How Dutch Hires Veterinarians And Ensures High Standards Of Care Through Telemedicine

Why pet owners are switching to online vet care with Dutch

  • Prescriptions delivered free to you

  • Fast access to Licensed Vets over video

  • Unlimited video visits and follow-ups

Talk to a vet

Dutch is committed to providing the highest level of care to every pet we treat. To ensure that we have consummate veterinarians who uphold our standards of care (more on that below), our recruiting, onboarding, and clinical teams carry out a detailed process of interviews and checks before any vet joins the platform while also incorporating ongoing quality assurance protocols once the vets are live and seeing clients.

Step 1: Credentials and Years of Experience

Before having an introductory call with a prospective Dutch vet, our recruiting team ensures that the vet does indeed have a Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine (DVM). This can be easily verified online through various state license lookups (example below). Once verified we will also ensure the vet has a minimum of three years of clinical experience.

Step 2: Introductory Recruiting Call

All vets interested in working with Dutch have a 30-minute introductory call with a Dutch recruiting coordinator. The goal of the call is to both educate prospective vets on how Dutch practices telemedicine while also gauging the vet’s fit with Dutch. Here are some of the discussion points we cover in each call:

  1. Clinical history: In addition to reviewing our vets resumes, we’ll ask about their clinical experience and specialties. Some vets may not feel as comfortable with some of the conditions we treat and so it’s important we understand what their core capabilities are.
  2. Familiarity with dogs and cats: Dutch treats dogs and cats only at this time and so all of our vets should have a deep understanding of and comfort with these species.
  3. Personal goals: Many vets have various reasons for looking into telemedicine roles. It’s important that we understand why our vets want to work with us and why they think this would fit for them. We’ve found that vets often want improved work-life balance, additional income (such as vets nearing retirement or vets on maternity leave), relief from clinical burnout, and finding purpose by making an impact in the industry through the innovations associated with telehealth.
  4. Fit with telemedicine: It’s critically important that vets are comfortable with the telemedicine laws in their respective state and that they feel comfortable treating pets through telemedicine.
  5. Platform capability: We give an end-to-end overview of how our telemedicine practice works, from scheduling initial Zoom calls to to our pharmacy fulfillment process to follow-ups. We also discuss our proprietary EMR software and how they will use that tool to gauge their comfort and fluency with software and online workflows.
  6. Standards of care: Dutch is committed to offering excellent customer service and a high standard of care. As part of that we expect professionalism, weekly availability to have calls, and responsiveness to care-related inquiries. It’s important that our vets are aligned with this ethos.

Step 3: Call with our Chief Medical Officer

If our recruiting team feels the vet would benefit from speaking to our Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Kate Elden, we’ll arrange a second call. This call is designed to give the vet an opportunity to get into the weeds and ask more clinical and tactical questions about the issues we treat and the way consultations work. This is a great opportunity for any vets who may be new to telemedicine to get additional details on what to expect while working on our platform.

Step 4: Contract Signing and Background Check

If the Dutch team and the vet mutually agree that Dutch is a good fit, an agreement is sent out for signature which includes compensation, terms, conditions, and other details about their independent contract.

Once signed, our veterinary operations team will request copies of the vet’s state license and DEA license. We also send a background check via Checkr. Once that clears we begin the onboarding process.

Step 5: Sign Standard of Care Statement

We send all of our vets our Standard of Care agreement to sign before joining the plattform. This ensures that our vets are committed to offering a high standard of care to the pets they see and the customers they work with. A copy of our agreement is below:

Step 6: Onboard and Train

Our onboarding process consists of a one-on-one call with our veterinary operations team followed by a review of our standard operating procedures.

Screenshot of Dutch training agenda

Step 7: Vet Shadowing

After onboarding is complete and the vets have had some time (typically 2–3 days to a week) reviewing training materials, our vets will shadow a live call with an active vet on the platform. The purpose is to have the new vet get familiar with client interactions, the pace of the call, and the follow-up process in our proprietary medical record software where they interact with clients, take notes, and create treatment plans.

Ongoing Support and Quality Control

Centralized Documentation

We make it easy for our vets to access training documents and videos, formularies and sample treatment plans, and other important information through an online platform. Having this centralized hub makes it easy for vets to log in and look up the information they need from a computer or smartphone.

Quality Checks

Once live on the platform, Dr. Kate Elden, our Chief Medical Officer, will review consultation notes, messages, and treatment plans to ensure that vets are treating pets appropriately on the platform. She does this on a weekly basis.

