Vetted in Vet Med: Episode 3: Diary of a Corporate Black Woman: Part 2

In this conversation, Dr. Wilson and Dr. Levy discuss the complexities of working in corporate veterinary medicine, including the emotional toll it takes on practitioners, the importance of mentorship, and the challenges of surgical experiences. They emphasize the need for self-advocacy, the impact of mental health on work-life balance, and the critical role of teamwork in providing quality care. The discussion highlights both the pros and cons of corporate medicine, offering insights into navigating a veterinary career.

Takeaways

Corporate medicine has its pros and cons, and it's not for everyone.
Transitioning through life and experiences is essential.
Financial aspects shouldn't overshadow passion in veterinary work.
Corporate jobs can provide a safety net for new graduates.
Mentorship is crucial for professional growth in veterinary medicine.
Feedback is vital for improvement and job satisfaction.
Surgical experiences can be traumatic and impact confidence.
Mental health is significantly affected by workplace stress.
Teamwork is essential in veterinary practice for effective care.
Veterinary professionals often carry the emotional burden of their work.

Transcript

Dr. Wilson (00:36)
with the cons of corporate medicine, it's not for everybody.

Dr. Levy (00:43)
Yeah.

Dr. Wilson (00:46)
And I do think everything has an expiration date. It doesn't necessarily mean that it has to be 17 years. It does not have to be seven years or seven months. Kind of like we talked about, you just kind of have to be able to transition through life because there's always going to be something new to experience. And you got to take these experiences as they come. Even after all of that,

Dr. Levy (00:50)
for sure.

Bye.

Dr. Wilson (01:16)
even after getting to the point where I would sit out in the car for, no lie, probably about 30 minutes to 45 minutes before I came in. I used to be late, late because now, and I would be, sometimes I would be bawling. I don't want to go in there. And honestly, I don't want to ruin a reputation that I have because I don't know what's going to happen if I go in there. Meaning,

Dr. Levy (01:25)
Mm. Mm. Mm.

Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Yeah.

Dr. Wilson (01:44)
I might get out of sorts because somebody has disrespected me and y'all are not going to do anything about it. That's why I have to walk away. But I don't want anybody out there to listen to this and say, well, I don't want to work for corporate medicine. I don't want to do that. Let's be honest, straight out the gate. If this is something that you want to do, if you want to pay back loans, that's your focus.

Dr. Levy (01:45)
Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Dr. Wilson (02:12)
If you

want to build a savings account or whatever, go for it. I ain't gone lie to you, it's a good mechanism to do it. They're gonna pay. But I don't want you to get caught up in the financial aspect of things because money will come where you're doing stuff that you're passionate about.

Dr. Levy (02:21)
Yeah.

Yeah.

Dr. Wilson (02:33)
It might not come who want it, but it's gonna come.

Dr. Levy (02:37)
It's gon' be right on time.

Dr. Wilson (02:40)
It may not come when you want it, but uh-huh.

We gone work Yeah, we go. Let me get past it. Let me get past it. Yes, it may not come when you want it, but it will come because you're passionate about doing what you do. And you're gonna meet some incredible people and you're gonna meet some incredibly awful people. It's just kind of life. That's like walking through life. ⁓ But you're gonna learn from each and every one of those people, whether it be a mirror.

Dr. Levy (03:05)
Hmm.

Yeah.

Dr. Wilson (03:15)
or whether it be somebody that you have to hold a mirror up to. ⁓ Those are just things that you're going to experience in life, yes. But corporate medicine is definitely one of those things that it's going to be the good and the bad. It's a job. And one thing I know about a job is that you leave tomorrow, they'll be looking for your replacement for you, hot out the door.

Dr. Levy (03:31)
Yeah.

They're find ⁓ a replacement before you even get out of there, whether you know it not. Because that definitely happened to me this most recent time. My replacement, I was working with my replacement in the last like week or two. She was already in there and ⁓ she had already worked for ⁓

Dr. Wilson (03:44)
So, Exactly.

Uh-uh.

