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Member Spotlights are back! We invite you to take a peek into part of what makes the Uncharted Veterinary Community so unique: our members. We sat down to interview some of the amazing people who have joined us on our amazing journey since the first conference in 2017. Our latest interview was with Dr. Edie Best, a small animal veterinarian from Montana! Enjoy!

For anyone who doesn’t know you, could you tell us a little about yourself?

I grew up on a farm/ranch in Eastern Montana. I was horse crazy when I was a girl and participated in rodeo and horse shows. I attended a 2-room school through eighth grade and my high school class graduated 25 students. I was the runner-up Pole Bending Champion for all 4 years of high school for the state of Montana.

I knew I wanted to be a veterinarian from about age 10. I was fascinated by our doctors who would make farm calls to take care of everything from the cows to the kittens. I was sure at that time I wanted to be a mixed animal practitioner. After high school I attended Montana State University in Bozeman and got a degree in Biology. I had the opportunity to work in a small animal practice for a year before attending veterinary school and that solidified my decision to pursue a small animal career. I attended Colorado State University and got married the Christmas break of my freshman year to my best friend – now married 28+ years!

We returned to Montana, where we are both from and I began work at the same hospital I started my career in before school. After spending two years there I moved to the practice I now work at and own. I purchased the practice in 2008.

What were you looking for when you joined Uncharted?

I was looking for problem-solving, management advice, support. My first conference was GSD and that's exactly what I needed at that time. I was feeling overwhelmed with practice ownership, management and life. From the moment I arrived I felt the sense of community and friendship. I not only received all of the things I was searching for, but so much more.

Who is one of your favorite people you’ve met through Uncharted and why?

Katie Berlin – she is so fun and inspiring. Turns out we had something in common from long ago and it took a picture of her with a cowboy hat on for us to discover it! I love her energy, passion for helping others in fitness and in practice. She is everything Uncharted is about.

What is your current work related goal?

My goal is to make my practice someplace that nobody wants to leave and everyone wants to join – both clients and team members. I want to mentor my young veterinarians to love the work, the clients, the culture. I want to build relationships with people that will make me a better veterinarian and person.

What is one thing you believe all veterinary professionals can do right now to make Vet Med even better?

Educate the public about what we do, why we do it and how personally we all take this profession. We are all in this business to help pets and their people. We need to support one another. Support our colleagues when they are under a social media attack. Support our clients when they are struggling with difficult decisions. Support our staff in this world that has been turned upside down. And take care of ourselves so we can be the best version of US when we are called upon.

Tell us a story of how another Uncharted Member has helped you.

Becky Krull introduced me to a coaching group at a time when I was approaching burnout. I was overwhelmed with trying to be an owner, a manager and a full-time veterinarian. My life outside of work had taken a back seat and I was not happy. In the past year I have learned a lot about myself, I have grown as a leader and mentor, and I feel as though I have taken my life back. It's a continual process and takes a lot of work. But my coach and my group are always there to listen, be critical when necessary, offer suggestions. I am a much happier person now.

Where is one place in the world you would love to see?

Scotland – I am a huge fan of the Outlander series of novels and it is described as such a beautiful county. I love the idea of green, lush fields and castles.

Do you have a dream for your career? What is it?

I am in the back half of my veterinary career. I want to continue to build my practice so that I have something meaningful to pass onto someone – hopefully one of my younger doctors. I want to keep the idea of the small practices alive and well.

After retirement, I want to start an “old-folks home” for dogs, cats, and horses. I have 30 acres to build a sanctuary to care for these special beings who may no longer be desirable; they may have been abandoned in shelters or on the streets. I can't imagine not taking care of animals! It's who I am and always will be.

I will also take one month out of my life to volunteer at an elephant sanctuary in Africa!

You can join the Uncharted community and meet people like Edie by visiting www.UnchartedVet.com and registering to become a member!

