Many people ask me why it matters who owns veterinary hospitals. If veterinarians can still practice good medicine, should it matter if they work for another veterinarian or a non-veterinary owned corporate group?
I strongly believe that veterinary control is crucial for high-quality care as well as an ongoing investment in veterinarians and their staff. Studies in human healthcare have shown that physician-led hospitals have higher quality. A 2011 study showed that the quality scores of the 100 best hospitals for cancer, digestive, and cardiovascular care were 25% higher in physician run than in non-physician run hospitals. The relationship was confirmed when looking at another 12 specialties.
In addition, if veterinarians do not own practices, profits do not help veterinarians pay off their debt and increase their equity. Instead, the profits leave communities and go back to people who really just want a return on investment.
Veterinarians want help with administration and management. However, I believe quality is higher AND profit stays with veterinarians when administrators and managers work for veterinarians rather than veterinarians working for administrators, whose main goal is providing cash flow for investors.
Who Owns Veterinary Specialty Hospitals
A large percentage of veterinary specialty hospitals have already become part of large groups. Wealthy families and private equity are the largest players.
Women Veterinary Leaders – Linda Lehmkuhl, DVM DACVIM (Cardiology), CEO MedVet
One goal of this blog is to encourage women to be owners and leaders in the veterinary profession. Here is my interview with MedVet CEO, Dr. Linda Lehmkuhl.
Veterinary Owner Pay Strategies in Partnerships
Veterinary owner pay can be a contentious issue in a practice partnership. Calculating pay using a four component approach can help avoid conflicts and clarify practice value.
The Pros and Cons of Veterinary Practice Partnerships
Veterinary practice partnerships can make practice ownership more feasible. We discuss pros and cons and ways to assess alignment with a partner.
More perspectives from students on veterinary practice consolidation
Three additional veterinary students discuss veterinary practice consolidation. In their essays, they discussed parallels with human healthcare, interactions with animal non profits and the situation in Australia.
How Veterinary Students View Practice Consolidation – Part Two
Annie Showers used a survey of Ohio veterinarians and Joe Marchell used knowledge from the VBMA and his family to discuss trends in veterinary practice consolidation.
How Veterinary Students View Practice Consolidation – Part One
Joanne Yi used her mom’s small business experience as a starting point to explore veterinary practice consolidation and win the VIN Foundation’s contest.
The Cold Call
Many veterinary owners of big practices have received a cold call asking about purchase. Consider these important questions before making any decisons.
The 2019 Veterinary Business Summer Reading List
Are you a veterinary owner or potential owner? Do you want a good book for summer? This is my 2019 veterinary business summer reading list.
More about Veterinary Consolidation from the VIN News Service
Michael Dicks, former chief economist for the AVMA, is writing a series of articles on the veterinary industry. In this 4th segment, he discusses consolidation. While much of the information…