A new take on preventive care for the patient and veterinarian

The food animal veterinary industry has faced dwindling inter­est from veterinary students and practitioners in recent years. Practitioners who leave ambulatory/food animal practice cite reasons such as salary-to-student-debt ratio, lack of mentor­ship, isolation and challenges finding spousal employment, injury and health concerns, and excessive after-hours duties. There is an active movement within the food animal veterinary community to address these concerns, and several have been addressed at recent AABP conferences. One area that remains a challenge is emergency and after-hours responsibilities. While veterinarians are obligated to provide some level of after-hours care for established patients through most state veterinary practice acts, there are tactics that practitioners can imple­ment to motivate clients to detect and communicate earlier about potential after-hours cases. While true emergencies will always require some level of after-hours service, emphasis on routine preventive care and herd management plans can help to significantly decrease the number of late-night calls that practitioners receive. Educating producers about early signs of trouble and establishing open and easy lines of communication can also help to ensure that animals are attended to in a timely manner, improving outcomes for patients and quality of life for veterinarians. While changes in policies can be concerning for clients (and sometimes even our veterinary colleagues), taking a firm stance on minimizing after-hours calls can go a long way in securing the future of a veterinary practice and the food ani­mal veterinary industry.