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For the pre-vets and vet students, especially those with limited clinical experience like me when I started. This is why you can't base your self-worth, or your assessment of the job you are doing, on client satisfaction:
A month or two ago I went into a transfer from an RDVM who had dx'd an obstructive FB on rads. I looked at the rads, said "meh, unimpressed". I think the RDVM overinterpreted because the dog had a history of eating socks (3 prev FB Sx) - totally understandable. I went in prepared to offer "explore, but I don't think it's really indicated yet and is probably going to be negative," "hospitalize, support, monitor, retake rads in 12 hours," or "hospitalize, support, and ultrasound in the morning" as more or less my basic approach to this questionable abdomen.
I'm in the room approximately 3 seconds before the lady says "this incision better not be as big as the last one." She goes on to tell me how her RDVM did the first couple FBs and made nice little tiny incisions but that the last one was done at our referral facility and was huge. Trying to be helpful (don't ever be helpful, it never helps and you only get **** on for trying) I noted that the larger incision allowed our surgeon to do a full abdominal explore, which is how we discovered some liver pathology that was able to be treated. (Yay for doing a full explore like you should!) No matter, she didn't like it. I go on to examine the dog, and it does what a lot of dogs do - it's nervous, and it looks at its owner. She promptly says "I don't think he likes you." I laughed and said "He's just a little nervous, but he's being great." She said "Well, maybe he's picking up that I don't like you." I blinked and was startled and said "I'm sorry, did I offend you?" She replied that I was an "ass," that I wasn't sympathetic, and that she was "the victim here."
I'm not really sure what she was a victim of, but yanno ... whatever. Crazy is as crazy does. I offered to get another doctor, she accepted, and life went on. Dog never went to surgery because it wasn't obstructed. (Ha!)
Anyway. I laughed and all of us in the treatment room got a great laugh out of it.
Fast forward to today. I show up for work and someone hands me a letter. Turns out it came from a client I saw the same day I was an "ass". It read in part: "Dr. [LIS], your bio indicates 'compassionate delivery of high-quality care' and that is exactly what we received. My daughter and I could not have made it through without your gentle, kind, compassionate, sincere, yet thorough, expert advice. And patience throughout.... THANK YOU, both my daughter and I are forever indebted, we honestly could not have had a better experience."
Yup. Ass and AmazeBallsVet in back-to-back appts.
So. Lesson from a newish vet to people coming up the ranks - don't base your value, your worth, and your competency on the good or bad things clients say about you. Not saying you shouldn't try to establish rapport, empathize, and all that stuff - but don't let individual client feedback impact how you feel about yourself.
A month or two ago I went into a transfer from an RDVM who had dx'd an obstructive FB on rads. I looked at the rads, said "meh, unimpressed". I think the RDVM overinterpreted because the dog had a history of eating socks (3 prev FB Sx) - totally understandable. I went in prepared to offer "explore, but I don't think it's really indicated yet and is probably going to be negative," "hospitalize, support, monitor, retake rads in 12 hours," or "hospitalize, support, and ultrasound in the morning" as more or less my basic approach to this questionable abdomen.
I'm in the room approximately 3 seconds before the lady says "this incision better not be as big as the last one." She goes on to tell me how her RDVM did the first couple FBs and made nice little tiny incisions but that the last one was done at our referral facility and was huge. Trying to be helpful (don't ever be helpful, it never helps and you only get **** on for trying) I noted that the larger incision allowed our surgeon to do a full abdominal explore, which is how we discovered some liver pathology that was able to be treated. (Yay for doing a full explore like you should!) No matter, she didn't like it. I go on to examine the dog, and it does what a lot of dogs do - it's nervous, and it looks at its owner. She promptly says "I don't think he likes you." I laughed and said "He's just a little nervous, but he's being great." She said "Well, maybe he's picking up that I don't like you." I blinked and was startled and said "I'm sorry, did I offend you?" She replied that I was an "ass," that I wasn't sympathetic, and that she was "the victim here."
I'm not really sure what she was a victim of, but yanno ... whatever. Crazy is as crazy does. I offered to get another doctor, she accepted, and life went on. Dog never went to surgery because it wasn't obstructed. (Ha!)
Anyway. I laughed and all of us in the treatment room got a great laugh out of it.
Fast forward to today. I show up for work and someone hands me a letter. Turns out it came from a client I saw the same day I was an "ass". It read in part: "Dr. [LIS], your bio indicates 'compassionate delivery of high-quality care' and that is exactly what we received. My daughter and I could not have made it through without your gentle, kind, compassionate, sincere, yet thorough, expert advice. And patience throughout.... THANK YOU, both my daughter and I are forever indebted, we honestly could not have had a better experience."
Yup. Ass and AmazeBallsVet in back-to-back appts.
So. Lesson from a newish vet to people coming up the ranks - don't base your value, your worth, and your competency on the good or bad things clients say about you. Not saying you shouldn't try to establish rapport, empathize, and all that stuff - but don't let individual client feedback impact how you feel about yourself.
