Business program for practicing veterinarians held at Colorado State University

A group of veterinarians will gather on the Colorado State University campus this week for the Veterinary Management Institute, a program of the American Animal Hospital Association that provides training in business and financial management for veterinarians in private practice.

The 25-year-old institute moved from its longtime home base at Purdue University and partnered with CSU for the first time this year, at the Center for Professional Development and Business Research, which is housed in the College of Business.

Also contributing to the partnership is the CSU College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, home of the No. 3-ranked veterinary school in the nation. Featured among the presenters this week will be Dr. Jane Shaw, a CSU veterinarian and faculty member who is known as an international expert in veterinary communication with clients.

Michael T. Cavanaugh, a veterinarian and CEO of the American Animal Hospital Association, said institute participants have been pleased with the program and its new home at CSU.

“We’ve gotten quite a bit of positive feedback from people saying they’ve enjoyed traveling to Fort Collins and have had a positive experience at CSU,” he said.

CSU was picked as the institute’s new home because the alliance is a good fit: The university offers a more extensive DVM/MBA program, and is near the association’s headquarters in Lakewood.

Each of the institute’s continuing-education courses spans 10 months, with coursework delivered online and through three on-campus sessions. Participants in the inaugural class at CSU will be in Fort Collins June 5-7 for their second on-campus session; they also met on campus from Jan. 30 to Feb. 1.

The first cohort attending the institute through CSU includes about three dozen participants from veterinary practices in 17 states, Puerto Rico and Canada, said Felicia Zamora, assistant director for the Center for Professional Development and Business Research. In addition to veterinarians, they include technicians, practice managers and consultants.

Instructors include CSU business and veterinary faculty, as well as industry leaders from across the country. The content they deliver is designed to help veterinary professionals grow their practices, with an emphasis on strategic decision-making, service marketing, financial management, staff training, and supervision and conflict management.

Participants earn credits that may be applied to CSU’s Online Professional MBA.

For more information and to register for the course that begins in January 2015, visit http://biz.colostate.edu/vmi.

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