This week Veterinary Practice Partners partnered with our 50th hospital. 50 is something to be acknowledged and even celebrated, but it is, after all, just a number. As I reflect on our 50 hospitals, some other numbers spring to mind that we at VPP are quite proud of:
- Today, we have 51 DVM co-owners of our 50 hospitals.
- 17 Associate DVMs have become partners at their veterinary clinic because of the clinic’s partnership with VPP. This is probably our biggest achievement, as providing opportunities for younger DVMs to become owners is what VPP is all about.
- We now have over 1,000 dedicated employees working at our partner hospitals, and 40 awesome people supporting the 50 hospitals from our headquarters outside of Philly.
There have been a lot of memorable moments as VPP has gone from a start-up concept to a growing successful community of veterinary hospitals over these past 7 years, and, most importantly, I have met some terrific people that have become friends. I often think back to a comment made about our business from one of our earliest partners a few months after her partnership:
“I went away with my family for spring break for the first time in 10+ years, because I knew I had a partner who had my back while I was away.”
It was so satisfying to hear that the purpose of our business model was working early in our history and only a few months after this partnership was formed. At VPP, our partners get to enjoy the benefits of ownership with strong business support, our clients and patients are provided with high-quality clinical care, and our employees are provided with a positive & supportive work environment.
I’m extremely proud of the fact that our 50 hospitals are still—and will always be—veterinarian co-owned, and that we get to work with such a great family of hospitals each and every day. I will always be thankful to our earliest partners for believing in me and our business model: Kevin McGinn, Lee Burnett, Mark Nunez, Teresa Bradley Bays, Andy Turkell and Anthony Krawitz (co-owners from our first 5 hospitals)!
If your practice is interested in joining in on the fun, we’d love to talk. If we’re not a good fit, we’ll at least steer you in the right direction.
Here’s to the our first 50 and also to our next 50 DVM owners!
Rich Lester, CEO
