Every year I attend “the world’s largest veterinary convention” in Orlando Florida. So known for its typically teeming attendance, this year’s version of the North American Veterinary Conference (NAVC) seemed a tad subdued, population-wise…and I think I know why.
Attending a conference is practically a mandated thing according to our professional requirements for continuing education (CE). It may not seem like much, but twenty to thirty credit hours every year or two (depending on your licensing body) can add up quickly. Unless we attend at least a conference every year or so, these reqs can easily slip us by.
Yet accomplishing the veterinary conference thing isn’t always as easy as you might suspect. That’s because by contrast to others in similar professions, it’s less common for veterinarians to have their time off granted, travel paid and sizable conference fees reimbursed.
For one thing, it takes a significant amount of time to travel to your destination, though local, briefer conference opportunities often exist for veterinarians dedicated to amassing their CE hours piecemeal—especially if we live near major metropolitan areas. Alternatively, conferences can be avoided by scoring CE credits online, an alternative that has worked OK for me in the past.
However, my personal preference has always sided towards having my colleagues experience the community of veterinary medicine in a conference setting. Artificial though it may be to commune in a hall seemingly dedicated to the great gods Pfizer and Hills, the entertainment value of watching and hobnobbing with one’s colleagues should not be underestimated. Somehow, it has its charms.
Any route you choose, whether it be the pomp and circus of the major, resort city conference or the more subtle display of veterinary collegiality in a local Marriott’s less auspicious ambiance, the price of veterinary CE is unmistakably high. Indeed, even the online CE credit “classes” seem inflatedly priced to account for the convenience they provide the less social, more frugal veterinary professionals among us.
The fancy price of conference communion. That’s my guess as to why this year’s Orlando extravaganza attendance was off to the tune of probably twenty percent.
In years past, I’d always had to jockey for a table at the host resort’s restaurants, arriving early enough to beat the rush. Not so at this event. Last year, I’d been unable to find an accommodating nearby hotel in the weeks leading up. Yet just last week, this year’s host hotel offered me two nights of premium lodging without batting an eye (not that I could afford it, anyway).
It’s the economy, stupid. I know that’s what you’re thinking—and you’re not wrong. Nonetheless, the drug reps seemed happy to hand out the same number of high-priced freebies to the less sardine-packed trade show hall of veterinary medical delights. The classroom sessions may have been less crowded but the lecturers crowed on obliviously, as intent on their good work as they’ll undoubtedly always be.
Overall, it’s still a great show. But what does it really matter if so many of us veterinarians are increasingly unable to travel, lodge, dine and part with the premiums for parking, taxis, hotel breakfasts and more?
Here’s a breakdown of the cost of my 36 hours of conferencing:
hotel room for one night: $237(!)
parking fee (for the place I paid $237 a night to stay): $21
breakfast: $25
lunch (if I hadn’t scored a pressroom freebie): $25
taxi to dinner and back: $30
dinners (if one hadn’t been comped): $125
conference fee (if it hadn’t been waived for my “press credentials”): $650
mileage on a car: 600 (you do the math)
gas: $50
tolls: $35
loss of income for one day: $300-$500
total: $1,598
…all for just one day of lectures, a whirlwind trip to the trade show hall, a great dinner meeting and a healthy dose of networking.
OK, so I caught a lot of breaks on my expenses. But let’s just say it’s a wash if you consider the citation I received for my 88 MPH driving dalliance. As I told Mr. Florida Highway Patrol (possibly still expecting some leniency at that point), “I have no excuse, officer. I'm so sorry.” But then, I’ll bet this guy would’ve handed his mother a speeding ticket, too.
As I counted the roadkill on my way home (a way to curb my highway speeding habit), I couldn’t help but wonder at the financial toll a conference takes…not to mention the stress of traveling alone and sleeping in a strange bed. But as the drug reps kept telling me…we just can’t afford NOT to be here. Sad but true for some vets, too.
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I am going to be very sad to lose my 'student rate' admission to conferences :(
Megan January 20th, 2009 11:48:59 AM
Extensive use of cruise control (set to nine miles over the speed limit) has helped to diminish the points accruing on my license.<G>
Sharyn January 20th, 2009 12:06:09 PM
Sharyn: A good 'ticket clinic' is my best friend. No points so far. ;-)
Dr. Patty Khuly January 20th, 2009 01:06:13 PM
I go to the Western Vet Conference in Las Vegas each year....and the big reason is that its a lot cheaper for me to attend. The conference fee is in the $350 range, flights are reasonable for me (NYC area) and the housing can be inexpensive if you're not staying at the "host" hotels. The strip is pretty easy to get around. After hours there is PLENTY of free people watching to do! I've never been to NAVC, mostly because of how expensive it is. The Vegas conference offers a lot of different choices, lecture and lab wise, and its a big show (maybe smaller this year?) so I've thought of them as equals.