Dr. Levy (04:07)
the clinic before. So I'm pretty sure she knew what she was getting herself into. But you know, it didn't surprise me, but it was funny.

Dr. Wilson (04:17)
Yeah.

Hey me! What's up?

Dr. Levy (04:25)
Yeah, good. You are my replacement.

Dr. Wilson (04:32)
Like it's, just, you know, I'm trying to focus in on the pros too, because like I said, learn a lot, but I'm tainted. I'm tainted right now. In all honesty, am, it's difficult. I was just having a conversation with Daveeta about, and I'm talking to y'all at this point, about, ⁓

Dr. Levy (04:34)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

Dr. Wilson (05:01)
not being able to do relief work right now because I don't have the mental capacity to walk into somebody else's clinic because I don't know what my experience is going to be. I don't want to put myself in that situation to where I have to be reactionary, ⁓ especially in this climate right now of ⁓ all the things. So

Dr. Levy (05:06)
Mm-hmm.

Hmm.

Dr. Wilson (05:30)
I just don't know what to expect and it's hard for me because I mean, your girl gotta make money. I did get, you know, have a good conversation at the Spay and Neuter clinic that I work a couple of days a week yesterday. you know, y'all stay tuned. Just putting out, you know, good vibes into the atmosphere. So we'll see what happens with that. But it's, it's hard.

Dr. Levy (05:36)
Yeah. ⁓

Mm.

Dr. Wilson (05:59)
once you've had the experiences that I've had in these clinics from the derogatory language for your.

your boss gaslighting you and making you feel like you are not doing the work that you know you are doing. And needless to say, she heard about it, because I definitely had a conversation with her about it. ⁓ Do not feel like you cannot approach people with the real truth. There's a way to do it. And it was a real professional conversation, but I had to let her know that I knew what you said behind my back. And I really do not appreciate it.

Dr. Levy (06:16)
Mm-hmm.

Mmm.

Yeah.

you

Dr. Wilson (06:38)
And so I don't know what this conversation or this relationship would look like from here on out. But just relish in the fact that it's a new experience.

Dr. Levy (06:43)
Yeah.

Dr. Wilson (06:54)
You're going to learn a lot if you're willing to learn a lot. And you don't have to deal with the mechanisms of owning your own business and ordering all the things. That's one good part, Paying people or wondering when your next check is going to come or how to get these vaccines or if this person wants this. Those are the things that you do have to understand about working.

Dr. Levy (06:58)
Mm-hmm.

Yes.

Dr. Wilson (07:24)
Because they do everything for you. They pay for your DEA. They pay for this. They pay for that. Of course, all corporations are different. for the most part, they all do that. And that's where your safety net can be. And that's why I think that could be a good thing to do, especially coming out of school. It's a good safety net.

Dr. Levy (07:25)
you

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah. I think definitely coming out as either a new grad or like with my experience coming from Lab Animal. I mean, some of the things that you mentioned, they can happen anywhere. ⁓ But it is, I feel like when you're working in a private

Dr. Wilson (08:01)
Yeah.

Dr. Levy (08:08)
practice setting or even some of these private practices are bought off by corporate, but they still have their private practice like element to them. Things are a little bit more personable where I think in my experience with corporate, it's like the changes that I needed to see were not always immediate or they just didn't last long.

Dr. Wilson (08:16)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Dr. Levy (08:32)
I know

when I first started, was, again, fresh out of lab animal had not worked in a clinic, you know, setting as a doctor. And so I heavily emphasized when I was interviewing and applying for that corporate position, heavily emphasized mentorship so many times.

on the phone, in person, like, I need to be mentored, I need help, this is a big transition for me. And of course, all that was guaranteed. Like, yeah, but there was no real plan. you would like to think that there was a real plan set in motion for me, but that was not the case.

Dr. Wilson (08:57)
Do you hear me? Do you hear me?

Yeah.

