How to be a more efficient veterinarian | VETgirl Veterinary Blog
I'm often asked... how did you get to be so efficient?
Well, it was baptism by fire during my internship at Angell. When you have 18 in-house patients to SOAP before 7 am cage rounds, you learn to be efficient.
Some of the emergency veterinarians I work with hate me (in a loving
way) because I always get out on time... for the most part. They are
stuck behind doing paperwork for hours and hours, and wondering how-
the-heck-does-she-get-out-on-time?
Well, let me fill you in on a few secrets of making you a more efficient, effective veterinarian.
Why is this important? Because the more efficient you are, the better
work-life balance you have, the better patient care you have, the
happier you make your techs. It's a win-win-win.
Rule #1: Do doctor things
I love the technicians
that I work with. A) They are super tolerant of me. B) They make my life
way easier. Since I'm only on clinics two days a week, I love to brush
up on my technical skills and do crazy things like:
with are super tolerant and let me do some of this. That said, sometimes
my technicians will push me away and say "Go do doctor things. For
real." I'm appreciative of this because it's all about appropriate
delegation. We criticalists and veterinarians are control freaks (Hey,
we can admit it), and like to do things ourselves. Well, news flash
folks - you can't do it all! You have to trust your team to do it so you
really can go do doctor things. Like mundane medical records.
And updating treatment sheets. And creating estimates and invoices. And
dealing with the "I ain't got no money" screaming pet owner in the front
lobby. So stop messing around and go do doctor things.
Rule #2: Stop chatting so muchI'm all for socialization, but sometimes I have to boot the overnight doctor out and tell them to stop talking. Go do medical records, man! Go home! Stop socializing! While
I mean this in a loving way, you can't get your SOAP's typed up, your
treatment sheets written, and all your doctor things done while you're
socializing about. This is especially important in the first 90 minutes
of your shift. Go in, round efficiently, soap all your animals, type of
everything for your in-hospital patients ASAP, and be efficient. When
I'm super swamped, I'll do this in the quiet doctor's office or plug my
iPhone in and blast classical music as I'm typing to drown out the
overnight emergency doctor chatting. Once you're able to tackle this
important 90-minute
"who-the-heck-is-in-my-hospital-must-SOAP-everyone-and-assess-everything," you'll
be more mentally prepared for more emergencies to walk through the
door. Once you're done all this (I call it "tucking everyone away"),
then you can shoot the poop.
Rule #3: Type as you goI see a lot of
veterinarians whipping through cases and keeping the waiting room empty.
However, they fail to type ANY notes at all into the electronic medical
record. I don't know about you, but I can't keep 5 histories and 5
physical examinations straight in my head without forgetting some
important details. To try to recall this from memory 2-3 hours later
when things "settle down" doesn't work. Type as you go. (And learn how
to type fast and use AAHA or veterinary-approved
abbreviations in your SOAPs). I type in my history, physical
examination (PE) findings, and client communication (CC) as a I see each
case. (Granted, I'm a super fast typer). If I need to get the pet owner
out of the door right away, I'll type up the discharge first, but
before I see the next case, I finish entering at least my basic history,
PE, and CC (Like the way I'm testing your abbreviation skills?).
Rule #4: Triage and examine the patient immediately upon presentationI'll
admit, I've got some weird rules. I want the front desk staff to bring
every patient back to be triaged immediately in the ER. Why? Because I
want to do my full PE in the back, while the pet owner is still
registering and the front desk staff are still filling out paperwork. I
can do my whole PE, create my treatment sheet, and figure out my mental
plan as they are compiling a medical record. That way, I'm ready to rock
and roll with the medical record as soon as I get it.
Rule #5: Don't stand around
Waiting for the front
desk staff to finish creating a medical plan or record? Waiting for
your technician to knock down your blocked cat? Don't just stand there -
do stuff! (Granted, Justine Lee is rarely still...). Even if you have 5 minutes while you're waiting around, take the time to:
efficient as a veterinary professional... whether you're a veterinarian,
intern, resident, veterinary student, or veterinary technician.
Remember, the more efficient you are, the better you care for all around
you.
With that, I have to go pee, post on social media, write up orders, and do CPR simultaneously.
What hints do you have? Weigh in and give us more ideas!
source: How to be a more efficient veterinarian | VETgirl Veterinary Blog
Well, it was baptism by fire during my internship at Angell. When you have 18 in-house patients to SOAP before 7 am cage rounds, you learn to be efficient.
