I enjoy speaking to groups about my passion, which is veterinary practice management. Whenever I speak in the classroom setting, or to groups of my peers, I am often asked, “What’s your typical day like?” In my world, there really isn’t a day that I can say is typical, as my work revolves around a monthly cycle: accounts receivable; accounts payable; monthly reporting and benchmarking; marketing on a daily, weekly or even monthly basis; weekly staff meetings, etc.

Page of the calendar

Let’s look at a single day, keeping in mind it will be very different day-to-day, depending on where it falls in my management cycle.

  • 7:00am: arrive at my office, turn on all the lights and feed my fish before opening my laptop
  • 7:15am: audit the computer security reports from the previous day’s activity to ensure staff compliance of our Internet use policy and medical record accuracy…while consuming my second cup of coffee of the day
  • 7:45am: post the daily announcement to the staff communications page of our email server
  • 8:00am: hospital walk-through, greeting staff and ensuring everything is neat, inviting, and in working order…while I check out the patients and see who needs a little loving
  • 8:20am: back to my office to check voice mail messages and return phone calls
  • 8:45am: open the following programs on my computer screen: Entourage, Twitter, our clinic blog, Facebook, and our practice management software
  • 8:50am: begin work on that day’s to-do list (staff meeting planning, coding invoices for accounts payable, writing a new blog article, daily posts to social media sites, completing the doctors’ schedule for the coming month, printing and mailing statements, writing annual reviews, updating training manuals, writing new protocols, solving new problems, etc.)
  • 10:00am: meet with practice’s management team (Human Resources Director and area Supervisors) to discuss issues, problems, on-going projects, etc.
  • 11:30am: resume work on the daily to-do list
  • 12:15pm: 2nd walk-through of the main clinic facility, making sure to get puppy kisses from the cute little bulldog in for vaccines
  • 12:30pm: eat lunch at my desk while tweeting and responding to Facebook posts
  • 1:00pm: drive to our satellite clinic to perform facility walk-through and check end of day reports
  • 1:30pm: drive to our dog training center to perform walk-through, weekly reports, and conduct a staff meeting
  • 2:45pm: drive back to my office and check-in with front desk, handing over deposits to be made from other facilities, while performing 3rd walk-through of the main clinic
  • 3:15pm: check email and voice mail, returning messages received while at satellite locations
  • 3:30pm: resume the day’s to-do list, completing as many tasks as possible
  • 4:40pm: 4th facility walk-through at main clinic, checking in with the second shift to assure all is running smoothly
  • 5:00pm: check voice mail and return calls before leaving for the day
  • 5:30pm: hopefully, I’m on my way home!

Is this a typical day? Yes…and no. My days have a lot of variety, and that’s what keeps things interesting and challenging. Managers love to solve problems and make life easier for other people. This keeps us on our toes and on the prowl for what needs to be fixed next. I’m happy not to have a 9-to-5 job. The hours in my day fly-by and I look forward to the next day’s surprises….everyday.