They never have a plan

Dr. Levy (09:21)
there was not a real plan. there was another full-time vet that was there working with me. And I mean, honestly, I just made her essentially my mentor, ⁓ just with, you know, talking with her and the questions and she was, she was very kind, very helpful, but the person that was supposed to actually be mentoring me, ⁓

Dr. Wilson (09:34)
Yeah.

Dr. Levy (09:47)
that was in leadership over both of us, I barely saw her. And then when COVID hit, they couldn't even come into the clinics at a certain point. So it had been months at one time where I never saw her. And not having worked in that setting before, there were things that I just wasn't really familiar with.

One of which was, you know, different numbers and metrics that I was supposed to meet. I never was briefed over what the expectations of me, you know, like I didn't know what targets I was supposed to be hitting. And I remember the first kind of like a performance eval that I had with her. She ⁓ just was telling me, you know, what my numbers were.

Dr. Wilson (10:21)
Yeah.

Dr. Levy (10:37)
And I remember asking for feedback on me, you know, as a doctor, like personable feedback in how I could improve medicine, improve, you know, treatment plans or anything in that aspect. I wanted information about me as a doctor and my care and not numbers per se.

Dr. Wilson (10:45)
⁓

Thank

Yeah, cause

you new to this. I'm trying to see how I can evolve into this general medicine from lab animal. Say something girl.

Dr. Levy (11:06)
Hey!

Right. And

I'm like, if I'm able to improve in those areas, then the numbers, you know, they'll eventually match ⁓ and they'll improve. But that was all she could really give me was feedback on my numbers and where I needed to be.

Dr. Wilson (11:29)
Shocking.

Shocking.

Dr. Levy (11:32)
And I

remember leaving that meeting just so disappointed and just like, okay, didn't really know. Cause even when I would type up my notes and stuff like that, it maybe was maybe once or twice that she had any type of comment or feedback on what I had done or what I could have done differently. And I do receive feedback very well.

and if I'm asking for it, then I'm like, I, I really need help. I did not get that.

Dr. Wilson (12:05)
Yeah ⁓

I can tell you one thing about that, needless to say, that particular person did not necessarily understand when I told her that a lot of people, and I talked to some of my friends in just different walks of life not related to veterinary medicine, people live off of feedback.

Dr. Levy (12:24)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Dr. Wilson (12:32)
If you don't know how to improve yourself, how am I going to improve what I'm doing on this job? Some people don't even want to be a part of a job if they don't have feedback. But of course there are reasons why she couldn't give that to you because to be fair, yes, she was stretched thin, but also she didn't put in the effort to do so. just had to throw my two cents in there because.

Dr. Levy (12:43)
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

mm-hmm. mm-hmm.

Dr. Wilson (13:01)
I experienced a very similar situation with her doing it. Yeah, you're doing great. Oh, but you're talking behind my back. Grow up.

Dr. Levy (13:04)
Hmm.

Right, but you're talking about me. Right, because I can trust you, you know. ⁓

And I remember there was one instance, this was actually life altering for me from a career standpoint was, again, I was still in training and ⁓ she was still supposed to be mentoring me.

and I had started doing surgeries and I had already done a few spays with her being present and the next thing I knew was there was a spay that was on the schedule that was a 90 pound mastiff and

Dr. Wilson (13:45)
Doop.

Dr. Levy (13:58)
I saw that and I was like, ⁓ yeah, like, you know, but, this comes back to being an advocate for yourself. And, you know, I saw that, but I just assumed again, cause there was not much communication between us. I assumed that she also saw that on the schedule as well. And maybe she thought that I could do it. ⁓

Dr. Wilson (14:00)
You're scared.

Dr. Levy (14:27)
especially since she was gonna be present as well. And so I didn't say anything and the day came and it was still on the schedule. And I'm like, okay, I guess this is what we doing, you know, like at some point.

Dr. Wilson (14:44)
This is what

we got. Lego. Yeah.

Dr. Levy (14:49)
Like at some point I'm gonna have to, you know, graduate

to this. ⁓ And, you know.

Dr. Wilson (14:56)
Yeah, fun time. Babe, I don't

forget how long you've been doing this. 90 pound dog spay is not fun. It's not fun. It's not fun. Ugh, God.

