By Charlie Powell, College of Veterinary Medicine
PULLMAN, Wash. – Owners can easily keep track of their animals’ veterinary appointments, medicine schedules and post-surgical care on their PCs, tablets or smartphones with a new service provided by Washington State University’s Veterinary Teaching Hospital.
WSU is the first to use software and support contracted through Redmond, Wash.-based MedaVet (http://medavet.com/), which began marketing the service in December. The service is designed to improve client communication, increase client engagement, achieve better outcomes and lower care costs.
“Technology is enabling advancements in medical care delivery in veterinary practice, and it is essential to innovate in order to remain cost-effective and compassionate,” said Bryan Slinker, dean of WSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine. “We look forward to driving greater client outcomes using the MedaVet service.”
According to the American Pet Product Association, the U.S. pet product industry is worth $58 billion annually. Veterinary care accounts for approximately $16 billion.
With over 83 percent of U.S. households owning a pet, survey respondents cite that expenses associated with surgical or routine vet visits are double other expenses combined.
The American Horse Council states that the impact of the horse care and performance industry to the U.S. economy is estimated at more than $102 billion annually.
MedaVet health coaches work with veterinary providers like the WSU teaching hospital to create templates for health plans to help an animal recover from surgery, manage a serious illness or follow a wellness plan. A template might cover goat hoof trimming and wellness, for example, or dog dental care or horse ligament surgery recovery.
From the template, a specific “health path” is designed for each animal patient and owner. The health path will contain a calendar of daily tasks, appointments and reminders, and/or learning material that includes text, graphics, videos, website links or online training.
Contacts:
Charlie Powell, WSU College of Veterinary Medicine, 509-335-7073
Megan Kahn, MedaNext corporation, megank@medanext.com, 425-681-9664