AAHA’s second retention study emphasizes surveying employees to understand workplace needs, desires

If fair compensation was the greatest attrition-reducing factor highlighted in the American Animal Hospital Association’s (AAHA) initial workforce retention study, phase two emphasizes the importance of communication.

According to the American Animal Hospital Association's (AAHA) second retention study, “Stay, Please: Phase 2,” published February 20: “Appreciation for work is best shown through fair compensation, which reflects one’s qualifications, workload, performance, and experience. ... Owners take a different view of appreciation, which makes it all the more vital that they understand how their staff sees it.”

The second installment builds on the first phase, which involved surveying over 14,000 veterinary professionals and identifying key factors that affect employee attrition and retention in the veterinary field.

The first study, “Stay, Please: Factors that Support Retention and Drive Attrition in the Veterinary Profession,” published in 2024, came in response to mounting workplace challenges in veterinary medicine, in particular employee turnover. It identified and ranked nine key attrition and retention factors under its Veterinary Hierarchy of Needs:

• Work is meaningful
• Modern medicine
• Job flexibility
• Wellbeing support
• Staff is a team
• Caring leadership
• Career development
• Appreciation
• Fair compensation

Fair compensation stood out as the biggest attrition-reducing factor, followed by appreciation for work and career development.

In phase two, researchers surveyed 2,713 veterinary professionals to define those nine factors and evaluate how they matched expectations, by role, across owners, veterinarians, administration, veterinary technicians, and veterinary assistants.

Data from both phases showed that the further a role is from the owner or leadership position, the more their priorities, definitions, and experiences are likely to differ.

Dr. Jessica Vogelsang, chief medical officer at AAHA, told AVMA News that is why practice leaders must make sure they’re on the same page as the team members they’re trying to retain.

“This means understanding what they prioritize, especially when it comes to the factors that push them away when done poorly; how their experience compares to their expectation of that factor; and how they define that factor,” she said. “If their definition varies from leadership's, it is leadership who must adapt their understanding in order to meet those needs.”

To that end, communication emerged as the key.

“Whether you’re working to reduce turnover in general or just want to make sure your current excellent retention rate stays that way, the next step is to weave your commitment to doing these factors well right into your practice culture,” the report said.

In fact, according to the report, multiple practices with 90% retention rates had one thing in common: surveys.

“From small, independent practices to larger corporate chains, these high-retention practices survey their staff regularly—and they use the feedback they receive,” the report said.

Also, while many businesses likely do not face practice-wide turnover, they may still find difficulty filling specific roles.

The reported noted, “Role-specific retention requires role-specific approaches, and the more you know about your own practice, the better you can utilize the findings shared here to make major improvements.”

To reduce turnover and improve retention, the report urges veterinary leaders and practice owners to give employees what they need and want, but advises making informed decisions.

“Ultimately, the message to veterinary leaders is to be open to thinking differently about their definitions of these foundational retention and attrition factors from our study,” AAHA CEO Garth Jordan told AVMA News. “Closing the gap on definitions allows us all to speak the same language about what creates a healthy work environment that ultimately leads to exceptional staff retention.”