Ep 25: Veterinary Leadership, Burnout & Compassion Fatigue with Cait Deppe

Ep 25: Veterinary Leadership, Burnout & Compassion Fatigue with Cait Deppe

“You can’t pour from an empty cup.” Burnout in veterinary medicine is bigger than wellness programs — and in this episode, Cait Deppe and Suzanne Thomas unpack the leadership, communication, and systems issues that are quietly exhausting veterinary teams every day. In this episode of Leading Veterinary Teams on Air, we discuss: * veterinary burnout and compassion fatigue * leadership mistakes that increase team stress * psychological safety in veterinary hospitals * grief support and emotional exhaustion * technician utilization and trust within teams * neurodiversity in veterinary medicine * communication breakdowns in clinics * how better leadership can reduce burnout * why support systems matter more than surface-level solutions Cait shares insights from her background in shelter medicine, specialty and emergency practice, ophthalmology, education, consulting, manufacturing, and veterinary distribution — offering a uniquely broad perspective on what veterinary teams actually need to thrive. This conversation is for: • veterinary technicians • veterinarians • practice managers • hospital leaders • CSRs • and anyone passionate about improving veterinary culture If you’ve ever felt emotionally exhausted, unsupported, overwhelmed, or frustrated by the systems inside veterinary medicine, this episode will resonate deeply. 📘 Workbook: www.lvt.vet/workbook [http://www.lvt.vet/workbook] From Competent to Capable: https://amzn.to/4dINtvD [https://amzn.to/4dINtvD] 🔗 Connect with Suzanne: Instagram: www.instagram.com/therealsuzannethomas [http://www.instagram.com/therealsuzannethomas] LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/suzannethomaslvt [http://www.linkedin.com/in/suzannethomaslvt] Newsletter: https://leadingveterinaryteams.beehiiv.com/ [https://leadingveterinaryteams.beehiiv.com/] 🎙️ Listen to Leading Veterinary Teams on Air: https://leadingveterinaryteamsonair.riverside.com/ [https://leadingveterinaryteamsonair.riverside.com/] Leading Veterinary Teams: Website: www.lvt.vet [http://www.lvt.vet] Instagram: www.instagram.com/leadingveterinaryteams [http://www.instagram.com/leadingveterinaryteams] 👤 Connect with Cait Deppe: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caitdeppe/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/caitdeppe/] Subscribe for more conversations on veterinary leadership, burnout prevention, onboarding, communication, technician utilization, and sustainable veterinary medicine. #VeterinaryMedicine #VetTech #Burnout #VeterinaryLeadership #CompassionFatigue #VetMed #PracticeManagement

