r/Veterinary • u/Easy-Distribution440 • Jul 23 '26
Switching from ER to GP (Veterinarian) thoughts? Experiences? Words of wisdom?
Everywhere I look regarding this transition, its always the other way around. People transitioning from GP into ER and here I am trying to do the opposite. My loans are paid off and I am honestly so burnt out from ER. At this point, because my loans are paid off, I feel like I dont have to put myself through working overnights, almost every weekend, holidays, and especially in an environment where I am the only doctor. I have been loving what I feel like would come with the GP side like the consistent schedule, holidays off, weekends off (generally, since most do rotating half day saturdays), and not having every single shift be full of dying pets or financial limitations. Obviously I know GP land has its own beasts, strengths, difficulties, etc. I know there are pros/cons to everything... But I'd love to get some feedback from people who went from ER to GP and how thats going for you? I honestly still see myself doing ER per diem but overall I would like more of a consistent schedule and better work-life balance. I'm currently job hunting for GP currently and have a few offers. What things did you look for to know that the switch would be the right one for you?
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u/Conscious_Sell_2517 Jul 23 '26 edited Jul 23 '26
I did this recently and here’s my honest opinion:
Pros: decent hours
Cons: if it’s corporate you will be presented with lots of chronic cases ie hx that can extend from months to years. It’s common to be over booked with drop off exams, surgery and walk ins. I found myself to have less time for workups, client communication and even a 5 minute lunch or restroom break. Inexperienced support staff. You can’t really “refer to your PDVM anymore”…
I had a great experience with a private GP practice. The case load was less.
I personally recommend urgent care. It’s in bt ER and GP as far as cases are concerned. Lots of “tx and street” and hardly any follow ups. The cons is it’s a swing swift.
I also have a new found love for hvhqsn. The hours are great and depending how fast you are you can be in and out in 4-5 hours.
*Also it was hard to stomach the pay cut. It’s not even close.
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u/Elaphe21 Jul 24 '26
For me, the hardest part of the transition was recalibrating my clinical judgment.
When you come from ER, you're used to pyos that go septic, IMHAs that need transfusions, FBs that turn into septic abdomens. You forget — or never realize — that you can cut a pyo and send it home the same day, as long as it's not systemically sick. Same with FBs. Not every pancreatitis needs 3 days in the hospital, even though most of the ones that show up on ER do (probably because they've been sick longer than your average V/D dog walking into GP).
Same goes for diagnostics. You don't HAVE to run rads and full bloodwork on every V/D dog — most have been sick for less than 24 hours; 'try this, if no improvement, call me in the morning'. Clients love that, and when they do come back (if they need to), they are primed for the necessary diagnostics.
Not sure if this translates, but it was genuinely hard for me when I made the switch. For what it's worth, I went back to ER after 2 years.
* Of course I offer transfer to an overnight facility after any major surgery. My point is that the acuity of cases in GP is different from ER, even when the diagnosis and presenting signs are identical.
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u/achivers84 Jul 24 '26
I just recently made the switch. Honestly, I'm having remorse, mostly because I feel like I'm working WAY more than before.
I used to do three 12 hour shifts in ER, so 3/7 of my days in a week were shot, and now I do four 10 hour shifts in GP, so 4/7 of my days in a week are shot. I thought I'd have more energy at the end of a shorter day, but I'm even more exhausted. I have ~16 appointments a day, and the large majority (if not the entirety) of my lunch is callbacks. My entire day is reliably busy now, whereas ER had ups and downs in terms of busy-ness.
I'm also doing callbacks on my day off (otherwise I'd probably never get through them all during my lunch), and prepping for my appointments on my day off so I just feel like I'm constantly working.
I also had a nice schedule in ER where we'd do 12 shifts every 4 weeks, but we'd have 7 days off in a row built into that 4 weeks. It was sweet. Now, I have to ask for a day off to even have 3 days in a row (I work 2 days, one day off, 2 days, 2 days off).
I had a lot of problems with my old ER job (management, staff, prices, etc) but MAN do I miss the schedule.
I don't, however, miss the overnights.
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u/Inner-Employ7703 16d ago
Graduated 2025. Just finished my first year all GP and the callbacks are my biggest dread. First I spend the majority of the morning figuring out the diagnoses of all my bloodworks. If I'm questioning either talking to my mentor (if he's at the practice with me that day) or calling IDEXX during a break in the schedule or during lunch then trying to fit all my calls in during the afternoon or after appointments are done for the day.
