AAHA! More progress at MiVet

If you've visited us recently, you may have seen our new separate entrances and expanded consult rooms: we're enjoying getting settled into our new space and having a little more room to work!

At some point soon we should be "moved in" enough to have an open house and show you all what we've been working on.

In the mean time, we're excited to share we have other plans in progress to continue to improve and grow...

AAHA Accreditation: How and Why?

Unless you are a veterinary professional, you may not have heard of the American Animal Hospital Association or the rigorous procedures that clinics go through to earn their accreditation. MiVet is in the process of applying for this distinction and we hope to earn it this Fall.

Only about 15% of veterinary clinics in the United States have successfully earned this esteemed honor. Clinics must implement new protocols, adjust some of their procedures and meet standards outlined in a list of over 900 guidelines provided by AAHA. 

So, you may ask, why bother?

AAHA accreditation is the gold standard for veterinary medicine. It means that we are practicing at the highest level and quality of our industry. 

It also means that we care. 

• We care about the wellbeing of our patients and clients. 

• We care that all of our staff is appropriately educated and trained to do what they do in the absolute best possible way. 

• We care that our doctors and nurses stay up-to-date on the latest changes in medicine and life in practice. 

• We care that all of our employees can enjoy appropriate work/life balance and are as safe as possible both in and outside of the clinic.

• We care that our clinic is clean, comfortable and an easy place to work or to be a client or patient.

• We care that our cat patients have a quiet space away from barking dogs, and that our dental tables have their own space so as to minimize the spread of aerosolized bacteria.

As you can see, it’s a million little practical things and a bunch of larger ideas that all come together to make for the best possible experience for every person & pet that comes into the clinic.

Not only is this accreditation good for our clinic owners and staff, it’s good for our clients and patients as well. Statistics prove that hospitals with this distinction have better clinical outcomes than those without. This means that more pets are healthier, and that’s always our end goal.

We have always aimed to follow best practices for anesthesia and surgery; AAHA accreditation will help keep abreast of current standards

So while you may have already noticed the physical changes to the clinic that came with the expansion, you may also notice some changes in little things like the pain score on your pet’s discharge, or you might hear new recommendations from the doctors that they’ve recently learned about through continuing education. Medicine is an ever-evolving machine, and earning this accreditation ensures that we will continue to evolve as well.

Even seemingly "simple" things like clipping and prepping patients require evidence-based protocols.

In-house testing or sending out to an external lab? Every test we offer needs careful consideration.

Our staff now have a more spacious staff room to eat, drink and rest!

Preventive dental care is of huge importance to our pets health, and a huge focus for AAHA.

Our new enclosures make great anesthesia recovery kennels for dogs... and perfect rabbit habitats!

Thank you to Allison for all your hard work preparing for our AAHA accreditation assessments, and for writing this blog!

MiVet Expansion Almost Complete

We are excited to share that our new facility is ready for use! After months of dedicated effort, we have created a welcoming space that will help us improve the care we provide for your pets. We look forward to inviting you and your furry friends into this new environment that is designed with their health and happiness in mind.

Let’s take a closer look at our journey, from the initial plans to the exciting features you can expect now that "MiVet 2.0" is (almost) complete.

Planning and Construction: Laying the Foundation

Our journey began with planning and a clear vision. We wanted to build a larger space, but not just for the sake of size. After gathering insights from our team and valuable feedback from clients like you, we created a floorplan that prioritizes function and improves the quality of medicine we're already practicing and expands our existing services.

Construction was exciting to witness as the project took shape. Though stressful, and involving us being squashed in smaller spaces, we focussed on how much improved things would be at the end! Over the past year, we’ve taken on challenges such as unexpected construction and supply delays, yet our commitment to providing excellent care has never wavered and we're so proud to have seen how much our team has come together to support each other.

Transitioning Spaces: Moving from Small to Spacious

After completion of the majority of construction, it was time to transition from our cozy spaces to expand into out new, spacious facility. The move has required organized planning and coordination... and a lot of careful following of Ikea instructions!

The layout of our new facility is designed to enhance workflow. With designated areas for different services, we can be more efficient in serving your pets’ needs. Studies show that a well-organized space can reduce stress and improve the overall experience for pets and owners - and we're already feeling the benefits.

Expanding Our Urgent Care Service: Introducing the New ICU

A key feature of our expanded center is our new ICU (Intensive Care Unit). This space is specially designed for urgent care, ensuring your pets receive immediate attention when they need it most.

Our team has always been advanced in urgent and critical care, many of our Veterinary Nurses and Doctors having worked in emergency care in the past, but now we have expanded capacity and dedicated space for monitoring and treatment of urgent patients. We have always aimed to see our own patients when they really need us, but now we are aiming to always have a dedicated urgent care team available to enhance this service.

A Warm Welcome: Our New 2-Part Reception Area

We have been excited to share our new reception areas, featuring two separate entrances: one for dogs and another for families with pets like cats, rabbits, and other small animals. This thoughtful design helps cats and other creatures to feel more comfortable, while allowing us all to enjoy dogs in their own space.

