Dr. Andy Roark welcomes Dr. Isaac Bott, an Utah practice owner and theriogenologist who works with reindeer, to discuss his run for AVMA president (election July 2027) and the profession’s sustainability challenges. They explore how rising cost of care intersects with the need to pay living wages and retain veterinarians, technicians, and support staff, arguing… Read More
Team Culture
Is It Bad Medicine or Just a Bad Outcome?
Dr. Chad R. Brown, DVM (Purdue), executive director of the Lloyd Veterinary Medical Center at Iowa State University, joins Dr. Andy Roark to tackle a gut-punch truth in veterinary medicine: good decisions do not always equal good outcomes, and outcome-based judgment can be brutal on clinicians. They unpack how hindsight bias and outcome bias trick… Read More
What if the Whole Vet Team Got Production Pay?
Dr. Ivan Zak, DVM, entrepreneur and former CEO of SmartFlow and Galaxy Vets, joins Dr. Andy Roark to dig into one of the spiciest topics in vet med, whether production pay is actually “bad,” and what happens when salary-only pay gets weaponized as burnout prevention. They unpack Ivan’s experience switching Galaxy Vets to straight salary,… Read More
How to Build Confident, Competent Early Career Vets
Dr. Jason Szumski, DVM, joins Dr. Andy Roark to tackle a problem every hospital feels, new grads want to do great medicine, but they are often scared of mistakes, lawsuits, and being “on their own” before they are ready. They dig into why mentorship is the top priority for vet students, what strong onboarding actually… Read More
A Cry For Help From the Pathology Department
Dr. Eric Fish, DVM, DACVP, joins Dr. Andy Roark to tackle a tough question: Why does being a veterinary clinical pathologist feel darker right now, and what happens if AI turns “nice to have” diagnostics into “don’t need to have”? They unpack burnout and pay compression (including pathologists earning less than new grad GPs), consolidation… Read More
A New Vet Guide to Working with Senior Paraprofessionals
Vicky Ograin, RVT, VTS (Nutrition), MBA tackles a challenge every new veterinarian faces: how do you earn trust, build confidence, and collaborate effectively when the technicians around you have far more real-world experience than you do? Dr. Andy Roark and Vicky share practical advice for creating strong doctor-technician partnerships, giving and receiving feedback, and building… Read More