Ep 24: What Veterinary Leaders Need to Know Before Changing PIMS

Most veterinary practices are making software decisions without a real roadmap — and the consequences impact everything from workflow efficiency to patient care. In this episode of Leading Veterinary Teams, Suzanne Thomas sits down with Adam Wysocki, founder of VetSoftwareHub.com [http://VetSoftwareHub.com], to talk about veterinary software, PIMS transitions, AI in veterinary medicine, workflow mapping, data ownership, and the operational realities most hospitals are completely unprepared for. Adam has spent more than 35 years building software and leading technology companies, including serving as CEO of a veterinary software company before launching VetSoftwareHub.com — the largest independent veterinary software directory online. This conversation is essential listening for: • Veterinary hospital managers • Practice owners • Lead technicians • Operations leaders • Anyone evaluating veterinary software or AI tools In this episode, we discuss: • Why most veterinary software demos are misleading • The biggest mistakes practices make during PIMS transitions • Workflow mapping before implementation • Hidden software costs and contract pitfalls • AI scribes and the future of veterinary AI • Open APIs and veterinary data ownership • Why veterinary leaders need better software education • What happens AFTER go-live during implementation • The operational impact of poor software decisions One of Adam’s most important insights: “The demo is the midway point — not the start.” If your hospital is considering: • changing PIMS • moving from server-based to cloud software • implementing AI tools • improving workflows • evaluating integrations …this episode will save you time, money, and operational frustration. CHAPTERS 00:00 Why Veterinary Software Decisions Matter 05:28 The Power Imbalance in Software Sales 11:36 The Reality of PIMS Transitions 20:59 Common Software Evaluation Mistakes 24:56 Why Sandboxes Matter 27:18 How Long PIMS Implementations Actually Take 29:12 APIs, Data Ownership, and Migration Challenges 36:30 AI, Decision Support, and Veterinary Teams 46:59 The Future of AI-Powered PIMS 53:12 Building VetSoftwareHub 55:26 Adam’s Upcoming Book on PIMS Transitions Connect with Adam: https://vetsoftwarehub.com/ [https://vetsoftwarehub.com/] Follow Adam on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/the-adam-wysocki/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/the-adam-wysocki/] ---------------------------------------- Take the Free CLARITY Assessment: https://suzanne-xlfkmtbz.scoreapp.com [https://suzanne-xlfkmtbz.scoreapp.com] Join the Leading Veterinary Teams Community: www.lvt.vet/community [www.lvt.vet/community] #VeterinaryLeadership #VeterinaryMedicine #VetMed #PracticeManagement #VeterinarySoftware #VeterinaryAI #PIMS #VeterinaryOperations

Celebrating Veterinary Receptionists with Caitlin Palmer

National Receptionist Week only comes once a year, but the work receptionists do in veterinary medicine happens every single shift, every single call, every single difficult conversation at the front desk. This episode is dedicated to them. I'm joined by Caitlin Palmer, veterinary receptionist, community builder, and member of the NAAVR President's Advisory Board. We talk about what the receptionist role actually demands, the emotional labor that goes largely unacknowledged, and why the profession keeps underestimating the people holding the front of the hospital together. This is not a fluff episode about appreciating your front desk staff. It's a real conversation about imposter syndrome, career expectations, mental health, and what it looks like to build a professional identity in a role that a lot of people still treat as a stepping stone. Caitlin brings the kind of clarity and candor that this conversation has needed for a long time. If you lead a team that includes receptionists, this one is required listening. What we cover: * The emotional toll of receptionist work and why it doesn't get named enough * Imposter syndrome and career identity at the front desk * What recognition actually looks like for this role versus what hospitals typically do * The mental health dimension of client-facing work in veterinary medicine * NAAVR, the President's Advisory Board, and what's being built for this community * Training, certification, and the future of the receptionist role in vet med ---------------------------------------- If this resonates, share it with every hospital manager who has ever underestimated their front desk. Subscribe for more real talk on the operational and relational work of leading in veterinary medicine. I'm Suzanne Thomas. This is Leading Veterinary Teams. Until next time, lead where you are. Even when it's uncomfortable. Especially when it's uncomfortable. Chapters * 00:00 The Role of Receptionists in Veterinary Medicine * 07:51 Navigating Social Media and Work Persona * 21:16 Recognition and Support for Receptionists * 31:02 Supporting Receptionists in Veterinary Medicine * 36:35 Recognizing the Emotional Labor of Receptionists * 44:20 The Role of NAAVR and the President's Advisory Board * 49:46 Empowerment and Recognition for Receptionists Connect with Caitlin: @thedeskwench and @desk_wench across all platforms Learn more about NAAVR: https://naavr.org/ [https://naavr.org/] Take the CLARITY Leadership Assessment [https://suzanne-xlfkmtbz.scoreapp.com/] (free, 14 questions) Join the Leading Veterinary Teams Community [https://www.skool.com/leading-veterinary-teams-3047/about?ref=e113e3254814492790dd1c48646ad215] Get the book, From Competent to Capable [https://amzn.to/3Ot5cPl]: Available on Amazon in paperback, hardcover, and Kindle.

Ep 22 You're Not Understaffed. You're Running the Wrong Model.

