More Veterinary Technology, Less Burnout for Your Team

Occupational burnout is a serious concern among veterinary professionals. Fueled by long hours, emotional fatigue, and the high demands of managing customer relationships, a hard day’s work in the clinic can quickly turn into feeling overworked and overwhelmed. 

Veterinary technology is designed to remove the daily burdens of your operations, from simplifying workflows to improving customer communication. Having powerful tools and strong support can decrease the risks of burnout in your practice and enhance your team’s overall efficiency, leading to better patient care and creating a more convenient veterinary experience for everyone. Here’s how veterinary-specific technology can create a less stressful clinic environment and help your team feel supported, motivated, and empowered as soon as they arrive for work.

1. Simplifying administrative tasks for veterinary clinic staff

Administrative responsibilities are important, but are also oftentimes stressful for veterinary professionals. Technology can provide peace of mind for your team by accurately automating the not-so-enjoyable manual tasks that hamper their productivity. With less hassle to sort through and more time to focus on critical duties, you and your staff will be able to provide focused veterinary care that impresses pet owners.

Invest in electronic health records (EHRs)

Adding electronic health records to your operational toolbelt will positively impact the way your team members handle daily admin tasks, saving them valuable time and effort. Rather than manually organising and keeping track of physical records, you can upgrade to a digital experience that automates the record-keeping process and makes client and patient information easier to manage.

Combine veterinary technology with your practice management software (PMS)

By syncing veterinary-specific solutions with your practice management system, you can automate everyday processes and alleviate the daily burdens on your staff. That’s because PMS-compatible veterinary software automatically takes care of all the important but repetitive chores, without you having to manually send appointment reminders or book routine appointments by phone. Plus, you can sync veterinary payment software with your PMS to speed up the in-clinic checkout process or bypass it altogether. This software allows you to request advanced deposits or full payments from pet owners during the appointment booking process, reducing the likelihood of them not showing up and securing your revenue without financial friction.

2. Enhancing your veterinary client communication

The way you connect with your customers should make things easier on your staff members, and not consist of time-consuming to-dos that distract your team from providing focused patient care. That’s why exploring the latest veterinary client communication software is important for staying in touch with pet owners and keeping your clinic at the top of their minds—without your team having to track down information or place phone conversations on hold.

Create a client portal

You can save your team from high levels of frustration by giving your customers access to their pets’ medical records, appointment scheduling, and billing details. A secure online client portal will help to lower your overall call volume by eliminating the customer’s need to contact you for non-urgent pet information. With less phone calls and emails to tend to, you’ll enhance the client experience while keeping your staff concentrated on more important matters, like caring for the pets currently in the clinic.

Automated email reminders

Missed appointments can unexpectedly cause your veterinary team to scramble at the last minute and lose valuable time. Automatic appointment email reminders can help to reduce no-shows for your veterinary clinic and keep your schedule on track by reminding pet owners about the services they’ve booked well in advance of their visits. This also gives customers enough time to prepare for their appointments and follow any pre-visit instructions you may have provided them with, ultimately helping to speed up their in-clinic experience and get their pets the timely care they need.

3. Improving your overall veterinary efficiency

Efficiency is everything in vet life, meaning how fast you get things done in an accurate and meaningful way is imperative to establishing a successful veterinary environment. Thankfully, there are a number of veterinary-specific solutions you can look into to maximise your team’s efficiency while minimising their stress levels. 

Offer 24/7 direct online booking

One way to make the veterinary experience more convenient for pet owners is by letting them book routine appointments anytime, anywhere, and on any device. 24/7 direct veterinary booking is a powerful solution that empowers pet owners to skip the phone call and book the services they need on their own time, while you get to enjoy all the rules and customisations to offer your services your way. Veterinary booking software is designed to prevent errors like double-booked customers by directly syncing with your PMS, and keeps your front desk open after hours so customers can accurately schedule wellness exams and regular check-ups whenever they need to.

Try out telemedicine

Virtual communication has certainly been on the rise, especially in recent years. Rather than calling or visiting a busy veterinary clinic for routine information and follow-ups, pet owners are becoming more and more open to the idea of online consultations with their veterinarians. This can also make things easier on your staff by reducing in-person appointments and lowering the amount of inbound and outbound phone calls, all while your customers have a convenient way to stay in touch and access actionable advice from their vets.

4. Promoting a positive veterinary work environment

A positive work culture is essential to positive team relationships and improving your clinic’s collective efficiency. It’s also key for combatting the risks of burnout, and technology can play a pivotal role in better connecting your staff members to one another. With the right tools, you can support your team in establishing an unbreakable bond that directly helps to boost their morale on a daily basis.

Equip your veterinary staff with time management tools

Time is a valuable resource for veterinary professionals, so finding ways to minimise time-consuming tasks can prevent individuals from feeling overwhelmed in the clinic. Arm your team with the tools they need to defend their work-life balance, like investing in technology that helps them prioritise tasks, schedule their breaks, and track their productivity. Always encourage your staff to take regularly-scheduled breaks to recharge and stay fresh, showing them that you value their professional lives as much as you do their physical and mental health.

Strengthen your team’s collaboration with veterinary technology

External communication with customers is just as important as internally communicating among team members; the more aligned your veterinary team is, the stronger outcomes they’ll have in the clinic. Veterinary care and pet owner support is a collaborative effort, and technology can help your team better navigate their individual and collective responsibilities to create a more seamless experience that pet owners will notice.

Beating burnout in your own veterinary clinic

Veterinary professionals are some of the most hard-working people to exist, and face a number of daily stressors that can significantly impact their well-being and lead to occupational burnout. It’s important to explore the perfect technology that fits your clinic’s specific challenges, and supports your team’s day-to-day operations without added levels of stress and frustration. 

If you’re ready for change and are curious how you can start upgrading the way you work today, consider talking to the Vetstoria team to simplify your appointment booking process and save your staff valuable time. Veterinary-specific solutions like Vetstoria can help to create a healthier, happier team and support your clinic in providing the best possible care for pets.