The veterinary industry has been hit hard by COVID.
First, many people were home, so decided this would be a great time to get a puppy. That increased demand. Further, every day was like Monday morning. You are home more with your pet, and realize "Hey, this lump/limp/itch has been going on for a while. Let's get it looked at." Demand has been crazy high, at the same time as COVID protocols have really slowed down our processes, and many practices have had reduced staff.
Staff reductions: Anyone with small children learning at home now needs to have an adult home. This has hit our workforce, as most of the veterinary practice staff are women 20-45. Also, COVID protocols plus the trend towards more computerization of medical records is spurring many older veterinarians and staff to retire sooner than they may have otherwise. Then COVID hits the practice, and more staff are out sick, or the practice has to close temporarily. That increases demand for neighboring practices.
We have had to work extremely hard to just see our own patients, let alone overflow patients from other practices. We have lost the two emergency practices on the east side of the metro area due to their own staffing losses (one went from 24/7 general and emergency with 12 doctors to only 7a-7p urgent care with 5 doctors, and another has lost more than 15 doctors and closed their emergency services). Our team has had all the other stresses compounded by having to repeatedly tell pet owners calling that no, we can't see your pet. I personally have had days where I turned away 20 or more pet owners calling. For almost a year we were turning away ALL non-clients because we can only do so much, and have to protect the staff we have and our availability for our current clients. As a small practice with only one doctor, burning that doctor out means closure of the practice. If COVID gets inside and we have to shut down for 1-2 weeks, that means all of OUR patients will be unable to get care, as all practices are in the same boat - record-high demand with record low staffing.
This has been a difficult period. Practices that have had to turn away pet owners have had nowhere to refer them. Our clients who have needed after-hours care have ended up in North Vancouver, Tualatin, NW Portland, and Tanasbourne. If they can even get care, as the emergency practices have been so swamped that they have had to shut down intake. Dove Lewis in NW Portland has reported wait times of 24+ hours after triage before a doctor could see the pet. I have heard of emergency practices with 2-3 hour waits even for triage. One (urgent care only now) has closed to intake as early as 1pm, when they close at 7pm. There just isn't capacity. And if your pet needs a specialist? We have sent patients to Hood River an hour away. Some practices have sent patients to OSU in Corvallis (2 hours away). Some pet owners have driven to the Seattle area. The next cardiology appointment in the metro area is in December (as of two days ago when I called their offices), and some specialists aren't even taking new patients because they are fully booked into late January 2022.
We are tired. Not just my team, but the whole industry. There have been no slow periods, and nobody can get the vacations they need, as so many vacation options have their own COVID restrictions and closures, plus everyone is reluctant to leave their team short-staffed so they can take a few days off. Practices can't replace doctors - there are reportedly 13.5 jobs per veterinarian looking now. The rate of veterinarian and veterinary technician suicide is climbing. We are struggling to get the medical supplies, drugs, and diets our patients need. Many practices that started to allow clients inside at least for the exams are now returning to the curbside model because of the increasing COVID threat - we never did open our doors this summer, and that upsets a lot of pet owners that take it out on us.
I don't see a solution to this soon. Logistics experts are saying not to expect improvements in supply chains until the third quarter of 2022. There are not enough veterinarians and technicians in the education pipeline, and even non-medical staff are nearly impossible to find, driving wages up significantly... which forces fees higher also. We really need the community to understand that we WANT to help, but we CAN'T. If your veterinarian can't see you, please call around, but don't yell at us because we often can't help you either. Not won't, but can't.
Believe me, we help as much as we can. That's why we are here.
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