How to Overcome the Veterinarian Shortage

Since the beginning of the pandemic, veterinarians and vet clinics have felt the pinch of worker resignations, burnout, and stress, leading to a shortage of veterinarians. Of course, the issue started before COVID-19, but the pandemic pet boom along with COVID precautions and resulting scheduling nightmares has led to a veterinarian shortage of up to 7,000 vets across the country. In addition, an increasing retirement rate for boomer-aged vets over the next 15 years combined with small veterinary school graduating class sizes has created a vacuum that seems insurmountable.

So, what can you do to overcome this shortage of vets? Is it even possible to fill vacant veterinary industry jobs right now?

While it may seem like an uphill battle there are some steps you can take to retain your current vets and attract new candidates to your open positions.

Retaining Your Veterinarian Staff

Before rushing out to hire new vets, you should make sure your current team has what they need to succeed. That’s because simply adding more people doesn’t address the root problem, and may actually make things worse. Your first step should be to conduct surveys, hold “stay interviews,” or have honest 1-on-1 chats with your staff to learn what specific concerns they have. You may find that something unexpected that is hindering productivity beyond the normal stress and burnout the veterinary industry is experiencing.

Addressing Burnout

Long hours, full schedules, and a huge backlog of appointments are major contributing factors to the current shortage of vets. Solving the burnout issues facing your team will require some strategic thinking on your part. Here are a few options to consider:

• Hire new support staff. Your veterinarians don’t need to touch every aspect of your practice, and if they do, that could be a cause of burnout. Think about what duties can be handled by vet techs or administrative/office positions so you can free up your vets’ schedules and allow for a better work-life balance.
• Consider mental health professionals. A major cause of stress and burnout in veterinarians is euthanizing patients’ pets. Consider hiring counselors for your vets to help their mental health during these times, or hiring patient-facing grief counselors to take the responsibility of being with the family off the veterinarian and place it with someone more equipped for the situation.
• Leverage technology. In addition to hiring administrative staff, look into software and computer programs that can automate those aspects of your practice. The telehealth options that became popular during the worst of the pandemic can also boost productivity and provide other options for patients.
• Lead with compassion. If the leadership at your practice doesn’t foster a culture of inclusivity and engagement, it could be causing more stress. Try to advise, connect, inspire, and recognize your staff’s efforts and accomplishments if you’re not doing so already.

Compensation & Benefits

Salary is a driving force in the current Great Resignation, and the veterinary industry is no exception. According to iHire’s Talent Retention Report, 71% of survey participants said they would leave a job due to unsatisfactory pay, while 78% said a pay raise would convince them to stay with their employer if they received a better job offer. Retaining and attracting veterinarians will be significantly more difficult if your salaries aren’t competitive within your local market.

To address this, conduct an audit of your salaries and compare them to the average for similar positions in your area. iHire’s Salary Research Tool is a great way to find market data. If possible, update your salaries to be at or above the median rate.

Veterinarian Salary Data

If raises aren’t feasible, that’s OK – there are other options available. For example, retention bonuses or performance bonuses can come from a different budget but are still effective means of resignation-proofing your practice. Likewise, additional benefits like wellness programs, extra PTO, and career development opportunities can convince employees to stay with their current employer.

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Hiring During the Veterinarian Shortage

Adding veterinarians to your staff may not be the first thing you should do during this shortage of vets, but it’s still a vital piece of the puzzle. Once you’re confident that you understand what your team needs to succeed and you’re on the way to addressing those concerns, you can start advertising your open veterinarian positions. That begins with crafting a compelling job ad.

The Application Process

Many employers who struggle to hire veterinarians make the mistake of regurgitating a bland job description as the job ad without including any aspects that make that position or company exciting. In addition to treating the job ad as a simple list of duties and requirements, a lot of employers use applications that take too long to complete, which will turn away even the most determined job seekers. Keep these basics in mind when writing your veterinarian job ad:

• Make it skimmable, between 600 and 700 words is best.
• Write short sentences to keep the reader engaged.
• Use bullet points.
• Communicate your fair hiring practices.

Then, ask yourself what might be making veterinarians unhappy at other practices and why they might consider working at yours. Consider your company culture, salary and benefits (which you’ve hopefully tweaked using the data from earlier), and anything else that makes your workplace special.

Finally, remember to communicate the next steps constantly throughout the application process. You probably hate when candidates “ghost” you, and the same is true for them. Keeping your applicants informed of what to expect will help you keep candidates engaged and more likely to accept an offer from you.

Perks for New Staff Members

In addition to the benefits mentioned earlier, there are some perks you can offer candidates to sway them to your practice. Those are:

• Signing bonuses. Like retention or performance bonuses, a signing bonus can be an effective one-time expenditure to supplement salary.
• Student Loan Reimbursement. Many vets just out of school have sizeable student loans, and offering to help pay them back can be a huge benefit.
• Mentorship programs. Another attractive benefit for new veterinarians can be mentorship opportunities from veteran vets. The chance to learn from someone already established in the field is invaluable.

While the veterinarian shortage is stressful, the tips above are actions you can take right now to help your current employees and attract top candidates to your team. Be sure to check out our Employer Resource Center for more hiring advice.