Advertise on podcast: The Uncharted Veterinary Podcast

Managing Up in a Hiring Freeze, Boosting Productivity Without Burning Out Host Maria Pirita and Dr. Andy Roark discuss a detailed mailbag from a corporate practice manager who is required to work on the floor 32 hours a week with only eight hours for management, is banned from hiring, and is told to raise a productivity score from 160 to 180. They unpack how to use clinic metrics and industry benchmarks to assess staffing and doctor production, how to approach leaders with curiosity and clarity, and how to avoid over-identifying with the job while setting boundaries. They emphasize understanding how the productivity metric is calculated, negotiating for specific commitments, involving the team, and using four main levers to improve results: raise prices, increase completeness of care, bring more clients in, and improve efficiency and cut time costs. They also promote upcoming Uncharted events, including the Uncharted Veterinary Conference on January 15, celebrating 10 years. Maria Pirita is a Certified Veterinary Practice Manager, Elite Fear Free Certified Veterinary Professional and former hospital administrator. In her work with Uncharted Veterinary Conference and beyond, Maria has presented to veterinarians and teams across the US and Canada on topics including veterinary marketing, feedback, team building, and positive work culture. With over 10 years of experience in veterinary medicine and over 20 years in leadership, she's passionate helping leaders develop their skills. Maria loves any activity that involves creativity or learning something new. This leads to an abundance of hobbies including crafting, traveling, cooking and aviation.

In this special, 420th episode of the Uncharted Veterinary Podcast, Maria Pirita, CVPM interviews Jo McGuire of the National Drug and Alcohol Screening Association about how veterinary practices should handle suspected marijuana impairment at work amid changing state laws. They discuss a mailbag case where a practice manager observed possible intoxication, sent an employee home, and questioned what is legally allowed and when observation is enough. McGuire emphasizes having a clear written drug and alcohol policy with advance notice, distinguishing random testing from reasonable suspicion testing, documenting observable signs and symptoms, and focusing conversations on safety rather than accusations. They cover liability considerations such as arranging safe transportation home, the value of employee education and ongoing handbook review, recovery-friendly workplace initiatives, and evolving marijuana testing options like lab-based oral fluid and breath tools while noting tests do not directly prove impairment. Let's get into this...

You love teaching your team and staying hands on with patients, but every veterinary career path in front of you seems to run straight through the practice manager's office, and you're not convinced that's where you belong. In this episode, Maria Pirita, CVPM sits down with Elizabeth Stark, CVT, FVTE, MBA, founder of Vet Raft Solutions, to answer a mailbag from a veterinary team lead facing exactly that crossroads. Together they unpack why "management or nothing" has become the default veterinary career path narrative in this profession, the real difference between formal and informal leadership, and what a lateral, education-focused practice manager career path alternative can actually look like.

Should your veterinary clinic have an angel fund? That is the exact mailbag question that Maria Pirita brings to this episode, and she pulled in Uncharted member, Beth Mehaffey, co-founder of Pennridge Animal Hospital and founder of Harley's Haven Dog Rescue, to help answer it. Beth has run a 501(c)(3) since 2010 and has grown it from an informal rescue into a full nonprofit with a community fund and a dedicated angel fund for clinic patients. Maria and Beth walk through why practices consider starting a fund in the first place, how to choose between an informal setup, a third-party program, or your own nonprofit, how to build a board and divide roles, and how to market a fund without alienating paying clients. Grab the free workbook in the links below if you are ready to start asking the right questions for your own practice. Before You Start Workbook Unfiltered Vet Discussions Podcast Dr. Beth Mehaffey, VMD, is a veterinarian, entrepreneur, and co-founder of Pennridge Animal Hospital, a privately owned multi-doctor practice in Perkasie, PA. She is also the founder and Medical Director of Harley’s Haven Dog Rescue, which has helped more than 2,000 dogs find homes since 2010. Beth is passionate about veterinary leadership, practice culture, mentorship, and compassionate care—both for pets and the people who care for them.

Maria Pirita welcomes Ron Sosa to discuss a mailbag question from an associate DVM asking how much financial transparency a clinic should share with staff and non-owner veterinarians so the team can set goals, track progress, and understand decisions about staffing and equipment. They explore why owners may get “cagey,” including fears of misinterpretation, seasonal profit swings, debt exposure, embezzlement concerns, and identity worries about making too much or too little. They emphasize that without transparency, teams create stories about where money goes, and they clarify concepts like markup versus profit and the impact of discounts. Ron shares a practical approach to partial transparency using monthly meetings that show five P&L buckets (labor, cost of goods sold, overhead/facilities, administrative, profit) and trends over time, plus using operational KPIs like new clients and average transaction to drive initiatives into action. Ron Sosa is the Executive Director of Uncharted Veterinary Conference, a published author, international speaker, and veterinary leader with more than 20 years of experience in operations, practice management, leadership development, and consulting. From client service representative to business partner to industry educator, Ron has built a career around helping veterinary professionals create healthier teams and more sustainable workplaces. As the founder of Syn APT Neuroinclusive Leadership, he is especially passionate about neuroinclusive leadership, workplace culture, burnout prevention, and helping people thrive at work.

