Time vortex, owner grief and NAVLE: Podcasts for veterinary professionals

If you wonder whether three minutes is long enough for the sick-pet appointment ... you might be trapped in an 'Exam room time vortex.' (vchalup / stock.adobe.com)

You probably know that exam room visits and lunch breaks can be a bad place to talk politics: “Did you hear about this presidential impeachment thing on the news? Let's discuss it in depth now.” Dr. Ernie Ward shares what life was like in practice during his own political campaign in North Carolina, and he and Beckie Mossor, RVT, lay out some best practices for avoiding hurt feelings when political debate dribbles into the veterinary hospital. “If you upset a coworker early in the morning, that day is gonna be a doozy,” Dr. Ward shares. Mossor: “It can be really alienating to any one member of a team who doesn't fall into these categories that are being so widely discussed.”

Now let's talk medicine: Whether you're a brand-new graduate or a long-time veterinarian, many tests come back normal. If that feels like a bad thing-a waste of money, a waste of time, a failure on your part-here's how Dr. Dave Nicol says you can reframe your thinking in four minutes and change of podcast right here.

But what if it's not your own thoughts getting you in trouble but a veterinary team that can't seem to stay on schedule? It doesn't need to be bad habits and low efficiency-it can be well-meaning and without malice. Dr. Andy Roark and Stephanie Goss discuss the “Exam Room Time Vortex” and how to slip your way out of it. Andy kicks off with an anecdote of a veterinary technician doing “limited-length” appointments, but starting late and running each one even later. “She said she had no idea,” he says. Listen for their advice.

If you're contemplating a job change, two recent episodes from Podcast A Vet remind us that career contentment can come in many different ways: a veterinarian-turned-life-coach shares her story (“I couldn't see myself working for somebody else forever, but I also couldn't see myself owning a veterinary practice”), and another DVM says she found happiness by starting a business she loves.

Aaaand … it's NAVLE season, and student stress is on the minds of the DVM Divas as they talk about the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine and its plan to lower veterinary school stress. If that sounds too serious, the doctors also talk about a kid cleaning fail, a clean car win and a hack to handle expiring medications (short answer-don't order the stuff that expired; you bought too much of it the first time).

For your veterinary clients!

• Dr. Justine Lee wants to recommend cats and dogs see an oncologist to find out what the treatment options are.

• Cat owners should not feel bad about the level of their grief after a pet's death, says licensed social worker Adam Clark to Dr. Kathryn Primm in this episode. “Guilt doesn't serve you to move through the grief process,” he says. (Warning: This is a frank discussion about grieving over death, not the podcast equivalent of a condolence card. Listen before you recommend to a particular client and think about how you want to frame your recommendation if you share on social media or in an e-newsletter.)