Dr. Levy (15:07)
No. And the

previous spays that I had done with her were both like deep-chested dogs as well. So it just was not starting off well with. And then this baby gets on there and it was going, so, you know, we're in the surgery now.

Dr. Wilson (15:19)
Yeah.

Same here.

We in it, we in it thick of things now.

Dr. Levy (15:38)
And it was going very well. And I had already tied off that, left uterine horn, and then I was working my way on the right side.

Dr. Wilson (15:48)
worse.

Dr. Levy (15:50)
Tied off, I thought I tied off everything until it was ready. I was ready, but apparently it was not ready. And there, it was a lot of bleeding. It was a lot of bleeding. And then I'm trying to find the bleeder. I'm tying things off and we had to get the other vet So she even was looking.

Dr. Wilson (15:54)
chat.

Yeah.

Yeah. ⁓

Yeah, he will.

Dr. Levy (16:20)
scrubbed in as well. And then she wasn't able to locate it. The other doctor that was there, she came in and scrubbed in and had to get involved. ⁓ And eventually we were able to stop the bleeding. Thankfully again, it was a large dog. ⁓

Dr. Wilson (16:39)
Mm-hmm.

Dr. King said it don't matter just find it. They ain't gone die. That's what that's all I remember from you know When things start bleeding ain't gonna die just go find that bleeder That's my confidence when things start bleeding It was true

Dr. Levy (16:43)
Yeah.

Just found it. Just found it. my god, I like that. I like that. I wish that I had said that in my

mind. Because I was so stressed. So stressed. And she did well. mean, we checked, you know, like her ⁓ PCV and her hematocrit like afterwards.

Dr. Wilson (17:05)
I know you were.

Mm-hmm.

Dr. Levy (17:15)
and it was

fine and then I did have her come in the next day and it didn't help that she was a large dog and so it took her forever to recover. So of course I'm. You're yes. Oh my God. Girl yeah get up get up.

Dr. Wilson (17:25)
Yes. You like, are you okay? You pink? Are you okay? Are you breathing? Let's go for a walk.

signs of life, signs of life. Jesus.

Dr. Levy (17:38)
So the next

day she came back and she just walked in there like nothing ever happened. And that was one of the best days of my life.

Dr. Wilson (17:46)
These are some resilient babies, girl. I know

that's, I know that's right Why, they're so resilient. While we're in there panicking and stressing, the next day like, we good? What's up with you? I was sleeping. I ain't never had drugs before. I like them. I was sleeping.

Dr. Levy (17:58)
Panicked, panicked.

Right

Oh my gosh, but that situation really tainted me to the point where I just did not want to do surgery. That was traumatic for me. And honestly, I still, I do not do spays Ayanna I don't do spays

Dr. Wilson (18:20)
Yeah, so that's a confidence ⁓ punch Yeah.

I'll do your neuters all day. You don't even do spays?

Dr. Levy (18:37)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-mm. And I had never had any issues with the cat spays I had been doing them all up until that time. And now...

Dr. Wilson (18:42)
You

Scrap all

of it. Scrap all the spays Not doing it.

Dr. Levy (18:51)
do any spays and that's, you know, at this point it's on me. I mean, at that time, again, I should have been a better advocate for myself. ⁓ But it also, you know, it provided an opportunity for me to have that experience and to learn things from that. ⁓ But it traumatized me to where, you know, I've had plenty of opportunities since then to get back in.

⁓ to doing spays but the anxiety also from like going home at night. Just thinking about what happened, replaying everything. ⁓

Dr. Wilson (19:29)
Mmm. Mmm.

Y'all don't pay for the way that y'all's pets live rent free in our heads. Y'all don't pay for that.

Dr. Levy (19:42)
Yes, the dream.

Yeah, I dream about, you know, some of these babies and that anxiety of not knowing like, did they make it overnight? Like, are they?

