SPECIAL SESSIONS

AAHA Session: How to Blow Your Clients’ Minds
Before the opening session, the Hill’s Animal Welfare and Humane Ethics Award was presented to Dr. Roger Clarke and the 2008 AAHA Practitioner of the Year honor was awarded to Dr. R. Michael Thomas. Past President of the Florida Veterinary Medical Association, Dr. Geoffrey Gardner, welcomed attendees to the sunny state, and AAHA Tampa 2008 was officially launched with Steve Farber’s, How to Blow Your Clients’ Minds.

Farber discussed the extreme leader when talking about how to blow clients’ minds. He defined that as someone who is actively involved in cultivating love, generating energy, inspiring audacity and providing proof. His vigorous speech kept the audience captivated as he described just exactly what each of those qualities meant.

“Love is the foundation of all business,” Farber claimed. He explained how satisfaction means nothing anymore; it’s simply a base-line expectation. “Clients have to love the experience” to keep them coming back.

Generate energy — be passionate about what you do. Make your people feel like they are a part of something great, something bigger.

Farber paused at “inspire audacity” and shared a few stories to put this extreme leader characteristic into context. He defined it as, “the disregard for normal constraints…in order to change the world for the better.” This doesn’t mean the “whole wide world,” but rather that there are lots of little worlds within that, the world of your practice, the world of your clients, your community, your employees, and you can inspire change for the better within those worlds.

Finally, provide proof. “DWYSYWD — do what you say you will do.” Yes, this will prove it to others, but how do we prove it to ourselves? How do we know that we’re on the right track? Farber’s answer: the OSM, “Oh S*** Moment.” Every time you make a commitment to grow or change you’ll feel this. “We’re wired to interpret this as an ‘oh no something must be wrong,’ but it’s not, the OSM will stand as proof that you’re in the game,” Farber said.

Accredited Practice Breakfast: AAHA Session: It’s a Dog’s Life:
“Everything I Learned About Success at Work Came from my Dog”
AAHA President, Dr. Thomas Carpenter, opened the Accredited Practice Breakfast by congratulating those practices that celebrated 25 and 50 years of accreditation. Carpenter then called incoming AAHA President, Dr. Anna Worth to the stage to pass the gavel and his presidential responsibilities for 2008.

Worth shared her story about how she got into veterinary medicine, and how since she’s been involved, accreditation has changed from “bricks and mortar and facility focused to concentrating on the quality of care.” She addressed the things she had planned for her presidency, including AAHA’s Mentoring guidelines, the Electronic Health Record Task Force, AAHA’s presence in the community promoting connectivity among veterinary professionals and becoming a “go to” source for students.

Matt Weinstein took the stage with incredible energy and enthusiasm, immediately getting the audience out of their seats. “Meet five people in 30 seconds,” he directed. The entire It’s a Dog’s Life session followed this pattern of audience interaction as the importance of making the clinic a more positive place to be for employees was covered. Attendees worked with partners to brainstorm ideas about how to inject fun into their hospitals and became accountable to one another to make sure these things began happening after the conference was over.

The concept of a standing ovation was also introduced and encouraged throughout the presentation — with people sporadically shouting in the middle of lecture, “I want a standing ovation,” and the entire audience obeying. This idea that people want to feel valued and deserve to be appreciated for even the smallest of accomplishments was a pearl participants took home as something often overlooked and sometimes all together forgotten.

Attendees were forced to think outside the box and act outside their comfort zone in It’s a Dog’s Life: “Everything I Learned About Success at Work Came from my Dog, which proved to be for most, an insightful and enjoyable experience.

Student Program: Achieving Personal & Professional Success
The student program at AAHA Tampa 2008 was a hit and proved to be extremely helpful for attendees, especially when considering the financial side of success.

“The insight into financial aspects that, as a younger student, I don’t get from school was great.”

“This session really drove home the importance of financial planning. Looking at it on paper makes it more real.”

Speaker, David McCormick, started off the session by asking, “What does success mean to you?” Answers like “contentment,” “happiness,” “respect from my peers,” and others came from the room. Throughout the presentation, students interacted as they mapped out their vision, mission and goals for personal, financial and professional success.

The overall message was based on the proverbial story about priorities. A teacher fills a jar with large rocks and asks his class, is the jar full? Then he pours in pebbles; he repeats the question. Next he dumps in sand and asks again, is the jar full yet? Finally he pours water into the jar, filling any crevices that remain.

Now, and only now, is the jar full; however, had you placed the contents into the jar in any other order, it would have been impossible to fit everything in. The lesson in this? To live a truly fulfilling life, personally and professionally, you must concentrate first on your big rocks, the things that are most important to you, and let your pebbles, sand and water fill in after.

McCormick concluded the session by asking this open question, “Are the things that matter most the things that are governing your decisions?”

“We don’t have anything like this at our school — a course that addresses the softer skills and financial situations that we will face upon graduation.”

A reception followed the student program where attendees had an opportunity to network with one another, as well as with members of the AAHA Board of Directors. One student attendee started talking with Pam Cole, AAHA Board Practice Manager Director, and in no time they were deep in conversation. Finally, Mrs. Cole said, “Let’s sit down for a minute; give me some time to really get to know you.”

Pre-conference Programs
“These programs offer tons of important information for all business owners and managers, including soft skills  that aren’t adequately taught in vet school, and it was presented in an understandable and entertaining manner.”

