FlightPlan: Quick Consults

Helping you navigate the turbulence of Veterinary Practice Ownership in 25 minutes or less. After all, your practice didn't come with an owner's manual!

FlightPlan: Quick Consults is a business podcast hosted by Brenda Tassava Medina, CVPM, CVJ, with 39 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Brenda Tassava Medina, CVPM, CVJ hosts FlightPlan: Quick Consults, a business show with 39 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

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  Episode #11

  Less Stress, Better Care: The Enduring Legacy of Dr. Sophia Yin

  Oct 2, 202630 minS3

  Twelve years after losing Dr. Sophia Yin, her push to take patient fear and stress seriously still shapes veterinary medicine. Today's panelists talk about how far we've come from labeling patients "difficult" or "dominant." They also dig into what happens when low-stress handling becomes part of the whole practice: fewer bites, happier teams, and clients who see how much you care. The key? Training, buy-in, accountability, and building it into your SOPs, because it takes a village. Panelists: Dr. Christine Calder, Diplomate, American College of Veterinary Behaviorists, Director of Behavior Educational Content for VIN Behavior Academy Bradley Phifer, CBCC-KA, CPDT-KSA, Executive Director for the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers Joy Stizza, RVT, Clinical Supervisor and Practice Leader at Town & Country Veterinary Hospital Thank you to VIN for partnering with us for today's episode! To learn more about Sophia Yin and Low-Stress Handling: https://cattledogpublishing.com/ https://www.vin.com/vinmembers/ce Thanks for listening! Website: https://encorevet.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/encoreveterinaryconsulting Instagram: @encorevetconsulting Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/encore-veterinary-consulting

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  Episode #10

  Your Veterinary Career is a Marathon, NOT a Sprint!

  Sep 25, 202626 minS3

  Melissa Mauldin and Brenda Medina both started at the front desk, and 40+ combined years in veterinary medicine later, neither path looked like a straight line. Melissa worked her way from CSR to bookkeeping, practice and regional management, and now VP of HR for Encore Vet Group. Brenda thought she'd become a tech before realizing the medical side wasn't for her, working her way up from CSR to Hospital Administrator and then a veterinary consultant. Together they talk about why success doesn't have to mean a promotion, how sprinting from role to role leads straight to burnout, and what Brenda learned the first time she rolled out a job level program. Plus, advice for newer associates thinking about leaving the profession: come in like a sponge, take time to find a special interest, and remember your skills might just fit a different practice better. Thank you to VIN (Veterinary Information Network®) for partnering with us for this episode! Thanks for listening! Website: https://encorevet.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/encoreveterinaryconsulting Instagram: @encorevetconsulting Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/encore-veterinary-consulting

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  Episode #9

  The Cost of Care: Why Veterinary Medicine Needs to Stop Apologizing - PART 2

  Sep 18, 202632 minS3

  If we want vet professionals to have sustainable careers and real, livable wages, that has to come from somewhere: the care we provide. In Part 2, practice owners, Dr. Brianna Armstrong and Dr. Marie Maher dig into what that means on the business side, why teams need to stop apologizing for what things cost, and how pricing confidently (while still working within the spectrum of care) is what lets a practice actually pay its people what they're worth. Then a parent of a veterinary student shares what she hopes practices will one day offer her daughter. Her daughter, finishing vet school now, weighs in on what a sustainable career should look like, from friends already hitting burnout to why "firing a client" sometimes has to be okay. This one's for every vet professional thinking about what the career should pay, and it's especially worth passing along to any vet students you know! Panelists include: Dr. Brianna Armstrong, Practice Owner at Firehouse Animal Health Centers Dr. Marie Maher, Practice Owner at Tranquil Tabby Mobile Cat Vet Resources mentioned: Dr. Armstrong created a free Hospital Culture Interview Guide for veterinary professionals. It includes 33 questions to ask, what to listen for in the answers, and red flags to watch for during an interview or working visit. Download it here! WMPB Fees 2026: Redefining Value Through Strategic Pricing Veterinary Fee Consults with Encore Veterinary Consulting With thanks to Dr. Eve Harrison of The House Call Vet Academy , whose coaching shaped several of Dr. Maher's comments throughout this episode! Thanks for listening! Website: https://encorevet.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/encoreveterinaryconsulting Instagram: @encorevetconsulting Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/encore-veterinary-consulting

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  Episode #8

  The Cost of Care: Why Veterinary Medicine Needs to Stop Apologizing - PART 1

  Sep 11, 202623 minS3

  "It's just so expensive" is one of the most common things veterinary teams hear, and one of the hardest to answer without feeling defensive. In Part 1 of a 2-part episode, two practice owners get honest about affordability for pet owners and sustainability for hospitals, and why charging what care actually costs shouldn't come with guilt attached. They break down what really goes into the price of a visit, how expenses have climbed like everything else in the economy, and why "expensive" doesn't mean "overpriced," from the years of schooling behind the medicine to what it takes to pay a team well. Then a pet owner and her daughter, who's currently in veterinary school, weigh in from the other side of the exam table: how she personally thinks about the cost of care, whether her daughter's path has changed her understanding of it, and how vet school itself has reshaped her daughter's sense of the value behind it. Part 2 continues next week! Panelists include: Dr. Brianna Armstrong, Practice Owner at Firehouse Animal Health Centers Dr. Marie Maher, Practice Owner at Tranquil Tabby Mobile Cat Vet Resources mentioned: WMPB Fees 2026: Redefining Value Through Strategic Pricing Veterinary Fee Consults with Encore Veterinary Consulting Thanks for listening! Website: https://encorevet.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/encoreveterinaryconsulting Instagram: @encorevetconsulting Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/encore-veterinary-consulting

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  Episode #5

  Dear Brenda: Asking for a Friend | Real Questions. Practical Advice. Better Veterinary Practices.

  Aug 21, 202626 minS3

  This episode, Brenda's flying solo — answering the questions listeners have been quietly wondering about but haven't known who to ask! Is your team busier than ever, but the financials still aren't adding up — and you're not sure if it's a real problem or just everyone "feeling" overwhelmed? What do you do when your most talented employee turns out to be a rough fit as a leader? How do you handle a team that's begging for more accountability, but turns on leadership the moment anyone actually enforces it? We're digging into these questions from listeners and more! These are the conversations happening in break rooms and manager meetings across the industry — Brenda just happens to have some answers. Tune in to hear where she'd start! Thank you to Joan Marshall of PIMidlantic for sponsoring this episode! Want to take the Predictive Index Assessment? Click here! Resources mentioned: From Bud to Boss by Kevin Elkenberry and Guy Harris Crucial Conversations by Joseph Grenny, et al Thanks for listening! Website: https://encorevet.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/encoreveterinaryconsulting Instagram: @encorevetconsulting Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/encore-veterinary-consulting

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