit Award in Veterinary Economics' Hospital Design Competition.

At Cat Clinic of Destin, cats are considered top dog, and Dr. Dorothy Flynn designed her Florida hospital to accommodate feisty felines and their occasionally finicky owners.

As a senior in veterinary school, Dr. Glenn Park worked on a class project with an architecture student to create the hospital of his dreams. Eleven years later, Dr. Park made his project a reality. And his 10,000-square-foot Courtyard Animal Hospital won a merit award in Veterinary Economics' 2001 Hospital Design Competition.

When Dr. Marcel Florax set out to find a new practice site, he knew that not just any property would do. He wanted the flavor of his hospital to shine through. A 3,500-square-foot barn from the mid-1800s ended up being the perfect home for his 150-year-old practice--one of the oldest in England.

Converting a 7,200-square-foot shell into a high-tech surgical hospital required skill, patience, and compromise from the six owners of Veterinary Surgical Associates in Concord, Calif. The resulting clinic took home a Best Specialty Hospital Award--a new category in the Veterinary Economics 2001 Hospital Design Competition.

Studying Norwalk Veterinary Medical Center in Norwalk, Ohio, from a distance is like watching clouds on a summer day. Some people see a barn; others see a train depot. And everyone is right. "We wanted to build a charming facility, inspired by old barns and train depots, that evoked the veterinary profession's farm roots," owner Dr. Ronald G. Hendrikson says. This vision led him to create an award-winning floor plan in just 2,736 square feet.

Judging by the design of this year's best veterinary hospital, "form follows function" may be the trend of the new millennium. Meadow Hills Veterinary Center in Kennewick, Wash., showcases a classic design based on this hospital's dual functions--a traditional small animal practice by day, an emergency clinic by night. With its second-story atrium windows illuminating the hospital like a beacon, this 6,524-square-foot facility shines above the rest as the 2001 Hospital of the Year.

Buying the right radiograph machine takes research. Dr. David S. Biller, Dipl. ACVR, a radiology professor at Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kan., suggests you consider these factors when choosing a unit:

After 25 years of traveling to Garberville, Calif., to visit her family members, Dr. Judy Horvath and her husband, Steve Horvath, decided to simplify their lives and settle in the northern California village. Back in 1991, just two years after Dr. Horvath graduated from the University of California-Davis, the couple bought the only veterinary practice in the 1,200-person town.

You'd probably like to own an ultrasound machine, but before spending your hard-earned money, take time to determine whether you really need and will use one. "Ultrasound is to soft tissues what radiographs are to the bone, and we certainly see more soft tissue injuries than we do bone injuries," says Dr. Tracy Turner, Professor of Large Animal Surgery at the University of Minnesota in St. Paul, Minn. "You can't live without an ultrasound machine if you do lots of reproduction and lameness work. And it's also useful for visualizing the heart, lungs, pleural cavity, intestines, and other internal organs."

Q. My old exam rooms contain tile floors and rubber baseboards. Waxing maintains the tile, but the baseboards attract dirt and cat hair, and the seam between the floor and boards gets very grimy. What can I do?

The premise of the TV show "Ed" isn't original: lawyer Ed opens a professional practice in a bowling alley. Dr. Kovacic beat NBC to the punch in 1988 when he moved Animal Emergency Center in Milwaukee into a leased space in a bowling alley. Dr. Rebecca Kirby, Dipl. ACVIM, Dipl. ACVECC, once a partner and now sole shareholder, remembers the location fondly: "We couldn't tell if it was thundering or someone made a strike," she says.

If you think constant barking is maddening, add the steady pounding of jackhammers. Then work under those conditions for a year. Partners Drs. Scott Griffin, Ann Allen Salter, and Bill VanHooser sacrificed quiet to add 6,613 square feet to their 7,295-square-foot Carriage Hills Animal Hospital and Pet Resort in Montgomery, Ala.

Dr. Timothy J. Thompson wanted to own a practice so much, he says he would've bought a lemonade stand with a dog run attached. So he and his wife, Dr. Shannon A. Thompson, both 1994 Texas A&M University graduates, only spent a year as associates before buying Hope Animal Clinic in Marble Falls, Texas. They leased the 850-square-foot building and within a year bought land to build the mixed animal facility of their dreams.

There's strength in numbers, the saying goes. But for the veterinarians at Findlay Animal Hospital in Findlay, Ohio, strength comes not only from the number of doctors but also from the number of hospitals they own around town.

Looking at the 18,832-square-foot Veterinary Referral Center of Colorado in Englewood, Colo., it's hard to imagine the practice's humble beginnings. In 1991, Dr. Sam Romano's emergency practice merged with Dr. Steve Wheeler's internal medicine practice and Dr. Marlon Neely's mobile surgical practice in an 1,100-square-foot garage. Three years later they added oncologist Dr. Robyn Elmslie, Dipl. ACVIM, and moved into a 5,600-square-foot converted dental facility.

Good luck and support from her family made all the difference when Dr. Sue A. Stiff was building a new facility for Kiln Creek Animal Care in Newport News, Va. Most business owners in this seaside locale can't afford land. But fortune smiled when Dr. Stiff secured a 2.7-acre site in an exclusive golf community--for half its value. In addition, her husband, a local emergency veterinarian, kept an eye on the practice while she devoted her time to the building project.

When people shop for used cars, they kick the tires and check under the hood. When they shop for veterinary services, the evaluation is more subtle. But in both cases, they form lasting opinions based on first impressions. That's why it's critical to minimize noise and odor. Simply put, if your clinic stinks, clients may worry that your medical care stinks, too.

Your new computer is humming on your desk. So what do you do with the old one collecting dust in the corner?

Consulting with clients over a picnic table, housing patients in the restroom, and stacking portable cages to the ceiling may sound like a bad dream to most veterinarians. Dr. Neil Shaw and his team endured this daily reality for more than two years at Florida Veterinary Specialists, a 1,500-square-foot leasehold hospital in Tampa, Fla.

Q. I'm shopping for a new radiograph machine. Which offers greater tax advantages, buying or leasing?

How often does a knock on the door make your dream come true? Once was enough for Drs. James McGill and Linda Miller, two veterinarians who worked in separate practices north of Seattle. Despite a virtually invisible location, Dr. McGill's 2,300-square-foot leasehold was growing 30 percent each year. And Dr. Miller wanted to offer 24-hour care, but a surgical hospital rented the facility during the day. Both doctors wanted new hospitals, but the cost held them back.

When you mention Colorado, most people picture spectacular views. But from their tiny strip-mall leasehold, staff members at Centennial Valley Animal Hospital in Louisville, Colo., could barely see the parking lot, much less the Rocky Mountains beyond.