Pre-conference programs were designed as in-depth, intense learning experiences for a limited audience prior to the yearly conference. By concentrating on one subject throughout the day and interacting with fellow colleagues and faculty, attendees developed new skills and were able to focus on specific action plans that they could apply immediately back at their practices. These programs also provided an opportunity for those that weren’t able to attend the entire conference to still get their hands on some of the high-quality CE that AAHA offers.

Pre-conference Programs included:

• Advancements in Cardiology-An AAHA Veterinary Practitioner's Short Course
• Extreme Service--For Accredited Members Only
• Fundamentals of Finance and Inventory
• Managing Your Inventory Investment

“The case presentation following the review was the best aspect of the Advancements in Cardiology program! Working the case up before it was presented was really helpful.”

“I learned a lot from the Fundamentals of Finance & Inventory program. I have a lot to talk to my manager about.”

“I’m really looking forward to putting my new tools to work. Having just changed CPAs and software programs has been a little overwhelming—Fundamentals of Finance and Inventory game me hope of breathing again!”

AAHA Survivor Stories
Six Tampa-area pets, their owners and the local veterinarians who cared for them shared their unique stories during “Animal Hospital Survivor Stories” at AAHA Tampa 2008.

Survivors included:

Ruff, a 3-year-old abandoned male boxer, found with a man’s belt fastened tightly around his neck and morbidly under weight was rescued by the Florida Boxer Rescue and taken to Quail Hollow Animal Hospital for treatment. 
Pet Owner: Lori Johannesen; Veterinarian: Dr. Heidi Goss of Quail Hollow Animal Hospital, Wesley Chapel, Fla.

“He just looked at me like ‘You have found me and I’m a survivor.’ I can’t imagine anyone letting a dog get like that. Now when I walk in the door of Quail Hollow all Dr. Goss’s techs disappear [coming to visit Ruff]. It was a wonderful experience. Ruff was one worth saving; he is my baby.”
- Lori Johannesen, Ruff’s mom

Katie, a 7-year-old female Shetland sheepdog, entered the Quail Hollow Animal Hospital five years ago facing severe hip, knees, ACL and social anxiety issues. Because of numerous surgeries, including hip reconstruction, knee replacements and ACL surgery, Katie is now leading a healthy and productive life. Despite her health issues, Katie serves the community as a certified therapy dog, helping children learn to read as a Tail-Wagging-Tutor and comforting patients at nursing homes and hospitals.  
Pet Owner: Amy Carnes; Veterinarian: Dr. Heidi Goss of Quail Hollow Animal Hospital, Wesley Chapel, Fla.

“I am so appreciative of everything Dr. Goss did and that I have Katy in my life and get to share her with everyone.”
- Amy Carnes, Katie’s mom

Muffin, a 7-year-old female shih-tzu, received a second chance at life, a full coat of fur and a loving home after she was abandoned at the Quail Hollow Animal Hospital. Muffin was found with serious skin infections and no fur on her body. After intensive therapy, she now reigns as a beautiful queen of the family. 
Pet Owner: Rochelle Braumuller; Veterinarian: Dr. Heidi Goss of Quail Hollow Animal Hospital, Wesley Chapel, Fla.

“She’s quite beautiful now and happy. She says jump and we ask how high.”
- Rochelle Braumuller, Muffin’s mom

Guinevere, an 8-year-old female boxer, was taken to the hospital for diarrhea. The diarrhea was only an incidental sign of a far worse problem; lymphoma sarcoma (cancer). Guinevere proceeded to loose 21 pounds before exploratory surgery found an infected small intestine.  Recovering from last month’s surgery, Guinevere is gaining her health and weight back.
Pet Owners: Lisa and Steve Tannenbaum; Veterinarian: Dr. Heidi Goss of Quail Hollow Animal Hospital, Wesley Chapel, Fla.

“She’s been with us for a long time and she’s part of our family. We’re so thankful Dr. Goss has figured out what’s wrong with Gwen so we can have her around a little longer.”
- Steve Tannenbaum, Guinevere’s dad

Edgar, a 16-year-old female feline (yes Edgar is a female), suddenly developed a noticeable limp. Owner, Pat Grossman took Edgar to Pebble Creek Animal and Bird Hospital for an examination.  Tests revealed malignant cancer on her hind leg and amputation was required to prevent spreading of the disease. After extensive rehabilitation, Edgar is now recovering well with her healthy three legs.
Pet Owner: Pat Grossman; Veterinarian:  Dr. Chris Smithson of Pebble Creek Animal and Bird Hospital, Tampa, Fla.

“She’s my only family; she’s extremely special to me so I was going to do what I had to do to keep her going. I credit Edgar for getting me through my cancer ten years ago, and I thank Dr. Smithson and the staff at Pebble Creek — they’re wonderful.”
- Pat Grossman, Edgar’s mom

Casper, an 8-year old male Westie, entered Quail Hollow Animal Hospital with hind legs “not functioning.” Traditional medication did not help Casper’s situation so he began acupuncture. Within two weeks of acupuncture therapy, he regained his swagger! He now jumps on and off of furniture again and can stand on his hind legs. 
Pet Owner: Laurann Flynn: Veterinarian: Dr. Heidi Goss of Quail Hollow Animal Hospital, Wesley Chapel, Fla.

“When we go visit Quail Hollow for an acupuncture treatment, Casper no longer gets anxious; he knows that room is going to be a good thing for him. Now he’s chasing squirrels again. I couldn’t be more pleased. We have our baby back and it’s absolutely incredible.”
- Laurann Flynn, Casper’s mom