FWIW, not all states REQUIRE CE (and I think that is a shame) NY does not, although they used to recognize people who did 50 or more hours a year--I never remember to turn my stuff in on time, so I am not sure if that still holds or not. IIRC, AAHA does have a CE requirement, because I had to turn paperwork in right before our inspection last year.
drsteggy January 20th, 2009 01:28:57 PM
drsteggy: Some states do NOT have CE requirements? How can that be? I was clearly under the mistaken impression that there was a basic level for all states...so sad...
Dr. Patty Khuly January 20th, 2009 03:20:08 PM
NY does not require CE credits??? Maybe that explains why I have met so many vets that don't know what they're doing!!
Tara B. January 20th, 2009 04:58:13 PM
Michigan also has no requirement for CE credits. My boss gets them anyway, but has lamented in the past that it isn't a requirement. He thinks that we would have to clean up fewer 'disasters' from other vets if they had to keep current.
Sassy January 20th, 2009 07:17:15 PM
I can relate to the expenses of CME credits... Sometimes we find them in the magazines, but we have to attend conferences. I'm heading to Tampa from NY. in a few weeks. but I'm splitting the room with a friend from the midwest, and we make it into a girls weekend... We've been doing it for the past years.. and we're seeing others doing the same..
The food comps still exist, but there are stricter rules on what's allowed.. As of 1/1/09 there are no more freebies.. Pharma rules... No more exam table paper, pens, pads, or even the sample bags (for dog poop?)
I guess I'll get over it!!!
barri January 20th, 2009 08:55:23 PM
88 mph?? Oh boy, think of your family!
Barb A.
Pocket's Story from NH January 20th, 2009 09:05:07 PM
Not all Canadian provinces require CE credits either. So in some places you end up with vets who do many hours because they enjoy it and find it necessary, and others who don't do any and therefore remain way behind the curve in all kinds of ways. My province requires that all vets have 20 hours of CE credits in their file at all times, and credits expire after 2 years, so I'm always scrambling to keep up, even though I only work part-time. I think it's important though, so I try to choose my credits based on what I need to know or brush up on, and what I can afford, because it's an out-of-pocket expense for me.
brebis noire January 20th, 2009 09:39:13 PM
i wish i'd known you were at NAVC - i would have loved to have met you! i've done all 5 days, and i'm exhausted. this is my first NAVC, so i thought it seemed pretty teeming - but perhaps not? i think it's a great conference and have been very happy with everything. it helps that my grandparents live in lakeland and i'm staying with them in lieu of the gaylord palms/marriot/caribe option!
homeless parrot January 20th, 2009 10:06:11 PM
oh and throw a wetlab in there. my cytology lab was $450 freakin' dollars!!
homeless parrot January 20th, 2009 10:08:58 PM
Oh, but it's a "business expense or at least a tax deduction" I love that one, like somehow it's not coming out of my pocket then :) "commune in a hall seemingly dedicated to the great gods Pfizer and Hills" Different gods, same concept. LOL
Although I understand the debate over the value of CE, I find it frightening when SOME form of CE isn't required of professionals. I'd hate to imagine how out of touch one could become over 30 years without them when it so often happens even with them.
PJBoosinger January 21st, 2009 01:55:35 AM
I just got back from NAVC with 32 hours of CE, I go every year. I like this conference for the speaker quality, and being from Florida, Orlando is no distraction, and I can focus on learning. I have mixed some ski trips in with good CE but in general I don't like to mix business with vacations. I am amazed that Florida only requires 30 hours every 2 years. There is too much new knowledge out there, it is so dynamic, I cannot see how anyone can stay current/competant with just 15 hours a year. I will bet Dr. Cheapvet gets only the minimum amount and does not get the highest quality at that. He/she probably signs up for the conference and plays golf instead.
Hobson January 22nd, 2009 10:01:04 PM
Hobson: But now it's impossible to say you were there if you weren't. Paying the conference fee is not enough. Those badges that check when you went in and out of the rooms ensure that we were actually there. Kind of big-brotherish but it keeps us honest, I guess.
