Printer-friendly version

The National Commission on Veterinary Economic Issues has released benchmarking tools for referral practices such as specialty and emergency clinics on its Web site at www.ncvei.org.

"Our goal is to provide referral practices with the same level of data and benchmarks as general practices, but tailored just for them," said Dr. Karen E. Felsted, NCVEI chief executive officer. "And our hope is that armed with this information, referral practices will continue to grow and improve, even in these economic times."

The NCVEI collaborated with VetPartners, an association of management consultants, on the design of benchmarking tools for referral practices. VetPartners and Pfizer Animal Health made grants to help fund the new tools.

"Having data to compare your practice to—whether you are a general practice or a referral practice—is vital to the management of your practice," said Dr. Amanda L. Donnelly, VetPartners vice president.

Two sets of benchmarking tools are available, one set for referral practices and one set for individual specialists. The practice tools gather information on financial and operational metrics such as revenue per veterinarian, compensation, benefits, management techniques, and number of referring veterinarians. The specialists' tools gather information about production, compensation, and benefits.

Comparative data will be available at www.ncvei.org after a minimum number of practices have provided information.

Coinciding with the debut of the new tools for referral practices is the redesign of the NCVEI Web site. The commission changed the site's look and navigational elements to improve the overall user experience.

Return to top