By Kyle Ann Stevenson, DVM

In 2018, my friend and colleague, Dr. Sue Ettinger, spoke to me about a  phenomenal conference and community she had recently become involved in – the Uncharted Veterinary Conference. She recommended I check it out. At the time, I thought that UVC sounded amazing, not to mention the fact that Dr. Andy Roark is one of my veterinary idols. I didn’t sign up. I was worried I wouldn’t fit in or have anything significant to contribute as a shy and introverted associate veterinarian.

Flash forward to the spring of 2019, my friend and coworker finally talked me into listening to the Uncharted Veterinary Podcast. I was hooked the moment I started listening, and I thought, “I have to join this amazing community.” Amidst the intensely funny banter between Dr. Andy Roark and Stephanie Goss, there was an immense amount of helpful information about creating and maintaining a better work environment and a more positive experience for clients and patients.  

I officially signed up to be an Uncharted member last fall and thought my friend would be following close behind. We made a plan to attend the April 2020 conference, but unforeseen circumstances led me to book a solo plane ticket and a room at the Westin Poinsett in Greenville, SC. While I was nervous about attending the conference alone, I told myself it would be alright because I knew at least two people who would also be there.

Then, COVID-19 happened.  

The conference in Greenville was canceled. I had mixed feelings. Part of me was relieved I didn’t have to travel to another part of the country all by myself to meet new people all by myself. The other part of me was sad. I was sad I wasn’t going to be able to meet all of these amazing-sounding people I had been reading posts from on Workplace, sad I wasn’t going to be learning new ways to grow and maintain a positive practice, and sad I wasn’t going to have the chance to “get away” for a few days to recharge.

Then, in what I would later learn to be true UVC fashion, Dr. Andy Roark and his amazing team thought outside the box and came up with a virtual version of the conference – claiming it would be like no other virtual conference anyone had ever experienced before.

In the few weeks leading up to the Uncharted Virtual Veterinary Conference of 2020, I will admit I had my reservations about sitting in front of my laptop for three-and-a-half straight days in June, crossing my fingers my Wi-Fi would be decent enough to view all the workshops – not to mention missing out on gorgeous weather outside. Perhaps I would attend a few workshops here and there, but otherwise wait for them to be uploaded to the UVC website and view them later? There were other projects and things on my plate. Did I really want to put all of those things on the back burner?  

But, at the kick-off Thursday evening, I listened to Dr. Andy Roark talk candidly about his intermittent struggles with depression and what the UVC community means to him. He was open about the letdown of spending a great deal of time and effort on the April conference only to be forced to cancel it. He told us of the joy of creating something different that would fit more appropriately with the current state of our country, but also fill the needs of the UVC members.

That opening ceremony speech was all it took for me to realize this conference – virtual or not – was going to deliver all it was meant to. He wasn’t kidding when he said this was going to be like no other virtual conference anyone has ever experienced before!

Being a first-time UVC attendee, and being extremely shy, I struggled somewhat at the beginning. Luckily, there was a pre-conference workshop on how to navigate the technical aspect of the conference led by the incredible Jamie Holms. Her pre-conference workshop, which only took about 30 minutes, definitely helped me to be better prepared for the conference and feel more at ease about attending it.

What I was truly unprepared for was the sheer camaraderie and thoughtfulness of the members that make up this amazing UVC community.

At a “live” conference, I would have likely glommed onto a familiar face until I slowly gained the courage to introduce myself to other people, most likely one at a time. So, when we were told that we would be heading into smaller groups to introduce ourselves to each other and answer a few questions. I completely panicked! My mind went completely blank, except for my name and my geographical location.

And, then, I cried.

I felt so bad for the people in that first room with me. How were they supposed to interact with a crying and blubbering stranger on a computer screen hundreds of miles away? 

But, something truly amazing and unexpected happened. Kindness and understanding emulated from everyone. Nobody acted ashamed of me (other than myself) or acted as though I were crazy or foolish.

Senani Ratnayake reached out to me privately to ask me if I was alright and reassured me that no one would think less of me because of what happened and that she herself, believe it or not, was quite introverted.  