Dr. Andy Roark hosts Dan Blumenthal, CEO and co-founder of Blue River Pet Care, to discuss winding down veterinary careers through succession planning, legacy, and creating flexibility for practice owners. They contrast extremes from owners with no plan to those who have already transitioned leadership, and unpack common middle-ground challenges when the owner is the “glue” of the practice. Dan emphasizes “trust but verify,” gradual delegation of medical director and practice manager duties, and using vacations as trial runs to test autonomy. They argue that mentoring successors takes deliberate time and increases optionality, reducing desperation and buyer “handcuffs.” They also cover transparent sharing of practice metrics at different staff levels, risks like embezzlement, developing young leaders with management CE, and staggering leadership transitions so the medical director and practice manager do not change at once. Dan Blumenthal is the Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Blue River PetCare. As CEO, Dan prides himself on leading by example and treating everyone within the organization as a member of the family. Dedicated to fostering an environment of comradery and respect, Dan recognizes all practices across the organization and the people within them as clients, investing in the resources and development opportunities needed to ensure each practice has the ability to continue to provide excellent care to the patients and clients within their local communities. Prior to starting Blue River PetCare in 2009, Dan gained deep knowledge and experience within the legal and venture capital space, beginning with his Bachelor of Arts in Economics and History from Brandeis University and Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School. Professionally, Dan gathered experience from his time at Latham & Watkins, Continental Illinois Venture Corporation, and Willis Stein & Partners, which he uses today to lead Blue River, working closely with all departments across the corporate team on a daily basis. But Dan’s favorite activity is going to Blue River practices, and those that are not yet part of the Blue River family, and spending time visiting with the healthcare providers in the field. When Dan is not serving as Blue River’s chief pet lover, he enjoys spending time with his wife and daughters or catching a Chicago Cubs game at Wrigley Field.

A practice manager just acquired a second location with a loyal team and 26-year-old medicine. Dr. Andy Roark and Maria Pirita, CVPM, dig into how to modernize the care without making anyone feel outdated, covering symbolic transitions, building a high-standards identity, and getting skeptical doctors on board.

Their practice manager plays favorites and talks down to the team, and ownership already knows. So why hasn't anything changed? Maria Pirita, CVPM, and Ron Sosa, CVPM, break down what to do when you're dealing with a difficult practice manager and a silent owner, from swapping vague complaints for documented specifics to reading what your culture's real numbers are telling you. They close with the one boundary every frustrated team member needs before deciding it's time to go. Let's get into this episode!

Dr. Andy Roark joins host Maria Pirita to respond to a mailbag from a practice manager who is denied access to financials like P&Ls, payroll, and bill paying, yet is evaluated and compensated based on profitability. They discuss why owners may restrict financial transparency, including personal discomfort with money, fear of judgment, comparison, and common embezzlement concerns, and emphasize starting with curiosity about the owner’s goals and fears. They outline how to align expectations and define success, including using non-financial metrics when needed, and encourage clarity on what the role can and cannot accomplish without financial data. They also cover phased access, auditing, checks and balances, and behavioral and operational red flags for fraud, and when to revisit the arrangement or move on.

Dr. Andy Roark and Tyler Grogan, CVT, answer a mailbag question from a veterinary technician lead who feels like they’re failing because different doctors and leaders keep asking for conflicting changes, from exam room setup to whether to take a temperature on a fractious pet. They discuss separating personal preferences from practice-wide policies, recognizing patterns that signal a need for standardized systems, and not taking home problems when you lack authority to fix them. Action steps include getting a clear job description and success metrics from leadership, identifying the biggest pain points to tackle one at a time, building trust through listening and servant leadership, using one-on-ones and team meetings to align expectations, and setting regular check-ins with a practice manager to communicate problems, impacts, and solutions.