Our spacious reception area and additional consultation rooms should help minimize wait times and offer a relaxing atmosphere for your pets. Whether you have a friendly pup, a shy kitty or a parakeet who has never left the house - our aim is that everyone will feel welcome and at ease (well, as much as possible in the world of animals!)

Final Touches: Our Expanded Dental Suite and Storage Updates

At this point, we are focused on the final touches. Our expanded dental suite is in progress and will allow for superior dental care for your pets. Dental health is critical; studies show that over 80% of dogs and 70% of cats have dental disease by age 3. This has always been a passion of ours but we are planning that this new space will help us to be even more efficient and continue to offer dental care to those pets who need it most, as often as they need it, while aiming to keep it as affordable as possible.

Additionally, updates to our laundry and storage areas are underway to enhance efficiency and maintain a clean, safe environment.

A New Chapter Awaits!

We will be thrilled to invite you to an open house as soon as our final set-up is complete. This event will be a fantastic opportunity for you to explore our new facilities and meet the team who cares for your pets - and we are eager to showcase the hard work and passion behind this expansion.

Your continued support has been priceless, and we look forward to providing exceptional care in this newly expanded space.

Thank you from our work and home families to yours,

Dr. Anna & Dr. Jen

MiVet Expansion Update: Nov 2024

Eek! We are so excited to share some updates regarding out new expansion. Earlier this year we announced our plans to extend into the space next door, adding 2600SF to our current 3000SF space - and finally construction is upon us!

Over the next few months we are expecting some disruptions to our clinic (particularly with regard to noise) and potentially some adjustments to our services. Our aim is to ensure good communication with our team and our clients so we can minimize additional stress to our people and particularly our patients. We'll really appreciate your patience with us as we negotiate these disruptions.

Last time we did construction we didn't have a clinic to manage, so please bear with us.

Having just weathered a pandemic though, we know our team is adaptable and can get through this!

Some first clinic construction photos are included below, and we'll update with new clinic photos as construction gets going:

Week one first clinic, Nov 2018

First Clinic, Jan 2019

First clinic, March 2019

Treatment room first clinic, March 2019

First clinic, April 2019

Please read on if you'd like more details of the project and our plans.

Phase One: Restructuring of Treatment Spaces

During late fall and early winter, construction will start in both the new space and our treatment rooms, resulting in loud noises (at times including saw cutting and concrete drilling) particularly towards middle and back of the clinic.

Depending on the noise level each day, our inpatients will be moved to different locations within the clinic and efforts will be made to arrange early pick-ups or reduce hospital stay duration for non-urgent cases. Procedures will be scheduled according to the anticipated workload.

Phase Two: Relocation of Services

• Over the next few weeks our ICU patients, sterilization and pharmacy areas are being relocated.

• Once initial work is complete and our new treatment spaces are linked, our inpatient wards will be relocated.

• There may be shorter appointment blocks or changes in availability between drop-off, "curbside" and in-person appointments based on available rooms. We'll aim to let you know the plan well in advance of your appointment whenever possible.

• Non-urgent surgery and dentistry availability may be reduced during this time.

• End-of-life care, when possible, will be scheduled at specific low-work times. Our construction teams are keeping us in the loop about noise and work plans and are working with us to minimize noisy work during certain times of the day.

• Once work is complete and the space able to be occupied, our treatment and inpatient spaces will be significantly larger and more functional!

Phase Three: Remodelling of current reception area

In the new year, towards the end of the project, there will be a period of time when our old reception desk is removed and a vestibule is being placed into the current entrance area, as well as our floors being redone.

We will provide more updates as work progresses to communicate when exactly this is going to be, what client entrance and consulting space will be available and how we will be handling in-person appointments.

Once the space is complete, we will aim to have an open house to show you everything we've been working on. Some of the things we're looking forward to are:

• Two separate entrances: one for dogs, and one for cats & other creatures. Dogs like to be loud and smelly - particularly when they're anxious or excited about visiting the doctor - and other animals will often be less stressed if they can be housed in a separate location. We've always had separate wards for hospitalized patients but we're excited to offer completely separate waiting spaces.

• More consultation rooms: so hopefully we can see more of our people in person and keep more pets with their families during their visits

• A dedicated Urgent Care ICU: we've been developing our urgent care services throughout the last few years especially and we're excited to be able to offer a dedicated day time urgent care service complete with fully serviced ICU & procedure room, oxygen cage and recovery kennels. Our staff already have a wealth of experience in urgent care, and many of our vets and Vet Nurses have come directly from Emergency & Critical Care clinics and so are well prepared!

• A larger, extended Dental Procedure room to help expand our services in first opinion small animal dentistry

• Larger, extended dog ward with a separate back entrance, additional treatment and procedure space

If you have any concerns throughout this process please do reach out to any of our team.

We can't wait to provide more details through the construction process: watch this space!