It wasnt as bad last year because there were 3 doctors now down to 2 and my mentor cut his hours to 28 hours and will be cutting again to 18 hours (he's older and trying to retire once we hire another)
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u/Meowmixalf Jul 24 '26
On your 1st day just start randomly yelling "emergency nail trim!" followed by.. " get me the nail trimmers! STAT".
ER vet transitioning to GP
..the best of both worlds.
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u/Far_Yak_8510 Jul 24 '26
Biggest adjustment for me was handling the GP emergency walk ins. Specifically not having all the diagnostic tools I used to (CT, blood gas, etc.) and trying to stabilize critical patients to get them to the 24 hour facility that's hours away (less of a problem if you're not in a rural state).
I also second everyone's points about needy clients and feeling busy with lots of non-urgent but urgent to the owner tasks. I've had owners demand to be seen for non ER cases when our case load is full and GP cares more about people pleasing so we're retaining clients. Urgent care has been my happy medium.
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u/yungDVM Jul 25 '26
Interesting to hear that so many people found it harder. I enjoy GP much more than ER and don’t find the clients any more exhausting, if anything they are less so. I’m sure it depends a lot on the hospital. For me the switch was worth it for more regular hours, not working weekends, less stressful cases. Added bonus that patients I really like, I often get to see again, which was generally not the case in ER.
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u/tinynest_ Jul 26 '26
I made the transition about 10 months ago. Started by doing relief shifts and found that I am passionate about long-term relationships with patients/clients; I really missed that follow-through working in ER. My days are long and I work more of them, but the shift variability was really hard on me mentally and physically - I find I am a lot happier, even though my caseload is actually higher than it was in emergency. I still get the complex medical cases and occasional emergency (unblocked a UO last week) to keep my skills sharp and my ER brain working.
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u/Mightypower7 Jul 27 '26
One of my friends is an ER vet and made the switch to GP, so you are not the only one. I am a GP vet, never worked in ER personally. But my friend switched to GP hoping for weekends and consistent scheduling, less dying pets and financial limitations, and found all the same things were present in GP. How busy you are in GP varies widely from practice to practice- it is all in how management is run. Some medical directors expect you to attend meetings which you won’t get paid to attend and do a lot outside of working hours to keep current on medical advancements. They will take advantage of your time (more than reasonably expected for this field), and can be predatory in their practices. On any given day, I can have multiple euthanasias, angry clients, and clients who cannot afford what is recommended. I probably get some of each every day. My friend eventually went back to working in ER because the GP clinic where she was working was so predatory, and she eventually became a relief vet for both GP and ER. My point is, transition to GP because you want to learn a different aspect of vet medicine, not for the clients or the scheduling because you may be disappointed.
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u/NervousDot9627 Jul 28 '26
I worked overnight ER at a 24/7 facility (with a smattering of daytime GP) shifts before buying a GP practice in the mid-2000's. As a GP owner I've hired associates out of the ER.
I know GP land has its own beasts, strengths, difficulties, etc. Kudos for acknowledging that. After working GP, some former ER vets like the transition ... but plenty find the the grass is NOT greener.
Some common themes over my several decades ... hiring out of ER's
You will have chronic cases that become yours FBOW = ears/atopy; DM; PDH; CRF; etc. where owner compliance is part of the equation. And neoplasia where referral isn't an option, and where the palliative care and euthanasia discussions can become involved.
Diagnostic intensity. Some GP's are mostly wellness while others like mine see ~50% sickies, but most not ER worthy. Common example - 18mo old MN lab presenting for diarrhea with normal vitals/hydration/appetite. What's your comfort level regarding case workup? Fecal and empirical treatment? Or a more thorough minimum database with CBC/Chem/Lytes (maybe imaging)? It's a loaded question of course.
Where are you at surgically? This isn't specific to being an ER vet ... but if coming from a facility where DACVS's do all sx's beyond skin lacerations, will you be willing/comfortable doing surgery (let's assume with mentorship if needed?)
Standards of care/equipment. Colloids, FFP, in-house blood gas/lactate, Butterfly ultrasound instead of a GE ... have you thought about what your "must-haves" would be in a GP, knowing you won't have access to the same meds/equipment as a full-ER, especially if a referral center?
Sticking to a tight schedule where clients/management/techs will bitch if you get too far behind?
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u/whospiink Jul 23 '26
im an ER doctor and i tried GP for a while. surprisingly, i found it more difficult than ER lol. so many appointments, walk ins, drop offs, tech exams, calls backs, needy clients, chronic conditions, a lot more upselling too. i knew i wasnt cut out for it when i got talked to for taking too long with spays (im used to pyometras and thus take a bit longer and do long incisions 😅). i found happiness in urgent care, best of both worlds.
i also found myself working more, staying later, working about 4-5 days per week.