Dr. Wilson (19:54)
Mm-hmm. Am I gonna wake up tomorrow

and go to work and they're gonna say, hey, you know that spay from yesterday? Listen, please don't talk to me about it.

Dr. Levy (20:01)
Yeah.

Don't start my day off like that. So yeah, now I mean, I do do neuters, I do ⁓ mass removals, but that is my limit personally with surgery, because it is not, that is not my niche. I mean, I've done them, you know, well, but the anxiety that I feel beforehand in preparation even,

⁓ there's anxiety associated with that. While I'm in surgery, I usually am okay. I am slower. ⁓ And then the after part, I feel I'm just like, it's so much relief, you know? But then if there was any type of like complication or anything, ⁓ whether it was during surgery or even afterwards, because they'll come back with all kinds of issues.

Dr. Wilson (20:47)
There you

them incision problems. Stop playing with me. I just posted on my Vet Tales page exactly how I feel. If I had a wig, I would grab it.

Dr. Levy (21:00)
them incision problems.

⁓ jeez.

Dr. Wilson (21:14)
If y'all don't put them e-collars on and stop letting them animals jump around, they can eat with the e-collars. Stop playing with me.

Dr. Levy (21:16)
Girl.

Up around.

Yes, yes, yes. No, that's not my niche. I have other niches and that is not, that's not it for me. So, but you know, again, I was just like, why did she let me do that? Why'd she let me go through that?

Dr. Wilson (21:32)
That ain't it.

You know, as much as I would love to say, and this is not a bash, the line manager conversation, but this is a...

how people approach things in certain leadership roles, you know, everybody, it's a learning curve for everybody. But like, I wish I could say it was because she had confidence in you. Not that she shouldn't have had confidence in you, but it should have been.

Dr. Levy (22:10)
Mm-hmm.

Dr. Wilson (22:13)
a gradual situation.

Dr. Levy (22:15)
Yeah.

Yeah, it definitely should have been more gradual. That's how I feel. And when she came in that morning, that was her first time looking and seeing that that pet was on the schedule. And she was like, why is this on the schedule? And she was like, why didn't you say anything? ⁓ And...

So I don't know. I would like to think that if I was in that position, I would, because they have a cloud-based software. she can see the schedule from wherever. And so I don't know. I just assumed that she had looked at it and figured, OK, this is

Dr. Wilson (22:50)
for sure.

I mean if

you're gonna be in the hospital I thought you would have looked at the schedule. I ain't see her like that in our hospital so you you see her way more than I have seen her in person I believe.

Dr. Levy (23:03)
Yeah.

Yeah,

well, this was a different corporation. This was a different one. This was a different one. And this was like when I first got in. And when I, you know, so anyways, that that was just the trend for our relationship. And so even when.

Dr. Wilson (23:15)
Okay.

Okay.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Dr. Levy (23:35)
By the time I had decided I wanted to leave because I'm like, I'm really not getting the support that I need that I so heavily expressed that I needed. the market was divided. So she was no longer my direct manager. And we actually had one that replaced her.

that was absolutely amazing. But I was already out the door. And I feel like that has happened to me on several occasions where it's like, OK, they trying to do good. They done brought somebody good in. And I am just already just so far gone that I don't care who this person is.

Dr. Wilson (24:02)
at the door.

Yeah.

Dr. Levy (24:22)
here because I don't even feel like the changes that you feel like you can make and implement is gonna make a difference for me because I'm just so far

Dr. Wilson (24:30)
It's not.

It's not. I'm going to be 100 % honest with you. It's not. And I wish I could say that it was a situation in which they are trying to do good. I think it was more of a money move to divide all the markets versus bringing people in that were going to be beneficial to the people under that particular umbrella. But

Dr. Levy (24:47)
Mm-hmm.

Dr. Wilson (25:00)
I think that once you get in that mode of I'm about to go and this is me my personal thoughts about the universe and God and all those things I almost see it as a test like they bring somebody in and it's like okay this this might not be so bad and you stay and you stay

Dr. Levy (25:08)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Uh-huh.

