The Case for Rural Veterinary Practice with Dr. Trevor Hook

Would you rather be practicing veterinary medicine in a small town or in a big city?

If you ask Dr. Trevor Hook, you may find yourself convinced to go with the former!

Dr. Trevor Hook took his undergraduate studies in Animal Sciences at the University of Alberta and graduated with honours in Veterinary Medicine from the University of Saskatchewan in 2011. 

After graduating, he started at Central Veterinary Clinic, a mixed animal practice in Ponoka, AB, where after he developed his skills out of school it didn't take long for him to question whether the grass was greener in other places. He decided to pursue other options back in the city, but quickly found himself drawn back to the shorter commutes, community relationships, and simpler life of being in a small town.

In 2015 he became a partner of Central Veterinary Clinic, right before the practice expanded into a new facility in 2016. He remains at the clinic to this day and they have recently established a second location.

Trevor received the ABVMA Young Veterinarian of the Year award in 2015 and was selected for the CVMA Emerging Leaders Program Program in 2018 and Central Veterinary Clinic has received multiple awards for its strong mentorship and teaching environment.

Trevor has special interest in equine performance horse medicine, orthopedic surgery and dairy herd management. He lives with his wife Deserae have 3 young children and if you don't find him at work, you will find him wrestling with his kids. In his spare time he enjoys spending time with his family in the outdoors, hiking, canoeing, mountain biking, adventure racing, and really playing any sport, especially hockey

In our conversation with Trevor we cover:

• Deciding whether or not to chase the grass that MAY be greener on the other side
• The pros of practicing veterinary medicine in rural communities
• Creating a quality clinic culture in rural mixed practices
• Mastering work / life integration
• Why you've got to keep learning to create an interesting career for yourself
• Trevor's open and honest take on the challenges of running and managing the business of veterinary practice
• Building trust with your clients (it takes time!)

To connect with Trevor you can find him on social media and via e-mail:

IG: @hooktrevor

drhook@centralvetclinic.ca

Thank you for joining us on the show, Trevor!

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Want to join our community of like-minded Veterinary Professionals? Send us an email at theveterinaryprojectpodcast@gmail.com and we'll get you connected to our private Veterinary Project Facebook group.

Any questions, comments, feedback, or requests for guests can also be sent to theveterinaryprojectpodcast@gmail.com. Thank you for listening and we look forward to seeing you next Wednesday for another episode of The Veterinary Project Podcast!

- Jonathan Leicht, DVM and Michael Bugg, DVM