There's a distinction that most hospital leaders never make, and it's costing them constantly: being understaffed and running a model that structurally produces more work than it can sustain are not the same problem. They just feel identical from the inside. In this episode, Suzanne breaks down what's actually driving the staffing and retention crisis in veterinary medicine, starting with the high-volume, fee-for-service model that most practices have inherited and never questioned. She gets into what lean staffing actually produces in practice (hint: it's not efficiency), why credentialed technicians are leaving even when pay isn't the issue, and what forward-thinking practices are doing differently. You'll hear about structural models from human medicine and veterinary medicine, including Direct Primary Care, subscription-based care, VEG's people-first hospital design, and what Modern Animal built on the client communication side before the Chewy acquisition. This is not a theoretical episode. Suzanne closes with four concrete things you can move right now, without rebuilding your entire business model. If you're not sure whether your practice has a staffing problem or a model problem, the CLARITY Leadership Assessment was built to help you see exactly that. Fourteen questions, free, at LVT.vet [http://www.LVT.vet]. All resources, links, and tools mentioned in this and all episodes are available here. [stan.store/therealsuzannethomas] Find everything at the link below: https://www.lvt.vet [https://www.lvt.vet] stan.store/therealsuzannethomas [stan.store/therealsuzannethomas] ---------------------------------------- DISCLAIMER A note before you listen: this episode references subscription-based care models and draws comparisons to how Direct Primary Care has been structured in human medicine. Sharing that context is not an endorsement. Suzanne is not saying subscription models are the right answer for veterinary practice. She is saying that veterinary medicine is actively looking at what human medicine has built, and that hospital leaders should understand what that looks like, why it's being considered, and what the implications are for staffing and team structure. Awareness is not advocacy. Know what's in the conversation so you can engage with it on your own terms.

EP 21 High Stress, High Stakes: What ER VetMed Teaches Us About Leadership

What does emergency medicine teach us about leadership? More than most leadership books ever will. In this episode of Leading Veterinary Teams On Air, Suzanne sits down with Dr. Brianna Tobin, small animal emergency veterinarian, shelter medicine advocate, birth doula, yoga practitioner, and the voice behind @emergencypetvet, to talk about what it actually takes to lead in one of the most high-stakes environments in veterinary medicine. Brianna brings a perspective that is both clinically sharp and genuinely human. She shares how a rough internship with poor leadership shaped everything she wanted to become as a doctor, why psychological safety isn't just a nice-to-have in emergency medicine, and how trust between doctors, technicians, and assistants is the thing that holds a team together when a hit-by-car dog rolls in at 3am. This one covers a lot of ground: the "sink or swim" myth in emergency medicine, why hierarchy is one of the most damaging things we've imported into veterinary hospitals, what real teamwork looks like in a code situation, how she navigates compassion fatigue without losing herself, and why she thinks the most important thing we can do for this profession is let people see it honestly. She also shares why she started @emergencypetvet, what it means to lead without a title, and the one book that changed the way she thinks about meaning, resilience, and why we keep going when things get hard. If you've ever been the person in the room who knew something was off but wasn't sure if you were allowed to say it out loud, this episode is for you. Brianna's Book Recommendation: Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl — https://www.amazon.com/dp/0807014273 [https://www.amazon.com/dp/0807014273] Connect with Dr. Brianna Tobin: Instagram: @emergencypetvet [https://www.instagram.com/emergencypetvet] Connect with Suzanne + Leading Veterinary Teams: 🐾 Join The Leading Veterinary Teams Community [https://www.skool.com/leading-veterinary-teams-3047/about?ref=e113e3254814492790dd1c48646ad215] 🛒 For Resources, Consulting + More: stan.store/therealsuzannethomas [http://stan.store/therealsuzannethomas] 📊 Take the CLARITY Leadership Assessment [https://suzanne-xlfkmtbz.scoreapp.com]: Have a topic you'd love Suzanne to cover, or want to be a guest? Submit here: http://www.lvt.vet/podcast-questions [http://www.lvt.vet/podcast-questions]