Dr. Wilson (25:30)
I feel like it's just, the BS is going to ensue. It's going to continue. And it's gonna be like, dang, why did I stay here? Because I feel like it was very similar to me. I was out on leave. ⁓ I mean, even though there were a couple of entities that still were there, some of my biggest problems were no longer my problems. And I had people telling me, could probably go back.

Dr. Levy (25:33)
you

Mmmmm

Dr. Wilson (25:58)
They're not there. And I'm just like, no, no, I think, I think the Lord has led me up on out of there. ⁓ My health was at risk mentally and physically. had my, my T4 levels were through the roof and, ⁓ and for, for those

Dr. Levy (26:07)
Yes. Yes.

Mmm.

Dr. Wilson (26:28)
who don't know So I have Grave's disease and something that I've managed here on out with vitamins, cause I'm your holistic girl. ⁓ I used to be on medication and then I wasn't. And then this job and all this turmoil and trauma and stress, literally when my

Dr. Levy (26:39)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Dr. Wilson (26:54)
safety blanket of a manager left. My watch was like four weeks ago. Your heart rate wasn't this high. What's up girl? What's going on? And I was like, ⁓ and I kid you not, three weeks before that she left.

Dr. Levy (27:07)
I'm gonna hide behind... ...all of you.

Mmm.

Dr. Wilson (27:15)
And I'm like, yeah, I think it's time to go. Cause you're not gonna kill me. You're not gonna kill me. And of course, know, I started coming home upset and it affects my home life and my kids and how react, you know, reactionary I am to them. Yeah. It just became not worth it. So again, I said all that same. It won't be no better. Yeah.

Dr. Levy (27:19)
Yeah.

No. No.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah, yeah,

and I didn't stay to find out either.

I was gone like, you know, she doesn't even work there anymore. She's not even with that corporation at all. I think eventually they see the light. I don't know, because I haven't been in leadership aspects, but I just sometimes I feel like, do you not?

Dr. Wilson (27:56)
Yeah.

Yeah.

Dr. Levy (28:14)
Like, I don't know. Is it some other type of like just Twilight Zone that y'all are in?

Dr. Wilson (28:23)
think you have to

have a certain kind of brain to be okay with the stuff that's... If I would have never saw the other side of this, I'd probably still be there. But seeing the other side, I was like, ew, what is happening over here? Even though them conferences they send you to got some real nice ⁓ swag. I like it. I got a sweatshirt that's amazing. I'm like, how did y'all... Do you know how many sweatshirts cost y'all?

Dr. Levy (28:30)
Hmm.

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Dr. Wilson (28:52)
God. ⁓

Dr. Levy (28:52)
Yeah,

I remember feeling at the first one. I'm like, you know, I had gone there initially because one of my best friends, she was there and at a different location and ⁓ she was just like, it's amazing, you know, and.

Dr. Wilson (29:16)
That's what I used to tell people too.

Dr. Levy (29:20)
It's amazing. You know, she had got her little sign on bonus and I had got, you when I started, I got my little sign on bonus, which I thought was really something, but it really wasn't That one really wasn't, you know, when I got it. When I experienced other things, I was like, that really wasn't nothing at all. ⁓ you know, the pay was good, the salary was good. I mean,

Dr. Wilson (29:22)
Hmm.

You hear me? Do you hear me?

Not in the grand scheme, I wasn't even.

Dr. Levy (29:49)
I try to, anytime I have left somewhere, I try to get more for the next opportunity because I'm like, if I don't advocate for trying to get more now, then if you don't ask, yeah, you're not gonna get it. So I always try to advocate for getting more than what I was previously making. And so they did that. And you know,

Dr. Wilson (30:02)
If you don't ask, you won't know.

Dr. Levy (30:19)
It comes with a cost. Like you're getting paid well, but it definitely comes at a cost. And you paying for yourself, you're paying for everybody else too.

Dr. Wilson (30:21)
Mm-hmm.