Service Checks and Scorecards

Our veterinary operations team has access to veterinary performance data such as message response times, percentage of calls canceled and completed, and percentage of consultations with the necessary follow-ups. We send out weekly scorecards to each individual vet with these key metrics and also provide qualitative feedback from customers. Our goal here is to highlight what’s going well while also addressing any potential areas of improvement.

Continuing Education

Dutch hosts a monthly Zoom session (or rounds) each month with a visiting veterinary specialist who is an expert on a particular topic. We have had specialists come and talk about behavior and dermatology for example, and those vets in attendance can get continuing education (CE) for their participation. Holding monthly rounds is a great way to ensure our vets are staying up to date with the latest pet health trends while also providing them a forum to connect with each other and the rest of the team.

Final Notes

We’re constantly evolving our processes to ensure that we hire top quality vets and provide them with the tools and support they need to deliver the best care, quickly and affordably online. Our vets are committed to doing what’s best for every pet — even if that means referring a pet parent to an in-person vet.

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Frequently asked questions

With Dutch, you’re never alone when it comes to your pet’s health. Whether your pet needs care or you just have a question, our compassionate and knowledgeable vets are always happy to help.

Here are some ways you can use Dutch:

  • Care & prescriptions for over 150 issues
  • Behavioral health, nutrition, and exercise advice
  • Puppy, kitten, and new pet parent advice
  • Preventive care plans
  • Night and weekend vet care
  • Second opinions & follow-up care after in-person visits
  • Advice on whether you need to go to the ER or urgent care
  • Vet care when you’re traveling
  • Easy prescription refills
  • Longevity treatment plans 
  • Answers to non-urgent questions

Our vets can treat 90% of issues — but we encourage all pet parents to maintain a relationship with a local vet for things that require hands-on care. This includes: 

  • Yearly exams
  • Emergencies
  • Issues that require physical examinations (like a wound that needs stitches or trouble breathing)
  • Blood work and imaging (X-rays or ultrasounds)
  • Vaccines
  • Surgeries
  • Procedures
  • Injectable medications (if your pet needs them)

The health and safety of pets is our top priority. If one of our vets believes an in-person visit is best for your pet, they’ll refer you to a local veterinarian and advise you how to care for them until they can be seen. Our vets are happy to provide second opinions and follow-up care after in-person vet visits.

You and your pet will have a 10-minute video call with a licensed veterinarian. Here’s what to expect:

Before the call

When booking the call online, you'll be asked a few questions about your pet. Depending on the issue, you may need to fill out a longer questionnaire about their symptoms or share photographs of them so our veterinarians can better understand what’s going on. You’ll then pick an appointment time. Make sure your pet will be with you at that time — the vet will need to see them on the call.

During the video call

One of our vets will talk to you about the symptoms your pet is experiencing, ask you questions, review your pet’s medical history if you’ve provided it, look at your pet on camera, and answer any questions you have. They may ask you to perform some simple checks on your pet, like raising their gums, if needed.

After the call

The vet will send you a message with a custom treatment plan to help your pet feel better, including a link to buy any recommended prescription or over-the-counter medications. Place your order and we’ll ship it free. If you have any questions, you can message your vet anytime or book another appointment with the same vet to follow up.

Our vets can provide care and prescriptions for more than 150 issues — and over 90% of cases can be treated virtually. 

The vet can diagnose your pet based on your description of their symptoms, their medical history, seeing them during your video call, and, if needed, through uploaded photos and videos. They may ask you to do a few simple checks during the call. We also offer a number of at-home lab test kits for dogs and cats.

The health and safety of pets is our top priority. In the rare case that a vet determines a pet needs to go to a local clinic, they’ll provide a referral and offer advice on how to care for them until they can be seen. 

Some things that require in-person care include emergencies, wounds that need stitches, and issues that require blood work, imaging (X-rays or ultrasounds), or surgery.

Our vets are always available for second opinions and follow-up care after in-person vet visits — so you don’t have to navigate health issues alone.

Our memberships are designed to make your pet’s care as easy and affordable as possible. Here’s how your costs will break down:

Membership: You can choose to pay the total price upfront or in 4 installments. All memberships include unlimited care for up to 5 pets at no extra cost.

Vet calls and messaging: No cost — video chat and message with vets as often as you need for free.

Medication: The price will vary depending on your pet’s needs. To keep your costs down, we offer a price-match guarantee, free standard shipping, $25 off your first product order, and 20% off your first flea & tick order.

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