That reassurance, followed by similar messages from Jay Thrush and Stephenie Rensberger throughout the weekend, made me feel so much better and made me realize just how thoughtful and amazing this community truly is. I realized that no one was going to judge me, tell me that I wasn’t worthy enough to be there, tell me I wasn’t a good veterinarian, or feed into my impostor syndrome.

Those initial, reassuring messages from community members helped me to somewhat relax for the remainder of the conference, and I am so incredibly grateful for that. I recovered somewhat slowly, but within enough time to really get a lot out of what this conference had to offer.

The UVVC of 2020 was nothing short of innovative. I keep going back to the description of amazing, as well, for lack of any better word or phrase to describe it.  

It honestly didn’t feel like a “typical” virtual conference. Yes, I was sitting at my desk for a good majority of the weekend, but it didn’t feel tiring or laborious. There were too many interesting conversations and activities going on BETWEEN the workshops – from knock-knock jokes to dancing to taking “stealth” selfies with Andy to listening to Stephanie Goss’s infectious laughter – that you didn’t want to leave your computer for too long for fear of missing out on something really exciting, let alone important!

What other virtual conferences would give you the opportunity to share pancakes while still dressed in pajamas, be involved in a paint-and-sip session, join a round of Vets Against Insanity, be among other Harry Potter fanatics, share your computer screen with your beloved pet, or simply share a meaningful conversation with a fellow attendee?

And, those were just the “fun” activities!  

Now, because of my aforementioned shyness, I did not sign up for any of the “evening out” activities or attend the pancake breakfast, but by the end of the weekend, I was having very serious “FOMO” about that… a term I just learned at this conference!

Even though I don’t own a veterinary practice or have a managerial role whatsoever, my reservations for attending this conference were unfounded. I learned so many helpful things I can apply to practice without being the person “at the top.” I am constantly panicked and overwhelmed by all of the things I have to do, so attending “D.U.M.P. Your Overwhelm” with Dr. Phil Zeltzman was incredibly helpful. I went right out and purchased a nice, big planner so I could map out all of my projects appropriately once the items on my multiple to-do lists are all systematically prioritized! 

Kelsey Beth Carpenter’s creativity workshop was also amazing. I learned new ways of thinking about things and creating new material for the three social media sites that I am involved with running. The creation of memes was particularly enlightening!

The “Choose Your Own Adventure” sessions were equally impressive. They really created a way to talk amongst fellow colleagues about problems and situations that are relevant in the here and now. 

And, I can’t forget about the famous “Mic Drops!” They were phenomenal and so incredibly heartfelt! It is truly wonderful that a community like this exists and allows a person to share extremely personal and vulnerable speeches in a safe place free of any judgment.  

All in all, UVVC 2020 was not exactly what it was advertised to be. It was so much more. The way technology was used to create the live conference “feel” was innovative (and ingenious), and the team gave us an incredibly clever way to allow attendees to collaborate in smaller groups on topics related to the workshops, a signature of the UVC in its “normal” capacity.  

The feeling of camaraderie was really my take-home message from #UVVC 2020. I have never felt that feeling before when leaving any other conference. I’m usually left feeling excited about having learned new or updated material, but I often still feel alone – like it’s every man for himself.” 

I left this conference feeling that I belong to a community that understands me, who will lift me up if I trip and fall. I felt like I was saying goodbye to an amazing set of new friends. It made me sad enough that I cried when it was all over.  

I cried at the beginning, and I cried at the end… for very different reasons. If this is how I felt at the end of the virtual conference, I can’t imagine what the experience will be like at the “live” conference! Until that day arrives when we can actually see each other in person, you can bet I will be signing up for the virtual version! What an amazing and wild ride it was! I do expect – when I do get to attend a live conference, to receive TWO of the extraordinary hugs from Stephanie Goss that I hear so much about since I didn’t get to experience one this time!

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Unchartedvet.com editorial team.

This week on the Uncharted Veterinary Podcast, Dr. Andy Roark and Practice Management Goddess Stephanie Goss talk about when associate vets lean into gossip. Is it a show of support or a curse on the culture? Let's get into this!

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