Yes. You paying for yourself. Actually you paying more. Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Dr. Levy (30:36)
that's working there. ⁓

And it definitely takes a toll on your mental and your physical well-being. It's awesome and it's very interesting too. And I know we all have different levels of capacities and things that we can handle.

Dr. Wilson (31:01)
Mm-hmm.

Dr. Levy (31:01)
People have different conditions, people have different home lives. And so all of that makes a difference in what you're able to handle at work. So there are some people where they just, want their schedules to be packed. And like they're okay with seeing the 30 pets a day and anything that walks through that door, they are saying yes to.

Dr. Wilson (31:06)
Mm-hmm.

Dr. Levy (31:25)
cause I understand that it does also like, yes, you're helping these pets, but you're also, ⁓ getting production as well. and so I think sometimes, especially if you may be, you know, in some instances, these may be the only person that's getting like the income in their family. So they have to, you know, take on that load. And so I do, I respect that.

Dr. Wilson (31:33)
Over

Mm-hmm.

Dr. Levy (31:52)
I just am not the person that is, you know, for the longevity of it, able to take on that type of load. I'm not that girl. I'm somewhere in the middle, you know.

Dr. Wilson (32:02)
I'm not that girl.

Dr. Levy (32:10)
Somewhere

in the middle. depending on what the cases are, like I probably could take on, you know, 20 something pets every day or 30 pets a day. But that is not, you have to have the support team. Yeah. Like that plays a huge role in that. Proper staffing, not sending people home.

Dr. Wilson (32:21)
Yeah.

You have the team to do that too.

Dr. Levy (32:40)
and people not calling out. Like we can't, you know, we can't support that if it's just me, you know, and one or two other people and they also have to answer the phones.

Dr. Wilson (32:54)
When I say that, I can't remember

that conversation so vividly. I like, how many pets can you do, Dr. Wilson? I said, I can do a lot. But how many can y'all do? That's the question. We gotta be able to work as a team. It's not just me. Most of this, that's how they like to amplify, know, honestly, veterinary medicine, because I've been on both sides of it. I've seen doctors feel like they're the end all, be all.

Dr. Levy (33:07)
Yeah.

Exactly.

Dr. Wilson (33:23)
Of course we're a big part of it, but this is a team. I can't do nothing without my nurse. She can't do nothing without me or he can't do nothing about me. yeah, anywho.

Dr. Levy (33:37)
Yeah, proper staffing is huge because at the end of the day, when it comes down to, you know, having to provide a treatment plan, also you know, that's

Dr. Wilson (33:51)
Right.

Dr. Levy (33:52)
That's a different thing for me. I take value in making sure that my notes are good and efficient. And I don't always see the same thing from, you know, the doctor that I may be following behind or from the last visit. And I have to go back and see what happened and took place. And there's, you know, nothing there.

Dr. Wilson (34:12)
No, no.

Thank

Dr. Levy (34:20)
And it's not just like...

Dr. Wilson (34:21)
I need to this

4 out of 6 murmur In a week.

Dr. Levy (34:24)
Like,

it's not to slight anybody, but that's the type of effort and energy that I'm putting into my day is making sure that my notes are complete, making sure that there's something there that somebody can refer back to, especially now with me doing relief. I'm like, there's no opportunity. Like, I'm not going back there the next day to go finish my. ⁓

Dr. Wilson (34:28)
Yeah.

And y'all

Y'all not calling me.

Dr. Levy (34:53)
And I don't want y'all to call me because I didn't do something or I missed something. But yeah, I'm like to be able to do all of that like, yeah, you're taking in all these pets. And then also there's no time set aside for me to catch up to do my notes. Where I do see that in some clinics, they'll have times blocked off for catching up.

Dr. Wilson (34:55)
You

No.

Dr. Levy (35:19)
or if like to allow for like an emergency visit or something to come in and I did not have that in either of the corporate clinics and I asked ⁓

Dr. Wilson (35:31)
They know how to do that. Time is money and they not finna block it off.

Nah, not gonna happen.

Dr. Levy (35:38)
No. So for me, seeing 30 pets a day or anywhere from 25 to 30 pets, that's too much