Three ways to celebrate your veterinary technicians

We know you know: Technicians are vital to any veterinary practice. And yet, so many are left feeling underappreciated, underutilized and just plain dissatisfied after a hard day's work. Veterinary technician extraordinaire Kenichiro Yagi, MS, RVT, VTS (ECC, SAIM), understands this on a deeply personal level, and while steps are being taken to help combat this, he has a few ideas for ways veterinary teams can show their appreciation for techs in the meantime, particularly as we approach National Veterinary Technician Week (NVTW; Oct. 13-19).

At his technician critical care sessions at Fetch dvm360 conference in San Diego, Yagi suggested many creative ways for veterinary practices to show how much they appreciate their hard-working techs.

“It was an awesome day facilitating for Ken Yagi in the technician critical care lectures,” Elizabeth Johnson, DVM, assistant dean of student success and assistant professor of veterinary medicine at Lincoln Memorial University College of Veterinary Medicine, wrote on the Fetch dvm360 conference app. “In our last session, we discussed ideas for [NVTW] (or vet tech appreciation anytime!).”

Suffice to say, their brainstorming session, with attendees chiming in with their own creative ideas, was a success. Here are a few of the ideas they came up with.

New fit, new feel

One thoughtful way to show your technicians how appreciated they are is to offer them all the bells and whistles, completely personalized just for them. That includes new scrubs, personalized tools and instruments (think bandage scissors, thermometers and stethoscopes) and technician patches that can be ironed onto clothing. Yagi suggested gifting your technician team with one item for each day of NVTW-but feel free to present them in any way you see fit.

Treats for techs

Next on the list were special gifts meant solely for pampering. That includes spa and nail salon gift cards, Uber Eats credit, a day (or more) off and personalized wine glasses for your techs to sip out of after a long day at work. First thing's first, though-find out what your technicians like and give that to them, rather than guessing. Might we also suggest gas cards?

Make it an event!

Whether it's a day at a theme park, a lunch out somewhere or another fun trip you think your techs would enjoy, you can treat your team to a day out on the town. (A night out wouldn't be a bad idea, either.)

Another idea the group came up with: Vet Tech Olympics, with one “event” per day where techs can win prizes. You can spin this however you'd like, such as creating small challenges (like making that client with an ever-present rain cloud hanging over them smile) or playing actual games (veterinary bingo, anyone?).

No matter how you show appreciation for your techs, putting some thought and just a little bit of elbow grease into it will make your techs feel more valued no matter what time of year it is. Go out and make a tech's day!