Some of the emergency veterinarians I work with hate me (in a loving
way) because I always get out on time... for the most part. They are
stuck behind doing paperwork for hours and hours, and wondering how-
the-heck-does-she-get-out-on-time?
Well, let me fill you in on a few secrets of making you a more efficient, effective veterinarian.
Why is this important? Because the more efficient you are, the better
work-life balance you have, the better patient care you have, the
happier you make your techs. It's a win-win-win.
Rule #1: Do doctor things
I love the technicians
that I work with. A) They are super tolerant of me. B) They make my life
way easier. Since I'm only on clinics two days a week, I love to brush
up on my technical skills and do crazy things like:
- Clean ears
- Hit a vein
- Place catheters
- Clean up after myself
with are super tolerant and let me do some of this. That said, sometimes
my technicians will push me away and say "Go do doctor things. For
real." I'm appreciative of this because it's all about appropriate
delegation. We criticalists and veterinarians are control freaks (Hey,
we can admit it), and like to do things ourselves. Well, news flash
folks - you can't do it all! You have to trust your team to do it so you
really can go do doctor things. Like mundane medical records.
And updating treatment sheets. And creating estimates and invoices. And
dealing with the "I ain't got no money" screaming pet owner in the front
lobby. So stop messing around and go do doctor things.
Rule #2: Stop chatting so muchI'm all for socialization, but sometimes I have to boot the overnight doctor out and tell them to stop talking. Go do medical records, man! Go home! Stop socializing! While
I mean this in a loving way, you can't get your SOAP's typed up, your
treatment sheets written, and all your doctor things done while you're
socializing about. This is especially important in the first 90 minutes
of your shift. Go in, round efficiently, soap all your animals, type of
everything for your in-hospital patients ASAP, and be efficient. When
I'm super swamped, I'll do this in the quiet doctor's office or plug my
iPhone in and blast classical music as I'm typing to drown out the
overnight emergency doctor chatting. Once you're able to tackle this
important 90-minute
"who-the-heck-is-in-my-hospital-must-SOAP-everyone-and-assess-everything," you'll
be more mentally prepared for more emergencies to walk through the
door. Once you're done all this (I call it "tucking everyone away"),
then you can shoot the poop.
Rule #3: Type as you goI see a lot of
veterinarians whipping through cases and keeping the waiting room empty.
However, they fail to type ANY notes at all into the electronic medical
record. I don't know about you, but I can't keep 5 histories and 5
physical examinations straight in my head without forgetting some
important details. To try to recall this from memory 2-3 hours later
when things "settle down" doesn't work. Type as you go. (And learn how
to type fast and use AAHA or veterinary-approved
abbreviations in your SOAPs). I type in my history, physical
examination (PE) findings, and client communication (CC) as a I see each
case. (Granted, I'm a super fast typer). If I need to get the pet owner
out of the door right away, I'll type up the discharge first, but
before I see the next case, I finish entering at least my basic history,
PE, and CC (Like the way I'm testing your abbreviation skills?).
Rule #4: Triage and examine the patient immediately upon presentationI'll
admit, I've got some weird rules. I want the front desk staff to bring
every patient back to be triaged immediately in the ER. Why? Because I
want to do my full PE in the back, while the pet owner is still
registering and the front desk staff are still filling out paperwork. I
can do my whole PE, create my treatment sheet, and figure out my mental
plan as they are compiling a medical record. That way, I'm ready to rock
and roll with the medical record as soon as I get it.
Rule #5: Don't stand around
Waiting for the front
desk staff to finish creating a medical plan or record? Waiting for
your technician to knock down your blocked cat? Don't just stand there -
do stuff! (Granted, Justine Lee is rarely still...). Even if you have 5 minutes while you're waiting around, take the time to:
- Chug your Nalgene to stay hydrated
- Finally pee
- Down a granola bar
- Let your dog outside to pee
- Reassess your critically ill patient
- Fill out a treatment sheet for your current waiting-to-be-seen
patient (Warning: This usually jinxes it and makes the owner euthanize
or not admit the case). - Start your discharge for your blocked cat
- Document a client communication
- Check your mailbox or to-do list
- Triage your email
efficient as a veterinary professional... whether you're a veterinarian,
intern, resident, veterinary student, or veterinary technician.
Remember, the more efficient you are, the better you care for all around
you.
With that, I have to go pee, post on social media, write up orders, and do CPR simultaneously.
What hints do you have? Weigh in and give us more ideas!
source: How to be a more efficient veterinarian | VETgirl Veterinary Blog
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