VBJ articles

December 2017

Shuffling cards: striking a deal on the price of processing plastic

Cash is king when it comes to practice success – yet clients increasingly prefer to pay with plastic. Adam Bernstein shows how to make savings on card fees.

10 mins
How to turn likes and followers into leads and clients

We all know social media is a necessary evil of modern veterinary practice. However, as Julia Bramble spotlights, it can be used as a powerful, bottom line-boosting tool…

32 mins
Practice profile: Swayne and Partners

VBJ heads to Bury St Edmunds and speaks to senior partner Duncan Hole about the practice's decision to stop all large animal and equine work and become exclusively small animal.

5 mins

November 2017

Tips on small animal practice management and profitability

Peter Edmondson, in the second of a six-part article series, summarises an Australian Veterinary Association Annual Conference session on how to increase practice profit.

12 mins
Big 6: career landscape

Of all the debates hosted by VBJ for the Big 6 project, one of the most insightful surrounded the career landscape faced by veterinary professionals in 2017. These discussions ultimately boiled down to one question: whether professionally and financially rewarding careers can still be sustained in private practice.

4 mins
Planes, trains and automobiles – a journey through complementary medicine

When it comes to complementary therapy, many options are available to get to the final destination. Here, Stephen Barabas identifies the correct multimodal therapies for your practice.

32 mins
Recruiting for veterinary teams – part 1: sorting the wheat from...

Recruiting new members to join your team is one of the most crucial processes in any veterinary practice. Here, in the first of a three-part series, Ed Newbould explains the process he undertakes when choosing new staff.

22 mins
New pre-action debt claims protocol: better late than never?

On 1 October 2017, HMRC introduced a new pre-action protocol for debt claims. Corporate lawyers Paul Taylor and Sarah Carlton explain the changes and how they are likely to affect practices chasing bad debts.

18 mins
Employee monitoring and its attendant legal implications

A decision by the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights has brought the question of employee monitoring to the forefront of employers’ minds once again. Mark Stevens examines the implications for UK businesses and their staff.

9 mins
Nutraceuticals – which, when and for how long?

Kit Sturgess looks at the decision-making process when prescribing nutraceuticals, reviews the available evidence and emphasises the importance of client comms.

22 mins
Practice profile: Kingston Veterinary Group

VBJ visits Kingston Veterinary Group in Hull to talk about the hospital's recent expansion and future plans to expand the group's referral services.

3 mins

October 2017

Social media: how to engage your team and clients

Developing a social media strategy is fundamental for your practice's ability to communicate with existing clients. However, as Justin Phillips states, it is also vital in attracting new pet owners and differentiating yourself from the others in town...

24 mins
Practice Profile: Amity Veterinary Care

RVC graduate Lennon Foo explains the philosophy behind his unique approach to first opinion veterinary care.

5 mins
Pet care shaming: are we discouraging owners from seeking veterinary care?

Do we judge clients or roll our eyes at their never-ending excuses? Are we our clients’ worst enemy? Ernie Ward shares his experiences on “pet care shaming” and explains how your team can avoid inadvertently becoming a participant.

37 mins
Adopting loose-tight approach to build, keep and develop your team

Ray Girotti explains how being tight with standards and expectations, yet loose on how you allow your staff to achieve them, can create the right environment for teams can flourish.

23 mins
Greater than sum of its parts: whole practice approach to CPD

CPD can be a significant investment for a practice, but if it is well planned with good follow up it can be motivational and help deliver key practice objectives, as Nick Stuart explains.

23 mins

September 2017

Needles and nodes: making light work of OA in older pets

Libby Kemkaran-Thompson looks at how to make the most of two very different treatments for one of the most common age-related disorders.

22 mins
Balancing act: benefit from getting hands-on with perks and pay scales

Jenny Stuart explains why ensuring your staff are fairly rewarded is vital to ensure your practice runs smoothly.

24 mins
Tribunals and tribulations: employers back in the firing line?

A supreme court case has potentially opened the floodgates for employees to bring claims against their employers. Lawyer Chloe Themistocleous reports.

10 mins
Brand designs: building an identity on firm foundations

Alex Darvill looks at what comes first when planning a building project – the brand or the build.

23 mins