Why Technology Isn’t One Size Fits All for Horses.

We live in a world dominated by technology. The pace of change has been breathtaking, and advances have made equine practice easier, more innovative and more efficient. But is technology the key to a successful 21st-century equine practice? Clients may view new technology as evidence that a practitioner is cutting edge and committed to the latest in equine care. As such, investing in technology may be thought of as a form of advertising. The equine world is filled with an almost limitless number of devices that blink, shine or magnetize. Practitioners should consider whether they can recoup their investment in treatment technologies. In some circumstances, technology clearly decreases the time needed to accomplish a task. For example, digital radiography offers significant advantages insofar as the speed with which radiographs are processed, ultimately allowing practitioners to take more radiographs compared to other technologies. Similarly, distributing the radiographs can be done via email, negating the need for telephone communication. As much as we may want it to be so, technology does not always result in greater efficiency. Practices that lean heavily on technology systems may be virtually paralyzed if a system breaks down or if a provider is unresponsive or, even worse, goes out of business. New technologies come with learning curves that can make implementation a struggle and result in lost productivity and frustration.continue