Helpful Resources for Your Veterinary Technicians

Posted by Des Sinkevich on October 17, 2023

Through National Vet Tech Week and beyond, it’s vital to support and help your practice’s vet techs grow. Not only does encouraging continuing education and training help your clinic, it also helps your techs become more confident and skilled in their work. Below, find a number of resources that you can share with your veterinary technicians to help them thrive in the industry!

Vet tech wrapping tortoiseshell cat's leg in blue vet wrap.

Resources for vet techs

There are many resources out there for veterinary technicians, both free and paid. Here are a few that can be helpful to your techs.

NAVTA: NAVTA is a dynamic community of credentialed veterinary technicians dedicated to advancing the profession of veterinary nursing through advocacy, awareness, and professional development. Student memberships are $35/yr. An individual enrolled in an AVMA-accredited veterinary technology or veterinary nursing education program (that does not have a Student Chapter of NAVTA) is entitled to all benefits of an Associate Member.

Fear Free is a great course of study that can be beneficial to all veterinary staff and patients. Through student and faculty memberships, you’ll have complimentary access to their veterinary certification programs. This offer is open to faculty, staff, and students of all levels for the duration of their time in school, and we encourage you to take advantage of the veterinary certification programs as early as possible.

VetGirl: The #1 Veterinary CE Resource for Busy Veterinary Professionals. VetGirl is a subscription-based multimedia service offering RACE-approved, online continuing education for veterinary professionals. Free and discounted memberships are available for students. VetFolio With hundreds of veterinary CE courses available in a variety of formats — videos, webinars, articles and more — covering a wide range of topics, VetFolio is the veterinary community’s most respected online education resource. VetFolio student subscriptions are open to all students currently seeking a degree as a veterinarian or veterinary technician/nurse. Students will have access to VetFolio's subscription content including, podcasts, webinars, articles, video learning library and certificate courses, for the length of their academic career.

Veterinary Information Network: VIN The Veterinary Information Network, or VIN, offers veterinary students’ complimentary membership. VIN has many features including discussion forums, highlights from recently published journal articles, Rounds, online veterinary textbooks, a student section that includes resources for students, and SO MUCH MORE! VIN is a great resource for studying, diving into topics that interest you, and participating in case challenges. An annual VIN Membership is $810 annually, so be sure to take advantage of this great deal! For more information click HERE.

HSVMA The Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association (HSVMA) was formed as a home for veterinary professionals who want to engage in direct care programs for animals in need and educate the public and others in the profession about animal welfare issues. They offer FREE student memberships with access to all HSVMA webinars (both live and recorded) – $49 savings per webinar, scholarships, internships/externships and award opportunities, HSVMA program updates, news, and alerts including a quarterly student e-newsletter and special discounts on books and publications.

AAHA The American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) simplifies your journey towards veterinary excellence. Though most veterinary practices join as accredited organizations, students in veterinary technician programs and veterinary programs are eligible for a complimentary membership while you’re taking classes. It includes access to AAHA Guidelines to see clinical protocols and recommended evidence-guided practices, free subscriptions to AAHA’s journal, JAAHA® and practice management magazine, Trends® magazine, and more!

Vetcetera offers veterinary professionals and practices free and discounted membership options. Vetcetera provides veterinarians access to live and on-demand resources on topics not often covered in traditional continuing education, such as mental health and wellness techniques, business resources, client management and support, financial planning, and personnel best practices. Delivered through a modern, user-friendly interface, the inclusive online portal caters to different learning styles and busy experts by providing access to live webinars, on-demand videos, blogs, whitepapers, and more.

VTNE test prep - At the end of Penn Foster’s Veterinary Technician Degree Program Semester 4, there is an entire course dedicated to practicing and preparing for the VTNE for Penn Foster students. It is just prior to the externship and is the culmination of everything the student has learned, including how they will apply that on the VTNE examination. It also provides them with several practice tests. Penn Foster offers a discount for the VTNE test prep course. Students will receive an email while they are in the VTNE course with details.

Offering continued resources and education to support vet techs

Learning and continuously improving skills is an important part of being a veterinary technician. As a practice manager or veterinarian-owner, it’s important to ensure that your vet techs have access to the tools they need to succeed – and make a difference! That can often start with making sure they’re prepared to be credentialed veterinary technicians. Not sure where to start? Penn Foster’s training experts can help. Reach out to us today to learn more about how online education and training can benefit your practice in the future.