Sponsored Symposia

Sunrise Sessions
Saturday 7:00 – 7:50 am
Breakfast will be provided

Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica
Have We Seen Your Cat Lately? Building the Feline Portion of Your Practice
Karen Felsted, DVM, CPA, CVPM, MS

Elanco Companion Animal Health
New Opportunities For Canine Heartworm and Broad Spectrum Parasite Control
Byron Blagburn, MS, PhD

Nestlé Purina PetCare
Understanding the Role of Diet and Enteric Bacteria in the Development of Feline Diarrhea
Debra Zoran, DVM, PhD, DACVIM

AAHA MARKETLink/MWI Veterinary Supply

Improving Profitability Through Inventory Management Solutions
Thursday 12:30 – 2:25 pm
Scott Kruse
It’s the second largest expense category in veterinary medicine –yet far too often pharmacy and supply management gets short shrift in a busy practice. This presentation will center on what processes and best practices a hospital can implement to reduce the cost associated with supply and pharmacy management. We will focus on how to increase charge capture rates and transition the hospital’s pharmacy and supply management from a cost center to a profit center. In addition, basic metrics to measure the performance of a hospital’s pharmacy and supply business will be reviewed.

Cranial Cruciate Repair Techniques
Thursday 2:40 – 4:35 pm
Anne Sylvestre, DVM, DVSc, Dip ACVS, Dip ECVS
This lecture will compare and contrast the various common techniques used to stabilize cruciate ligament deficient stifles. The TPLO vs. the TTA, the crimping technique vs. the band techniques (Xgen/tightrope), and what about that isometric point? Anyone still using the grafts? Tried with using only rehabilitation? The purpose of the lecture is to disentangle the information around the various ways to handle cruciates, and cover some ways to avoid complications.

Pfizer Animal Health Corporate Symposium

Barbarians at the Gate: Managing the Veterinary Pharmacy in a Time of Extreme Outside Competition
Friday 9:00 - 9:50 am
Lowell Ackerman, DVM, DACVD, MBA, MPA
In most veterinary practices, the pharmacy is an important revenue source and yet it is now more vulnerable than ever to outside competition. Whether your challenges come from internet pharmacies, retailers, or human generics, we’ll examine strategies to keep your pharmacy profitable, while still keeping prices fair and competitive for clients. The veterinary pharmacy is at an important crossroads, and veterinarians will ultimately determine whether it will remain an important profit center in practice or continue to be eroded by outside competition.

Keeping your Eye on the Prize: Increasing Hospital Profitability
Friday 10:05 - 10:55 am
Lowell Ackerman, DVM, DACVD, MBA, MPA
A modern, progressive veterinary hospital is an expensive undertaking and there is increasing pressure to deliver real value in addition to traditional medical and surgical services. To do this effectively, it is important to keep your eye on the prize and focus on profitability, not just revenue. Use this 10-step approach to concentrate on what really matters… to you, your staff, and your clients.

Connecting the Dots: Your Guide to Exceptional Team-Based Customer Service
Friday 11:10 am - 12:00 pm
Lowell Ackerman, DVM, DACVD, MBA, MPA
The future of medical practice relies on the appropriate use of well-trained hospital teams. After all, clients make decisions based on the information that is available for them, the most relevant of which is the level of client service they experience. Accordingly, to keep clients satisfied and coming back for all their pet health care, it is important to give them what they want most, and deliver it in a consistent team-based fashion.

Creating a Virtual Team to Benefit the Veterinary Practitioner and Specialist Relationship
Friday 2:00 - 2:50 pm
Mark Hitt, DVM DACVIM
Achieving a harmonious interactive relationship between the veterinary practitioner and veterinary specialist should be beneficial for the patient, client, and involved veterinarians. This relationship is good for your practice, enhancing your role and appearance to the client and improving your level of patient care. Ever wonder what the specialist is thinking or how your client felt about referral? Answering these and other questions such as, "What has spurred this relationship, how does it develop, making it a work, and how do we maintain it?" will be the core thrust of this session in an interactive manner.

Boehringer Ingelheim Corporate Symposium

Fighting Lyme: The Latest on Diagnosis, Treatment and Prevention, Part I
Friday 3:35 - 4:25 pm
Richard E. Goldstein, DVM, DACVIM, DECVIM-CA
New data will be presented to assist in answering the questions asked every day by practitioners in areas with Lyme disease regarding diagnosing the disease in dogs, screening and treating non-clinical dogs, a detailed discussion of the vaccine question, and how to recognize, prevent and treat the typically fatal syndrome known as Lyme nephritis.

Fighting Lyme: The Latest on Diagnosis, Treatment and Prevention, Part II
Friday 4:40 - 5:30 pm
Richard E. Goldstein, DVM, DACVIM, DECVIM-CA
A continuation of the previous hour.

Merial Corporate Symposium

AAHA Flea Counselor Course
Saturday 8:30 – 9:20 am
Alicia M. Harris, BS, LVT
The veterinary clinic team plays an important role in protecting pets from parasitic infestations and ensuring that the veterinarians’ recommendations for parasite control are carried out. The AAHA Flea Counselor course is a comprehensive continuing education course designed to educate the clinic staff on the science behind fleas and flea control and how to engage with pet owners in effective discussions about what their pets need and why it is important.

Managing Osteoarthritis: Everyone Gets Involved
Saturday 9:35 – 10:25 am
Denis Marcellin-Little, DVM
All members of the clinic team, along with your clients, can help in recognizing the signs of Osteoarthritis (OA) and participating on long-term OA management plans. They can help teach specific OA management steps to provide the best possible outcomes for patients of any age. This lecture will present simple tasks for the DVM, technician, and client to help take a more active role in educating about, screening, and controlling osteoarthritis.

Dealing with Non-Responders in Chronic Pain Management
Saturday 10:40 – 11:30 am
Steve Budsberg, DVM
Management of osteoarthritis (OA) can be challenging and difficult in certain cases. When patients do not respond to medical management both the owner and veterinarian get frustrated. The lecture will review classic multimodal management of OA, focusing on patient outcome measures, owner expectations and, finally, what can be done when standard therapy is not working.

Vaccines: What You Need to Know About Canine Vaccines and Vaccination Programs
Saturday 3:05 – 3:55 pm
Ronald Schultz, DVM

Vaccines: Canine Leptospirosis: Update on Diagnosis, Treatment and Prevention
Saturday 4:10 – 5:00 pm
Richard E. Goldstein, DVM, DACVIM, DECVIM-CA
This lecture will provide the most relevant and current information we have about this tremendously important disease. It will include a practical approach to the diagnosis of the disease using the tools currently available. A picture of dogs likely to have Leptospirosis will be painted to help the practitioner decide the crucial question of who, in addition to how to test. A practical approach to the treatment of the disease will be presented and a large emphasis will be placed on prevention, including a discussion of the available vaccines today. Data will be presented showing the efficacy and duration of immunity and a practical approach to vaccine protocols incorporating these vaccines.