Dr. Patty Khuly January 23rd, 2009 07:58:05 AM
Having attended lots of professional conferences myself (albeit in a different field) I am convinced that they are not the best places to get your CE. What conferences are good for is "surveying" what is new out there, what is on the horizon. They are good at getting the soundbytes and marketing, and even perhaps an "overview-level" understanding of something. But improving hands-on competence? Nope. Makes me nervous when I hear vets getting much, if not all, of their CE at conferences. The CE requirements for vets are paltry enough compared to other medical fields.
A friend of mine who runs DogsAdverseReactions.com did an analysis of veterinary CE requirements state-by-state compared with that of other professions. You can see it here.
Some states (CT and MI) actually do not have CE requirements. Otherwise, with one weird exception I can see, the CE requirements for vets are DRAMATICALLY less than for doctors. Doubly scary since vets do "everything" from nuts to bolts, so you'd think they'd need MORE not less. The thought that all required training could be met in one fell swoop by attending a few short seminars at a conference (where you spend most of your time networking and socializing otherwise) is . . . not reassuring.
Don't you all go moving to Michigan, now.
Stefani January 23rd, 2009 04:37:50 PM
OK, I have to revise my prior comment. Although the rule stands (medical doctors in the vast majority of states are required to get MUCH more CE than vets), there are also an alarming number of states that have NO CE requirements for medical doctors.
That ought to give us all pause.
Once again, you can see the state-by-state CE requirements for vets, vet techs, and medical doctors on the Dogs Adverse Reactions website.
Stefani January 23rd, 2009 04:45:37 PM
Even though the states might not require CME credits, the specialty boards do.. There are other educational requirements from the malpractice insurance companies.
barri January 23rd, 2009 08:37:06 PM
I attended NAVC for the first time this year. Wow, that was intense! Like Megan, I'm definitely going to miss my student rate for attendance at conferences.
Ingrid January 23rd, 2009 09:26:13 PM
I would like to put in a plug for the Delaware Valley Academy of Veterinary Medicine (www.delawarevalleyacademyvm.org). This group provides six or seven CE one-day sessions per year. The speakers are great and the topics are practical and up to date. Moatly academic department heads and well known practitioners. The cost is less than $300.00 for the year and the program is adequate to provide Pennsylvania's 30 hour CE requirement for veterinarians and CVT's. Programs are at the Shriners hall in Plymouth Meeting, prtetty convenient for travel from Philadelphia, Central New Jersey, etc. As an added bonus, there is a good lunch,continental breakfast and afternoon snacks at no cost. Also- parking is free.
Stephen Dubin VMD January 24th, 2009 06:17:52 AM
Stefani: I'll respectfully disagree with your comment on the quality of CE. Sure, some lectures could be better (always the case) but at the NAVC ad ACVIM conferences (the ones I'm most likely to attend and have enjoyed multiple times in the past) I've never been to a bad lecture. ACVIM does a better job, for sure, but I always learn a lot at conferences.
Dr. Patty Khuly January 24th, 2009 09:46:03 AM
The other thing that bugs me about CE is that it's so scripted. I have so much to do at conferences (I do a lot of networking) that it bugs me to come out of one with only five hours when I spend more time than that reading jounals and researching posts every week. NO CE for all my work...sigh... And now that I'm writing a scholarly paper in the surgical/dermatological arena (in conjunction with my boyfriend), spending hours a week coordinating cases will certainly not earn me any CE. Double-sigh.
Dr. Patty Khuly January 24th, 2009 09:51:32 AM
You have to pick and choose to get good quality CE, there are many conferences available with good programs available, such as NAVC. I like it because it is like a cafeteria, over 5 days you can touch on many areas. If you want to learn or enhance a particular area you can take a masterclass or an all day wet lab. I tend to skip the local VMA programs that are infomercials, unless I really feelmotivated to drive 75 miles for the free meal. I don't know of any other way available that is better at this point. Reading journals and taking online courses are very useful, but they dont replace the live experience.
Hobson January 25th, 2009 10:27:05 PM
Dr. Khuly,
It was great to meet you--if only for a short time--at NAVC last week. Thanks again for rescuing my hotel room keycard! Just the night before I had to go to the front desk to have them reactivate my keycard. because it wasn't letting me in my room. To have had to go back not even 24 hours later with a request for another whole new card would have seemed suspicious, no?
Sorry to hear about the speeding ticket. I still haven't lived down the one I got in North Dakota circa 2001. Also 80+ mph.
Dan Mandle January 27th, 2009 10:43:04 PM
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