Why can taking PTO, stepping away during the holidays, leaving on time, or protecting even one hour for yourself feel like letting down your team or the people you love?

This week, Dr. Ernie Ward and Beckie Mossor, MPA, RVT, unpack the guilt veterinary professionals often carry when they step away from the clinic. Their message is simple: feeling guilty is not the same as being selfish, and discomfort does not mean a boundary is wrong.

Beckie reflects on her own evolution from a “baby technician” who felt she had something to prove to someone who learned that rest and boundaries are worth the initial discomfort. As she reminds listeners, “You can’t expect that free time to just come.” Even five, ten, or fifteen protected minutes can be a meaningful place to begin, and, after taking that time, “you do come back better.”

Ernie shares the lesson that has guided him through decades in veterinary medicine: “If I were trying to protect my time to improve my overall health, that was not selfish. It was essential.” In fact, he makes a strong case for how protecting your well-being can help you better support your family, coworkers, clients, and patients over the long term.

Our hosts also challenge practice owners, managers, medical directors, and teammates to examine the culture surrounding PTO and self-care. Comments like “must be nice” or “I wish I could do that” can turn time spent on personal growth into shame. Thoughtful scheduling, appropriate coverage, and genuine encouragement can make healthy boundaries possible, and business leaders must lead by example.

They also point out that self-care is not limited to vacations or spa days. It may be a walk, a workout, a chapter of a book, a few quiet minutes, or meaningful time with the people you love.

The goal is not perfect balance. It is returning with more energy, patience, and perspective, and building a veterinary career that leaves room for a life beyond the clinic.

What does it mean to be a veterinarian, a credentialed veterinary technician, an assistant, or a new role entering the clinical space? 

In this episode, Dr. Ernie Ward and Beckie Mossor, MPA, RVT, dig into veterinary medicine’s identity problem: how comparisons to human medicine, unclear titles, internal hierarchies, and emerging roles like Colorado’s veterinary professional associate (VPA) can shape how teams see themselves and each other.

They talk candidly about why “more than” or “less than” language can create competition rather than confidence, how that trickles down through the clinic, and why role clarity matters for morale, collaboration, and long-term career satisfaction.

This conversation is especially relevant for veterinarians, vet techs, assistants, practice managers, and anyone navigating scope-of-practice debates or changing team structures. 

Ernie and Beckie make the case for being proud of your role without needing to compare it to someone else’s, and for building clinic cultures where every team member understands their value.

Artificial intelligence is no longer a future concept in veterinary hiring. It is already here, quietly screening resumes, ranking candidates, and influencing who gets interviewed, hired, or never hears back at all. In this episode of The Veterinary Viewfinder, Dr. Ernie Ward and Becky Mosser, MPA, RVT, unpack how AI-driven hiring tools are changing the employment landscape across all industries, and it’s starting in veterinary medicine.

From automated resume screeners to algorithm-based candidate rankings, these systems promise efficiency but raise serious concerns about transparency, bias, data privacy, and the loss of human judgment. 

The conversation explores how experienced veterinarians, technicians, and new graduates may be filtered out simply for not speaking the right “keyword language,” and why this creates emotional, professional, and legal risks for practices.

The episode also examines emerging lawsuits challenging AI hiring practices, the ethical implications of data scraping and social media monitoring, and the growing pressure on clinics to adopt these tools without fully understanding how they work. 

For veterinary professionals navigating hiring, leadership, or career transitions, this discussion offers critical insight into what AI can and cannot do, and why maintaining human oversight may be more important than ever.

Western Veterinary Conference 2026 - The Bridge Club Bright Minds Award

Recognition: The Veterinary Viewfinder is honored as a 2026 Bridge Club Bright Minds as the Inaugural Industry Influencer Award recipient.

Join us: February 15, 2026, 10–11 AM, Level 2, Inside Pawp Up at the Western Veterinary Conference, for the award reception and panel discussion.

What happens when you promote a staff member to a new position or role and it doesn’t work out? What if the staff members want to return to their previous positions? How do we successfully expand our team members’ roles, responsibilities, and duties and “promote from within?” Viewfinders, we’ve got a lot to discuss in this episode!

Hosts Dr. Ernie Ward and Beckie Mossor, MPA, RVT, tackle the tough topic of job promotions gone bad. More importantly, our podcasters provide you with a variety of ways to support, coach, and set yourself or your employees up for success in transitioning to a new job position.

The podcast begins with a real-life question Dr. Ward recently received about handling a veterinary technician struggling after being promoted to clinic manager. The veterinary practice owner feared she’d have to fire the employee after she failed to succeed in management. Our hosts have a lot to say about this, as well as tips for avoiding this sort of dilemma.

Beckie shares how to handle the potential vacancy left behind when you promote a staff member. Preparation, planning, and communication are critical elements of a successful job transition and promotion-from-within scenarios.

Viewfinders, there’s a lot to learn in the podcast about helping people succeed in your practice. Please share your thoughts and experiences with us on our Facebook or Instagram pages or email us at veterinaryviewfinder@gmail.com.

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Feedback: everyone needs it to improve. But what happens when we get unexpected negative feedback? How can veterinary professionals separate “context from content” and learn the valuable lessons nearly any form of feedback offers? For a “profession of perfectionists,” there’s a lot to discuss in this episode!

Hosts Dr. Ernie Ward and Beckie Mossor, RVT, start by defining what valid feedback looks like in veterinary practice. From there, they review why nearly any form of feedback can be beneficial for your professional (and perhaps personal) growth, why your network is essential in evaluating feedback, and how to remain in control, even when you don’t like what, or how, feedback is being delivered.

Viewfinders, there’s a lot to consider in this podcast that transcends “feedback.” We’d love to hear your thoughts!

And we’d appreciate you giving us feedback over on Apple Podcasts by pressing the 5-stars! Your review really helps us reach more of our colleagues!