Veterinary Gift Is Life Changing

Vets and members of the veterinary profession across the country have gifted £30,000 to Dogs for the Disabled, courtesy of the Practice+ initiative by Merial Animal Health. The funds will be used to buy, raise and train six puppies for Dogs for the Disabled and each will be partnered with a disabled adult or child, helping them to lead a fuller and more independent life. Photograph (left to right) Christine Male, Assistant Product Manager with ‘Nemo’; Rachel Ballantyne, Technical Manager, FRONTLINE® with ‘Dudley’ and Elizabeth Fox, Brand Manager, FRONTLINE® with ‘Nala’. Elizabeth Fox, Brand Manager for FRONTLINE®, recently enjoyed a visit to Dogs for the Disabled in Banbury to present a cheque and meet three of the puppies already purchased, “It was such a pleasure to see some of the great work this very deserving charity does. The team at Merial would like to thank practices for their generosity in making this donation possible. I know these dogs will go on to make a huge difference to the lives of their new owners and we are very proud to pass on the funds on behalf of the profession.” Merial’s Practice+ initiative took place in April and May this year and comprised of 12 sessions held around the country with the content delivered by Alison Lambert BVSc, MMRS, MRCVS and a team from veterinary accountancy firm Hazelwoods. The company’s aim was to help practices grow their existing business and gain new clients, after a survey of BSAVA congress delegates identified that 94 per cent of respondents considered this relevant. Merial provided a total of seven hours of CPD and business support per delegate, in a course format valued at around £1000, free of charge. Each participant was asked to provide a cheque for £75 made out to Dogs for the Disabled to secure their place on the course. Pre-course assignments, presentation of research findings and break-out workshops were used to take an objective look at individual practices using the balanced scorecard technique which focuses on finance, operations, staffing and clients. Rita Dingwall, practice manager at Cinque Port Vets, was one of 400 delegates who took part, “Practice+ was an excellent session and allowed me time out of the office to determine how our practices can improve. The balanced scorecard approach enables us to really focus on the key areas and track our progress towards improvement.  We are already well underway in implementing some of the items we identified.” “It seems right that giving practices the tools they need to change and improve the way they do business, has also benefited the lives of others,” said Elizabeth Fox. “I hope people will be benefiting both from the Practice+ programme and the gift of assistance dogs for some time to come.” Such was the success of the programme that Merial plans to provide further educational events in the near future. For further details of how Merial can help your practice prosper contact your Merial Territory Manager.

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