Asking for a Raise in a Tough Economy, How Practice Managers Can Advocate Without Burning Bridges Host Maria Pirita and Dr. Andy Roark discuss a mailbag from a practice manager who has not received a raise in three years and feels the impact of inflation while clinic revenue is down after closing boarding and grooming. They emphasize approaching raises as a relationship and business conversation, not an emotional confrontation, by assuming good intent, avoiding unhelpful stories, and being clear about what you need and what success looks like. Andy outlines the SAFE framework (smile, assume good intent, consider how the other person is set up to fail, define the end result), advises giving advance notice before the meeting, and cautions against threats or relying on hypothetical outside offers. They recommend building a case with metrics and contributions that show value and ROI, considering non-monetary options, and exploring other opportunities when needs are not being met. Dr. Andy Roark is a practicing veterinarian, international speaker, author, and media personality. He is the founder of the Uncharted Veterinary Conference and DrAndyRoark.com. He has been an award-winning columnist for DVM360 and the magazine Today’s Veterinary Business. His social media, website, podcast and YouTube show reach millions of people every month. Dr. Roark has received the NAVC Practice Management Speaker of the Year Award three times, the WVC Practice Management Educator of the Year Award, the Outstanding Young Alumni Award from the University of Florida’s College of Veterinary Medicine, and the Veterinarian of the Year Award from the South Carolina Association of Veterinarians. His greatest achievement however involves marrying a bad-ass scientist and raising 2 kind and wonderful daughters. Mentioned in this episode: Join us for the Medical Director Summit! Care is Your Calling Get the Protocol Training Game Here! Join us for the Medical Director Summit!

Today Maria Pirita sits down with Dr. Jon Younker, a small-animal GP turned practice owner and VetLaunch consultant, about a medical director whose desk has become the default for decisions ranging from protocol disagreements and client complaints to scheduling, staffing, and inventory, creating a bottleneck and cutting into clinical callbacks. They frame the issue as clarifying decision ownership and moving beyond a traditional command-and-control model that breaks down as practices scale. Younker outlines what should belong with the medical director (standard of care, controlled drug policies, veterinarian hiring/firing, major capital purchases, and liability issues) versus what should sit with other experts (scheduling, inventory, client experience). They discuss how “helpfulness” can create dependence, the value of asking staff to bring solutions, using agenda-driven staff and doctor meetings to align protocols and reduce mixed messaging, and applying a “patient, client, clinic” decision filter. Key immediate steps: protected admin time and requiring solutions with every problem brought forward.

When Friends Won’t Stop Asking for Vet Advice, Setting Boundaries Without the Guilt Maria Pirita hosts Dr. Andy Roark on the Uncharted Veterinary Podcast to tackle a common veterinary medicine frustration, friends, family, and random acquaintances constantly asking for free pet advice via texts and social media. They respond to a mailbag from a vet tech who feels guilty, worried about liability, and increasingly resentful, and they unpack why this happens more now due to increased access and the profession’s history of not valuing time. Andy shares frameworks like the five-minute rule and lessons from Adam Grant’s Give and Take about dealing with “takers,” plus practical boundary tools such as delaying responses, using front-desk style language, redirecting to an appointment or emergency care when needed, and avoiding reinforcing the behavior. They also discuss identity, introducing yourself beyond your job, and setting clear expectations to prevent burnout. Dr. Andy Roark is a practicing veterinarian, international speaker, author, and media personality. He is the founder of the Uncharted Veterinary Conference and DrAndyRoark.com. He has been an award-winning columnist for DVM360 and the magazine Today’s Veterinary Business. His social media, website, podcast and YouTube show reach millions of people every month. Dr. Roark has received the NAVC Practice Management Speaker of the Year Award three times, the WVC Practice Management Educator of the Year Award, the Outstanding Young Alumni Award from the University of Florida’s College of Veterinary Medicine, and the Veterinarian of the Year Award from the South Carolina Association of Veterinarians. His greatest achievement however involves marrying a bad-ass scientist and raising 2 kind and wonderful daughters. Mentioned in this episode: Get the Protocol Training Game Here! Join us for the Medical Director Summit! Care is Your Calling

Maria Pirita, CVPM sits down with Ron Sosa, CVPM to tackle a mailbag question every practice runs into: how do you build veterinary technician decision-making skills without risking patient safety or liability? They dig into why technicians hesitate to act, the real difference between a training gap and a performance issue, and how psychological safety shapes whether a team member speaks up or stays silent. Ron shares practical ways to map out which decisions belong to techs versus doctors, along with role play techniques and coaching strategies that build confidence without letting anyone overstep their scope. Mentioned in this episode: Join us for the Medical Director Summit! Get the Protocol Training Game Here! Care is Your Calling

Urgent care slots turning into a dumping ground for recheck visits? Maria sits down with Dr. Andy Roark to unpack why forward booking breaks down, how to get doctors comfortable handing recheck visits to trained technicians, and what it actually takes to build team accountability around the schedule. If your practice is drowning in progress checks, this one's for you. Mentioned in this episode: Care is Your Calling Join us for the Medical Director Summit! Care is Your Calling