Today's Veterinary Practice

JUL-AUG 2012

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.

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HOT TOPIC | But convenience is not restricted to the Internet, big-box retailers, such as Wal-Mart and Target, have tremendous influence on the American consumer. UÊ VVoÀ`in}ÊÌoÊ7>l- >ÀÌ]Ê nV]ÊmoÀiÊÌh>nÊ£{äÊmillionÊ Americans shop in their stores every week. UÊ/hiÊ>ÛiÀ>}iÊ«iÌÊoÜniÀÊÜillÊm>kiÊmoÀiÊÌÀi«ÃÊÌoÊÌhiÊ grocery store in a month than they do to his or her veterinarian in a year. It's just a statistical fact that pet owners are more likely to be at a retail store than a veterinarian's office when they remember that they need preventive products. Value Price is a common reason cited in recent studies for changes in pet owner behavior. But price is a function of many elements, including patient experience and perceived value, in addition to absolute financial costs. iÀi½ÃÊ>nÊiÝ>m«li\ UÊThree boxes of the same heartworm preventive are available at two different veterinary clinics (A and B) and one online store. UÊClinic AÊÃillÃÊÌhiÊ«Ào`ÕVÌÊvoÀÊfxäÆÊÌhiÊonline store for $40. In the consumer's eye, it's the same box, same experience, same result, but more expensive when purchased through his or her veterinarian. UÊClinic BÊÃillÃÊÌhiÊ«Ào`ÕVÌÊvoÀÊfxxÆÊhoÜ- ever, instead of just pushing a product, the clinic chooses to go one step further. » Each month the client is reminded by text or email to administer the month- ly dose. » Two months before a refill is needed, the client is sent a "refill reminder," which also mentions that the clinic is happy to mail the refill to the client's home. » "niÊmonÌhÊ«ÀioÀÊÌoÊÌhiÊnii`i`ÊÀivill]Ê the clinic sends another reminder that includes a small incentive for purchas- in}]ÊÃÕVhÊ>ÃÊ>Êx¯ÊÌoÊ£ä¯Ê`iÃVoÕnÌÊÌoÊLiÊ used for the refill or the client's next visit. It's the same product, but a wild- ly different customer experience. MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN YOUR PREVENTIVE PROGRAM There is no quick fix, but several tools are available to today's practitioners that can make a difference in their preventive programs. 1. Determine Your "Real" Compliance Rate I have yet to meet a practice team that doesn't overestimate their heartworm com- pliance by at least 20%. The dynamic is the same in almost all practices: UÊ/hiÊ VliniVi>nÊ m>kiÃÊ ÀiVommin`>ÌionÃÊ ÌoÊ>Ê«iÌÊoÜniÀÊinÊÌhiÊiÝ>min>ÌionÊÀoomÆÊ then the technician or receptionist han- dles the discharge. UÊ/hiÊVliniVi>nÊhi>`ÃÊÌoÊÌhiÊniÝÌÊiÝ>min>ÌionÊÀoomÊ and has no idea if the client purchased the prod- uct, decided to wait, or chose a different product. UÊ/hiÊ ÃÌ>vvÊ `oiÃÊ noÌÊmoniÌoÀÊ oÀÊ ÌÀ>VkÊ ÀiVommin- dation compliance and the clinician doesn't have time at the end of the day to audit records. Most practices have yet to establish a good system for tracking patient compliance, but it's the first step in making a positive change in your preventive program. If you're interested in making a quick assess- ment of your own compliance, a simple compliance estimator can be found at axxiom-impact.com/ WinningwithHomeDelivery.pdf (Table). 2. Make Preventives a Priority >nkÊ -Ü>ÀÌâ]Ê 6 ]Ê 6iÌiÀin>ÀÞÊ ]Ê iÃÊ >Ê voÕn`in}Ê «>ÀÌniÀÊ ovÊ iÌÀiVÃ]Ê nV]Ê >n`Ê >nÊ in`ÕÃÌÀÞÊ iÝ«iÀÌÊ onÊ internal marketing and patient compliance. According ÌoÊ À°Ê-Ü>ÀÌâ]ÊÌhiÀiÊ>ÀiÊÃim«liÊÃÌi«ÃÊiÛiÀÞÊVliniVÊÌi>mÊ can take to improve patient compliance. "The foundation for improving compliance lies with i>VhÊ«À>VÌiVi½ÃÊÜillniÃÃÊÃÌ>n`>À`ÃÊovÊV>ÀiÊ7-" ®Ê>n`Ê creating supporting reminder entries in the practice m>n>}iminÌÊÃovÌÜ>Ài°Ê/hiÊ7-" ÊÃhoÕl`ÊinVlÕ`iÊÌhiÊ TABLE. PATIENT COMPLIANCE ESTIMATOR 1. Calculate one of the following to give you a baseline of your eligible patient pool: a. The number of individual patients seen in the last 12 months or b. The number of annual wellness evaluations performed in the last 12 months. 2. Multiply this number by 12 to calculate the potential number of individual doses your practice could dispense (A). 3. Run a product sales report for all heartworm or flea and tick products sold in the last 12 months. 4. Multiply the package count by the number of doses to calculate the total number of doses your practice dispenses through your pharmacy (B). 5. Divide the total doses sold (B) by the total potential doses (A). The resulting number is the internal compliance percentage. Example Worksheet: Heartworm Products Potential preventive doses: 1. Individual patients seen in the last 12 months 2. Your practice's annual recommended doses per patient Heartworm products dispensed: 3. Number of packs 4. Doses per pack 1000 12 (A) Total Potential Dose Opportunity 12,000 6-pack 12-pack 400 6 200 12 (B) Total Doses Dispensed 2400 5. Internal Patient Compliance Percentage (B)/(A) 2400 4800 40% Courtesy Axxiom—The Practice Impact Group (axxiom-impact.com/ WinningwithHomeDelivery.pdf) July/August 2012 Today's Veterinary Practice 71 Preserving Your Parasite Preventive Program

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