Artificial intelligence is poised to radically transform workflow and how we do business in veterinary hospitals, helping practice owners and leaders achieve some of their loftiest service and patient care goals. But the topic is so broad, and the changes so rapid, that figuring out where to begin can be overwhelming. Here is a methodical approach to introducing this wondrous, complicated tool to your practice.

Already, the reality is impressive

Whether built into your practice information management software, connected through a third party, or used independently, AI is already doing some remarkable things. The capabilities and how much work they can complete inside your software vary by product.

• More client face time: AI transcription tools can turn dictation or recorded exam room conversations into draft medical records, allowing doctors to spend more time looking at clients and patients and less time looking at screens.
• Time saving summaries: Other tools can summarize a patient’s available medical history (including some of those colossal medical records carried over from previous hospitals), bringing previous problems, medications, diagnostics, and treatments together for review before today’s appointment.
• Rule outs and treatment suggestions: Some systems go further. They can use medical notes to suggest additional rule outs, treatments, and corresponding products or services for the veterinarian to approve.
• Fewer missed charges: Connecting those approved selections to billing can help reduce missed charges and the communication gaps between what was discussed, what was done, and what appeared on the invoice. The doctor still makes the medical decisions, and the team verifies the charges.
• Effortless go-home instructions: AI can also draft discharge instructions based on the visit. Think about what that makes possible: one set of instructions for the adult responsible for the pet’s care and a separate, age-appropriate explanation for the child who came along and wants to understand what happened. The medical directions remain consistent, but the explanation can speak to the person receiving it. Your team reviews both before they go home.
• Agentic client service: Client communication is changing, too. Veterinary platforms now combine tools such as online booking, website messaging, AI-drafted responses, and automated follow-up. More advanced agents can conduct a conversation with clients before an appointment, gather information about the patient, and summarize it for the team. Exactly what can happen autonomously depends on the product, its permissions, and its connection to your software.

Imagine where this is going

But as the saying goes, “But wait, there’s more!” In today’s veterinary world, we connect to AI through a keyboard; in tomorrow’s we’ll likely connect to AI through voice, much like some of you are already doing when interfacing with ChatGPT, Claude, or Grok. You’re not writing to the AI assistant, you are talking to it, and… it’s talking back!

• Effortless Flow of Information: Imagine an AI assistant that, with appropriate permission, listens to conversations throughout the hospital and keeps the right people informed. A doctor working in Exam 1 approves a change in treatment, and the technician responsible for that patient can know about the change in real time.
• Instant patient updates: A client calls to ask about her cat, Meredith. The CSR repeats the question to the AI connected with the PIMS. AI reviews any medical notes made as well as conversations that the team has had about the patient with AI at other terminals and provides the CSR with the update: “Dr. Rose and Cynthia finished Meredith’s examination this morning, she received her medication and is making progress. Dr. Rose asked me to remind him to call the owner during his lunch break. Do you want me to see if he’s available now?”
• No more hunting down information: A client wants to know if you have a big bag of C/D to sell. Inventory says you are out, but you want to make sure. You ask AI to check a fixed camera focused on the basement shelves and AI responds, “I can see two bags of feline c/d on the second shelf. Do you want me to check the bag size?” No leaving your desk, no walking through the building on an Easter egg hunt, just streamlined service.

AI could be like a quantum human, present in many places at once and helping everyone understand what is happening with a patient in real time. That kind of coordination could reduce our dependence on whiteboards, travel sheets, repeated conversations, and trips through the hospital in search of a person or a pet. Getting there will require reliable information, connected systems, and clear rules about what the assistant may hear, share, and do. But the possibilities are extraordinary. And here’s a bet I would like to make with you. It’s actually two-fold. The pot? If you win, I bring you a jar of my homemade apple butter to the next meeting I see you at. If I win, I get big-time bragging rights.

• The live, back-and-forth, ubiquitous, real-time help of AI described above will be available in the next two years.
• The real limits of AI will not be technology or integration; it will be human understanding and implementation.

AI challenges for today’s leaders

As great as all that sounds, there are some major logistics concerns.

What AI can, and will do, for the world outside our hospitals and in is changing so rapidly that building the hospital of the future is like laying a foundation on shifting sands. A process we carefully introduce today may need substantial revision in eighteen months or two years. How do you make useful progress when you cannot know exactly what comes next?

