8 a.m. to 12:10 p.m.
Dawn Boothe, DVM, PhD
Interpretation: The Best Bang for Your Bugs?
Tools, culture and susceptibility can be used and abused when making therapeutic antimicrobial decisions. It is important, even in infections, to know which drugs are generally chosen empirically and which will benefit from cultures. This session will focus on what makes good data and how to use both population data and individual patient data to not only choose a drug but design a dosing regimen.
Zonisamide and Levetiracetam: A Lesson in Contrasts
Both zonisamide and levetiracetam have increasingly proven useful as sole and adjuvant therapy for treating seizures in dogs and cats. This session will focus on their efficacy and safety and how their use might be enhanced through therapeutic drug monitoring.
New Drugs for Old Grudges: Part I
This session focuses on monoclonal antibodies and control of pain. A number of new drugs have been approved for the treatment of small animal diseases in the couple of years. From monoclonal antibodies to targeted small molecules, an increase in both safety and efficacy can be expected.
New Drugs for Old Grudges: Part II
This session focuses on targeted small molecules. In the last couple of years, several drugs have been approved for use in dogs and cats whose mechanism increasingly focuses on a single molecule. This session will focus on "chemical" drugs approved for use in cats to treat a variety of disorders, including diabetes, anemia or chronic renal disease.
8 a.m. to 12:10 p.m.
Tim Hackett, DVM, DACVECC
Emergency and Critical Care Medicine
This lecture will use common case examples managing the small animal shock patients. We will review practical aspects of fluid therapy including vascular access and fluid choices. Basic shock examples will include viral enteritis, internal bleeding from trauma and neoplasia. For the more complicated, we will review and understand cardiogenic, obstructive, metabolic and distributive shock with cases of heart failure, pericardial tamponade, gastric dilatation volvulus, severe acidosis and septic peritonitis.
8 a.m. to 12:10 p.m.
Melissa Evans, LVT, VTS
Don't Cry, It's Just a CRI; Making Medical Math Make Sense
Pull out your pencil, paper and calculator! This one-hour interactive lecture starts with a review of the basics of medical math including dose calculations, percent solutions and dilutions. Building on those skills, we move on to calculating constant rate infusions. Real-life scenarios are used to help illustrate and practice math concepts, and participants are encouraged to work through the problems as we go.
Thinking About Thinking: The Craft of Critical Thinking
Critical thinking is an essential skill in all aspects of veterinary medicine, but it is particularly important to veterinary technicians who are dealing with patient care. Taking all the information we have at hand and making well thought-out decisions based on that information is something not everyone is able to do naturally. This lecture will guide participants through the process of critical thinking and help them learn to cultivate their critical thinking skills. Participants will have the opportunity to work through cases using critical thinking skills.
Patient Advocate and Personal Advocate: Speaking Up and Speaking Out as a Technician
Being an advocate for our patients is a large part of a technician’s job. Sometimes that can be intimidating. Even more intimidating is advocating for ourselves. This lecture will provide tips to help technicians overcome the difficulty they may have speaking up at work. We will discuss having positive and successful interactions with doctors, management, other technicians and pet owners. Participants will learn how to ask for what they need to make sure they are fully utilized, avoid burnout and make coming to work enjoyable.
The Doctor-Technician Relationship: Friend, Not Foe
Relationships between veterinarians and technicians can be complicated. We are more than just coworkers; we are a team. Our patients rely on this team to ensure they get timely and effective care. When teamwork breaks down, we not only find ourselves frustrated at work but we put our patients at risk. We will discuss how to make sure we work together as a team and foster a doctor/technician relationship the makes the clinic a healthy place for both humans and animals.
8 a.m. to 12:10 p.m.
Renee LaCorte, LVT, VTS
Physical Exam of the Cat or Dog
This approximately one-hour lecture is designed to review the process from start to finish of a physical exam and history-taking of a patient in the hospital, either for an appointment or emergency visit. We will discuss obtaining vital signs, review normal parameters, the importance of documentation and verifying all body system functions. Focus will be placed on consistency, organization and documentation.
Medical Math: When 1 Equals 2.2 (Conversions, Dilutions and Dosages)
This informative lecture reviews medical math. Equations for dosages and dilutional math as well as conversion techniques will be taught in addition to tips and tricks for quick bedside math. Oral and injectable dosing will be discussed.
Common Zoonotic Diseases: Don’t Catch Me If You Can
This lecture focuses on the most common zoonotic diseases faced in veterinary medicine. Emphasis will be placed on patient and staff safety through proper protocols. Signs and symptoms of each as well as best nursing practices to minimize exposure will be discussed.
Radiographic Techniques for Technicians
This approximately one-hour lecture reviews all aspects of radiology from safety and quality control through all the basics of settings, measurements and positioning, collimation, restraint techniques (physical or chemical), markers and review.
8 a.m. to 12:10 p.m.
Monica Dixon Perry, CVPM
Recruiting New Grads: Pay, Benefits and More
Recruiting associate DVMs has drastically changed in the last couple of years. It is more competitive than ever to recruit, hire and retain DVMs. This session will provide insight on what DVMs really desire and what is needed to stay competitive in your recruiting and retention efforts.
How To Manage Inventory Expenses
Various inventory control systems will be reviewed as well as basic concepts of inventory control, such as shelf life, re-order point and re-order quantity. Effectively control your inventory within your practice so that it doesn’t control you.
Conducting Awesome Performance Evaluations
Standardize your employee performance evaluation process to foster success for all involved. Discover how implementing a structure process will help motivate your healthcare team members and make your process effective and productive for all.