FEATURE/Charter Veterinary Hospitals Challenge Traditional Size/Quality Assumptions of Veterinary Medicine.

Lifestyle & Assignment Editors

FEATURE...

PORTLAND, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE FEATURES)--May 1, 2001

Practically since Aristotle started it in 320 BC with the publication of his seminal Historia Animalium there has been a debate about the relative virtue of size versus quality in the veterinary profession.

Up until very recently, the profession was almost entirely made up of individually-owned practices, romantically recalled as country clinics in which a veterinarian husband and a nurse/receptionist wife toiled mightily together to help their neighbors' Pets and agricultural animals. As a result, many of the cultural norms and expectations that inform the profession have assumed that practices deviating from this perceived precedent are bad for the profession.

By the late 1980s a few very successful veterinary practices had emerged as regional powerhouses. Some of these remained content to stay regional, while some others saw the potential inherent in economies of scale -- more than 60 million Americans, after all, own Pets -- and began buying up existing practices. This approach led to the development of the nation's largest corporate owned veterinary practice and probably more than anything else cemented in the minds of many practicing veterinarians the fear that big might be bad.

One practice -- Banfield, The Pet Hospital, which is led by more than 700 veterinarians in 37 states and which helps more than 1.8 million Pets a year at over 400 hospitals and clinics -- grew to national breadth by forgoing the acquisition route. Instead, Banfield challenged the profession by growing through a strategic alliance (with PETsMART retail stores), quality assurance protocols, and heavy investment in state-of-the art hospitals. And now the practice is turning the whole size/quality debate on its head with its Charter Hospital program.

Charter Hospitals are essentially franchises. Doctors -- some of whom struggled for years as the number two vet at a long established individual practice, and others who have long owned successful practices -- can walk into a turn-key operation. The set-up includes a brand-spanking new hospital located adjacent to a PETsMART store. This proximity means little need for external marketing, saving thousands a year in overhead. The Charter owner also gets to take the reigns of a hospital built on the foundation of a proven business model.

That foundation includes access to a proprietary national medical records and quality assurance software system, "plug-and-play" payroll, marketing, accounting, staffing and training systems -- and a veterinary business consultant to boot. Perhaps most importantly, Charter owners immediately become a part of a community of hundreds of veterinarians around the country -- some other Charter owners who can share valuable experience, others board certified medical counselors.

The concept is gaining momentum. The first five Charters opened for business in 1999. The following year an additional 18 opened their doors, and Success magazine hailed Banfield's Charter Hospitals as one if the year's "Ten Hottest New Franchises." So far this year, 21 new Charters have opened or are scheduled to open, with another dozen or so on the books.

"I always wanted to own my own practice, but also wanted a satisfying personal and family life," said Dr. Heather Fees, DVM, of Columbus, Ohio. "I was never quite sure how I was going to achieve both of those goals," she said.

"Banfield's Charter Practice has enabled me to do both."

Dr. Les Pelfrey, DVM, owner of the Merriam, Kansas, practice, recently opened his second Banfield Charter Hospital (a partnership with Dr. Bonnie Dechant, DVM, in Shawnee Mission, Kansas). "I've been successful in business and as a veterinarian," said Dr. Pelfrey. "When it came time to grow, I didn't have any hesitation about opening a second Charter Hospital."

"We knew we had a great model of how to run a top-notch veterinary hospital," says Dr. Randy LeFever, DVM, Banfield's Charter program director. "Pet owners like the warmth and personalized service of an owner-veterinarian. They also like the convenience of our proximity to PETsMART stores. And in the end, they expect the latest technology and affordability. Charter Hospitals really are in a unique position to offer all of those things to veterinarians and Pet owners."

"The real winners here are the Pets and their families," says Dr. Scott Campbell, DVM, the CEO and visionary behind Banfield's success. Campbell purchased the original Banfield hospital in Portland, Oregon, in 1985 (that original hospital first opened it's doors in 1955) and it was his drive for quality assurance and customer service protocols that essentially enabled the practice to grow as rapidly as it has while maintaining a focus on quality. A recent survey of 60,000 Banfield customers found that more than 93% considered their veterinary care to be excellent and have referred their friends and family to the practice (results on file).

"Through our Charter Hospitals, we're extending the reach of quality veterinary medicine. We're giving great veterinarians an opportunity to build a successful practice of their own, using a proven model. That model allows these doctors to focus on what they love -- which is helping Pets -- while building a thriving business. And at the end of the day," says Dr. Campbell, "more families are getting affordable preventive and interventive healthcare for their Pets."

To learn more about Banfield Charter Hospitals or to see interviews with several Charter owners, please visit www.banfield.net/charter/cpvideo.html. To set up an interview with Dr. Campbell, Dr. LaFever, or a Charter owner in your area, please contact Jeff Muir at [phone] or by email at [e-mail].