1. Start with the hospital you want to be

Revisit what you want to achieve for clients, patients, and employees. Historically, mission and vision statements have been easier to write than to put into practice. We describe the hospital we want to run, then struggle to build the processes that will get us there. As those processes multiply and become more complicated, we can lose sight of the original goal. AI gives us additional tools to close that gap. But we still have to know where we are going. Do you want clients to feel better informed? Do you want doctors to finish their records before they leave? Do you want fewer interruptions, stronger follow-through on patient care, or less confusion about who is doing what? Be specific. Knowing what you want to achieve will help you sort through the myriad of services available and recognize which ones deserve your attention. Then ask your team: What gets in the way of delivering this today? Identify the repeated work, missing information, and other obstacles that keep your vision from becoming the everyday experience.

2. Ask AI to help you evaluate your options

Give ChatGPT or another AI assistant your mission, vision, and any specific problems you want to solve. Identify your practice management software, staffing constraints, and budget. Ask the AI assistant to help you decide what additional data points you should consider and to give you direction on how you can access them. Finally, ask AI to provide a list of options ranked in order of ROI and how easy each will be to implement. If you like, also ask for additional ‘thoughts’ on training and long-term benefits.

3. Retain ownership of the decision and implementation

Now comes your part. Review that list as a leader and as a team. AI can organize information and suggest priorities, but it may miss the human considerations that determine whether an initiative succeeds: who is already overwhelmed, where trust is thin, or which seemingly small problem is making everyone’s day miserable. Use its analysis to inform your judgment. Decide for yourselves what comes first, second, and later.

4. Use the Follow Through Formula for implementation guidance

When introducing any initiative, leaders need a detailed implementation plan. I know that sounds like an obvious recommendation, but there are aspects of change that we routinely fail to plan for, leaving otherwise worthwhile ideas open to failure. Consider these questions before you begin:

• Is the goal motivational? Why will people care? Is this something my staff will want to do or feel like they have to do? Describe the problem and the proposed improvement in terms that matter to the people doing the work. Fewer records to finish after dinner means more than better documentation efficiency.
• Who owns each part? Identify who is responsible for setup, training, daily use, and resolving problems. Thinking of the specific individuals that will be involved in the rollout will guard against more dropped balls than if you think of ownership in terms of departments.
• What training is needed? Give people time to learn, practice, and ask questions.
• How will this become habitual? Specify when the tool enters the workflow and what existing step it replaces. Invite the team to decide when tools will be used during the cycle of service. Remember, training builds understanding; repetition builds consistency.
• Feedback: When will you check in? Dropping in on employees proactively, before setbacks, gives you an opportunity to be a coach that supports growth, not the cop that catches failure.
• Leadership response: How you respond to either success or failure definitely decides whether your goal will thrive or take a dive. Your reaction to stagnation, mistakes, or outright failure can help the team recover or make people less willing to tell you what is happening. For more on building initiatives that last, visit the Follow Through Formula through this link:

5. Consider whether your software can support the direction you want to go

One additional consideration deserves attention: whether to remain with your server-based software or move to a cloud-based system. My sense is that cloud-based software deserves serious consideration because of the opportunities for connected workflows, centrally delivered updates, and integration with other services. Some veterinary cloud platforms already provide extensive integration capabilities. But cloud-based alone does not tell you how well a particular system will support your practice. Before choosing a new system, investigate three things.

• First, who owns and controls your data? Understand your rights to access it and how the company may use it, including whether it can be used to train AI.
• Second, how portable is your information? If you become unhappy and want to leave, what can you export? Will that include complete medical records, attachments, invoices, and client information in usable formats? What will it cost, and how long will it take?
• Third, how healthy and capable is the company? Investigate its financial footing, customer support, development history, and technical team. Ask vendors to demonstrate the integrations you need today and explain how they manage changes when a partner updates its product. No company can promise compatibility with every AI tool that has yet to be invented. You can, however, evaluate how it handles change now. An AI assistant can help you prepare questions and compare the answers. Ask providers to substantiate their responses, and speak with practices using the workflows you are considering.

It’s here. Baby steps mean that you can participate without being overwhelmed

AI is poised to make some of your most aspirational service and patient care goals more achievable. In 2027, take a serious look at whether your current software can support those goals and whether a move to the cloud would improve your options. Most of all, revisit your vision of the hospital you want to run. That vision will help you choose improvements that matter, make thoughtful use of your team’s energy, and judge whether the technology is delivering what you hoped. For more help untangling your thoughts on efficiency, workflow and technology, reach out to bash@halowconsulting.com