Blue Water Veterinary Care is a mobile, equine-focused veterinary practice located in Mackay, Queensland. It was established in 2022 by Dr Ashleigh Fisher, who has a passion for providing high-quality care for horses and companion animals in the region.
As a relatively new practice in the area, Ashleigh and her team are concentrating on developing the service they offer through leading veterinary practice and by building great relationships with their clients and patients.
“The hardest part about opening a new practice is getting your policies and procedures in place,” says Ashleigh. “We’ve experienced some pretty quick growth, and I’ve noticed that some weeks get out of control if you don’t keep an eye on things. I’m working hard to keep the workload at a manageable level and also build solid foundations that will set us up for healthy growth in the future,” she adds.
Covetrus Ascend is a key element in helping Ashleigh and her team achieve these growth aspirations.
Cloud-based veterinary practice management software (PMS) was needed for a quick rollout
When evaluating options for Blue Water Veterinary Care’s cloud-based vet PMS, Ashleigh had had some experience with VisionVPM as an employee. She also found feedback on online forums
about various cloud-based PMS options conflicting.
However, she was particularly drawn to Covetrus Ascend thanks to its cloud-based nature and leading ease of use. She was also looking for a solution that was able to be rolled out quickly.
“I had heard feedback from others that it can take long time to get set up with a practice management solution, and I didn’t have the luxury of time when I was setting up,” Ashleigh explains. “I simply contacted Covetrus, did the demo and had a trial run in the software and loved it, so I said, ‘Let’s go’. I haven’t found the need to look at any other providers since I’ve been using Ascend.”
Ashleigh adds, however, that if she had the opportunity to redo the implementation of Covetrus Ascend at her clinic, she would put more time and energy into training and getting the software set up more efficiently for her now known requirements after starting the business.
“At the time, I was still working full-time, I was pregnant, and I had a lot of things going on in my personal life. In hindsight, if I had to set Ascend up again I would do it in a more thorough way with more time dedicated to training. But at the time, I found the timeline was good for me,” she adds.
Seamless adoption of Covetrus Ascend
Ashleigh describes the onboarding and training process with Covetrus Ascend as very easy. “I was really happy with the onboarding. I received very good training, and all my questions were answered,” she says.
Ashleigh is very pleased with the high-quality technical support she’s received from the Covetrus team since Ascend was rolled out at her clinic.
“I had to speak to technical support once because I accidentally changed a setting and didn’t know how to undo it. But they’re really quick at getting back to me and supporting,” she explains. “I haven’t had problems though. Ascend was set up correctly and it’s been very fuss-free since then.”
Overall, Ashleigh finds Covetrus Ascend easy to use and operate. “I’ve set up my procedures and consult notes and I’m finding it very easy to use. The only downside is that you need internet access and sometimes, as a rural vet, you don’t always have that. That’s not something you can control though,” she concedes.
Key value delivered from Covetrus Ascend
The Blue Water Veterinary Care team find several key elements of Covetrus Ascend particularly valuable:
- Intuitive interface: Ashleigh found Ascend to be very user-friendly and easy to navigate, even for staff with no previous training in the PMS software.
“It’s very intuitive to use and really easy to follow,” says Ashleigh. “It’s very fresh and modern. You literally check the client, and you roll straight into the consult, then straight into billing. It all integrates and it’s so easy to use.”
- Streamlined workflows: The system integrates various functions like consultations, billing, and inventory management, which reduces manual tasks and saves time for Ashleigh and her team.
- Quick setup and use: Ashleigh appreciates Ascend’s quick setup process, especially considering she was establishing a new practice from scratch. She also found it quick and easy to deploy in her business.
“Overall, it’s been really, really easy to use and very straightforward. It’s also very easy to teach my staff how to use it if they haven’t done the training. I have signed up for the online training, so I can put my staff through that, if necessary,” she adds.
- Cloud-based access: Being able to access Ascend from any device with internet connectivity, including smartphones and iPads, gives Ashleigh and her team flexibility and convenience.
“We’ve set up Ascend in our clinic for me and another vet. We both have an iPad, so we just bill straight from there. We both have a work phone too so if for some reason we need to check in and we don’t have the iPad with us, we can just log in online – it’s super easy!” she explains. “You can do it on your desktop computer too if you prefer,” she adds.
- Remote access: This feature is particularly valuable for a rural practice like Blue Water Vet Care, as it lets them access patient information and perform tasks remotely, wherever there is an internet connection.
- Third-party integrations: Ascend’s compatibility with other veterinary software, such as Paws App, supports online bookings and seamless data sharing for Blue Water Veterinary Care.
- Configurable options: Ashleigh and her team enjoy being able to configure key features of Ascend, like consult notes and templates, to suit her practice’s specific needs.
- Time and cost-saving: The use of Covetrus Ascend saves the small team at Blue Water Veterinary Care three hours per week. The biggest time-saving feature for Ashleigh and her team is being able to quickly and easily send invoices directly from Covetrus Ascend.
“In my procedural finalisation, the fact that I can just press email, and the invoice goes straight through to the client is amazing,” she says. “In other programs, you have to go to the client, produce an email, create an attachment, and then type and send your email. It’s awesome that I can just press email, invoice, select a template if I want it to be different, and then just press send,” she explains.
Advice for Others Considering Covetrus Ascend
Ashleigh’s advice to anyone considering Covetrus Ascend for their practice management system is to take the time to set it up thoroughly from the start. She also recommends taking advantage of the Covetrus training resources to ensure a smooth transition to the new system.
“Go for it. Ascend has been really good,” she says. “Just set it up properly – put a bit of time into that,” she concludes.