Do Not Blame Me

Whose fault is it if you’re not successful?

Veterinary medicine is not always all you hoped it would be. So, who’s to blame?

It’s the veterinary teaching hospitals’ fault, They are the gatekeepers of the profession. Blame them. No, it’s the legislature. If they only supplied more money to the teaching hospitals, it would improve education. No, it’s not government’s fault. Or maybe we can put it all down to that darned inflation.

Dr. James Kramer, of the Columbus Animal Hospital in Nebraska, suggested the problem lies elsewhere. In his talk Monday at the AVMA Annual Convention, “Veterinary Attitudes, Aptitudes, and Income” (part of the Advances in Veterinary Medicine program), he asked attendees to indicate what they thought were the biggest problems facing the veterinary profession. The answers were familiar: income level not high enough, clients not willing to pay for quality services, student debt load, saturation of practices, the public perception of veterinarians.

He challenged, however, the idea that a veterinarian’s level of success is dependent on circumstances beyond his or her control. “We are not a castle on a hill being assailed by outside forces,” he said. In his estimation, the problem boils down to one main thing, and that is veterinarians’ perception of themselves.

Dr. Kramer, who in addition to being a practitioner is immediate past president of the Nebraska VMA, acknowledged that there are forces that drive change that are beyond control (he cited population, demographics, increased knowledge, and technological advances, for example).


Whose fault is it if you’re not successful? Veterinary medicine is not always all you hoped it would be. So, who’s to blame? It’s the veterinary teaching hospitals’ fault, They are the gatekeepers of the profession. Blame them. No, it’s the legislature. If they only supplied more money to the teaching hospitals, it would improve education. No, it’s not government’s fault. Or maybe we can put it all down to that darned inflation. Dr. James Kramer, of the Columbus Animal Hospital in Nebraska, suggested the problem lies elsewhere. In his talk Monday at the AVMA Annual Convention, “Veterinary Attitudes, Aptitudes, and Income” (part of the Advances in Veterinary Medicine program), he asked attendees to indicate what they thought were the biggest problems facing the veterinary profession. The answers were familiar: income level not high enough, clients not willing to pay for quality services, student debt load, saturation of practices, the public perception of veterinarians. He challenged, however, the idea that a veterinarian’s level of success is dependent on circumstances beyond his or her control. “We are not a castle on a hill being assailed by outside forces,” he said. In his estimation, the problem boils down to one main thing, and that is veterinarians’ perception of themselves. Dr. Kramer, who in addition to being a practitioner is immediate past president of the Nebraska VMA, acknowledged that there are forces that drive change that are beyond control (he cited population, demographics, increased knowledge, and technological advances, for example).		DOXtalks is brought to you by: The Columbus Animal Hospital 2278 39th Ave. Columbus, NE 68601 (402) 563-4151 (800) 722-7088 (402) 564-0472 FAX PRESERVING and ENHANCING The Bond Between You and Your Animal Companions. Hours of Operation: Monday thru Friday 8 AM - 6 PM Saturday 9 AM - NOON Sunday Closed Pet Loss Counseling Click Here Now Consulting With The Entire Veterinary Profession Call or e-mail for more details! Dr. Jim Kramer 2278 39 Avenue Columbus, NE 68601 Email: jim@jimkramer.com Or call Columbus Animal Hospital at 800-722-7088
“Some futurists say that in ten years, 80 percent of the American workforce will be working in jobs that don’t exist today, making products and services that don’t exist today, and for companies that don’t exist today.” Dr. Kramer believes, however, that the practitioner who is willing to be flexible can address many of the challenges the future holds. He also believes that veterinarians tend to undervalue themselves. “We’ve neglected the opportunity to increase demand for our service,” Dr. Kramer said. "Who sets the fees? We do.” He asserted that while veterinarians place price as a number one concern, clients tend to look at price as a lesser concern, favoring other attributes such as compassion, reliability, and cleanliness. He believes that the perception of caring is paramount. “Our ability to be compassionate and build relationships with clients; no one can take our business away from us if we have that.” “When we have pride in ourselves,” Dr Kramer added, “our financial problems will take care of themselves.” Copyright © Jan 1, 2001. Jim Kramer DVM. All rights reserved. Reproduction of this article in any form requires express written permission. Back to article list
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