Virtual veterinary scribe

Promoting Credibility Through Virtual Veterinary Scribes

Even though the scope of veterinarians doesn’t include humans, their services have become increasingly in demand with the rise of pet ownership in the US [1]. With pet owners seeking out practices that offer the best care and service, veterinary practices must maintain high credibility to remain competitive in the industry.

A veterinary practice can be strengthened in many ways, but one effective and innovative way is by integrating a virtual veterinary scribe into a practice’s in-person staff members.

What is a virtual veterinary scribe?

A virtual veterinary scribe is a professional responsible for managing electronic medical records or EMR for a practice. Virtual scribes take notes during consultations, listen intently to ensure that every detail the veterinarian and pet owner exchange is logged accurately, and enter the gathered data into the practice’s choice of EMR system. By efficiently performing their tasks, virtual veterinary scribes ensure that all information is accurate and current.

What are the advantages of hiring a virtual veterinary scribe?

When looking for a professional who can work as a scribe, practice leaders always have the option to hire someone directly to work within their office. However, doing so can make them miss out on the exclusive advantages of onboarding a virtual veterinary scribe instead of an in-person one.

Virtual veterinary scribes are more cost-effective in many ways than their in-office equivalent, including their annual compensation. Often, a virtual veterinary scribe costs 70% less than what practices need to pay for its in-person counterpart. Unlike in-person staff members, practice leaders also don’t have to provide employee benefits to virtual veterinary scribes, reducing their overall cost even more.

Most of the time, virtual veterinary scribes are independent because they know the pros and cons of working remotely. Their self-sufficient nature enables them to secure work-related equipment, such as computers and a good internet connection, without relying on the practice they serve. This independence is yet another way for practice leaders to reduce costs related to infrastructure.

In addition to being cost-effective, having a virtual veterinary scribe can help reduce the time a veterinarian spends on administrative tasks, such as going over hours of audio recordings and manually jotting down critical information. This advantage allows veterinarians to focus more on pet care, increasing the efficiency and productivity of the entire practice.

With a scribe managing the practice’s EMR system, the risk of errors or omissions in a pet’s medical history is diminished, resulting in better outcomes for the animal and increased confidence among pet owners.

How to find a virtual veterinary scribe

Considering how saturated the virtual assistant market is, finding a virtual veterinary scribe who can satisfy the preferences and demands of a practice can be daunting. However, practice leaders have many options to find someone who can do the job, which include:

  • Online job sites
  • Referrals
  • Veterinary Industry Organizations

These options are good at letting practices find great talent, but that’s why they’re just “good” and not “great” – practice leaders have to exert much of the recruitment effort themselves, such as putting up their open positions, looking at multiple job applications, meeting with hopeful candidates, filtering out unqualified applicants, and others.

A great alternative is to work with a virtual assistant company offering recruitment services for veterinary practices. These companies not only have access to a pool of skilled virtual professionals, but they also have dedicated teams who perform a variety of recruitment efforts, such as:

  • Receiving and filtering job applications
  • Spearheading job interviews for qualified candidates
  • Matching practices with their ideal virtual veterinary scribe
  • Creating legal contracts
  • Providing a comprehensive training program

Besides recruitment efforts, virtual assistant companies also offer services that make the entire experience more streamlined for the practice, from recruitment to management. These include assigning a manager to oversee the performance of virtual veterinary scribes and having a dedicated team to perform payroll on behalf of the practice.

By hiring a virtual veterinary scribe from a virtual assistant company, veterinary practices can find the best person for the job and maximize their capabilities without exerting significant effort.

How to onboard a virtual veterinary scribe

Because virtual workers are a relatively new concept for veterinary practices, onboarding a scribe who works away from the practice can be quite an adjustment. However, knowing how to do it can make the entire endeavor less stressful.

To help virtual veterinary scribes establish a good working relationship with the existing staff members, the best first step is to provide an overview of the practice, its mission and vision statements, short and long-term goals, and any unique features that set the practice apart from its competition. Moreover, practice leaders should set expectations by clearly communicating the virtual veterinary scribe’s role and responsibility, work hours, internal protocols, and deadlines.

Confusion can grow among the practice’s team members if appropriate adjustments are not in place. However, effective communication can bridge the gap between obscurity and clarity. Practice leaders should establish regular check-ins to discuss concerns and encourage over-communication to nip issues in the bud before they can domino into other areas of the practice.

Additionally, practice leaders can benefit from virtual assistant companies when onboarding a virtual veterinary scribe. Besides matching them with the most skilled talent, virtual assistant companies like My Mountain Mover provide comprehensive training that makes an already qualified virtual talent even better for their practice. Through this, practice leaders can dedicate more time and effort to being more productive instead of adjusting to their new virtual veterinary scribe.

Schedule a 10-minute intro call with My Mountain Mover today to learn more about how we move mountains for veterinary practices.

[1]  “Pet ownership statistics” thezebra.com