Today's Veterinary Practice provides comprehensive information to keep every small animal practitioner up to date on companion animal medicine and surgery as well as practice building and management.
Issue link: http://todaysveterinarypractice.epubxp.com/i/133843
| PersPectives hiring as well. the reality is that in areas of the country where the economy is relatively strong, the job market is better, and in areas where the general economy is weaker, less prospects are available. Having said that, there are certainly several new veterinary schools, and it does seem that many existing veterinary schools have increased their class sizes. so, i do think that recent veterinary school graduates face a more challenging job market than they would have 10 years ago. However, the same could be said for other professional school graduates, such as law school graduates. What can't be argued is the shifting demographic of the next generation of veterinarians. How does the role of women influence the industry? the role of women in veterinary medicine is certainly more evident now than ever before, but so is the role of professional women in general. in many families, women are equal, if not greater, income earners than their spouses. i have seen commentary that more women in the field will drive salaries down but we are not seeing that occur in our partner hospitals. in fact, since we and many other practice ELEANOR GREEN, DVM, DIPLOMATE ACVIM & ABVP Carl B. King Dean of Veterinary Medicine, Texas A&M; University Dr. eleanor Green is the Dean of texas A&M; University college of veterinary Medicine and Biomedical sciences. she has been a leader in veterinary education, serving in 5 U.s. institutions over her career. Dr. Green also served as the first woman president of the American Board of veterinary Practitioners, American Association of veterinary clinicians, and American Association of equine Practitioners. she received her DvM from Auburn University. One of the most visible issues in veterinary medicine is the recent expansion of class size at several schools and emergence of new institutions. What do you see driving these changes? there are two major driving forces that determine class size in veterinary colleges, both deeply rooted in the responsibility to meet societal needs: the first is demand by the public for a veterinary education. Many colleges of veterinary medicine are located at land grant institutions, which were created by the Morrill Act of 1862 to assure access to education for U.s. citizens. this purpose has not been abandoned, and the land grant system has been described by some as the basis for our status as a world power. the state that funds each veterinary school expects the educational needs of the state to be met, and the needs within a state and even a region vary. the pool of quality applicants remains strong, and i believe could be even stronger, if the widespread discouragement of potential veterinary students and their redirection into other fields were curtailed. the second is the demand for veterinary graduates, both within and beyond the veterinary profession per se. Best estimates are made based upon graduate surveys and feedback 74 today's veterinary Practice May/June 2013 owners support paying associate veterinarians a percentage of their production, and average gross transactions have been rising as a result of greater utilization of diagnostics, treatment options, and price increases, i believe that associate veterinarians have the potential to earn significantly more now than if they had graduated from veterinary school a decade ago. it is also evident to us, as employers of veterinarians, that benefits and flexibility are increasingly important to veterinarians from 2-income households. Another phenomenon we've observed related to increases in the number of dual-income families is that the traditional "8 to 5" veterinary office doesn't provide the flexibility needed by today's pet owners. As practice owners, we need to adapt to a client base that increasingly needs access to veterinarians in the evenings or over the weekend. As an industry, we have to be more flexible regarding our clients' needs, increase our availability, and improve our focus on the client if we want to stay competitive. i also believe that, by increasing our accessibility, we will help our clients become more compliant with our veterinary recommendations, which should lead to increasing standards of care. from state and national veterinary associations, including the AvMA, AAHA, AAeP, AABP, and others. veterinary workforce studies—a number of which have been performed over the years—are also considered when determining demand. Fine tuning the number of graduates needed is a challenge, as it is impossible to "turn on a dime." it takes a minimum of 6 years, even a decade, to change the number of graduates once the decision is made to do so. When you consider the state of Texas, do you perceive an over or under supply of veterinarians? if one considers only employment rates as a measure of supply and demand for veterinary graduates, there is no excess of those from texas A&M.; A recent survey revealed that > 98% of graduates, 6 and 12 months post graduation, were employed within the veterinary profession. Additionally, a number of graduates from other states come to texas each year. In many circles, there is significant concern over job market dilution. How meaningful is the influence of foreign training institutions on the supply of U.S. veterinarians? the number of open positions for each veterinary class within North American schools does not meet the current demand of those seeking a veterinary education. the result is the formation of additional training programs both domestically and abroad. this is one of the issues the profession is addressing through the 2013 U.S. Veterinary Workforce Study: Modeling Capacity Utilization (see avma.org/KB/ Resources/Reports/Documents/Veterinarian-WorkforceFinal-Report-LowRes.pdf). veterinary medicine is definitely following current global trends. Our world is shrinking; our borders are less distinct; and our economy is influenced by local, state, national, and international factors. Foreign graduates have had access to veterinary licensure in the U.s. for decades through defined paths. Our profession is enriched by this diversity, just as our graduates advance professionally through international experiences.