National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America
P.O. Box 224, Battle Ground, IN 47920, www.navta.net

The following is a summary of the 2003 National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America (NAVTA) national demographic survey conducted by the AVMA’s Statistical Research Group. This survey has been conducted every four years since 1991. Questionnaires were sent to two groups of veterinary technicians - all 2003 Active NAVTA members and a second group of randomly selected nonmembers. Fifty-seven percent of NAVTA members returned their surveys, with 46% of the nonmembers responding.

Salary - Number One Concern

Veterinary technicians were asked to identify the three most significant problems they currently face in their careers. Although incomes have increased since we started collecting data, salary was still the number one concern.

Other concerns voiced by respondents included burnout, competition with assistants trained on the job, and lack of opportunity for advancement.

Future Concerns

Respondents were also asked to look toward the future and predict what three issues will most likely affect them five years from now. It was the general feeling that salary will continue to be an issue. (66.8% - Members, 67.4% - Nonmembers)

Forty-two percent of Members indicated that specialization in veterinary technology was the number two issue that would affect them five years from now, followed by 32.4% indicating credentialing for veterinary technicians, and 31.4% indicating non-educational ways to earn the title veterinary technician.

Career Satisfaction

Overall career satisfaction increased very slightly. Fourteen percent of Members and 19% of Nonmembers indicated they would probably or definitely change to another career in the future.

Philosophical Issues

NAVTA members responded to the following philosophical questions with little change from 1999.

Technology

Computer usage at home and work continues to increase. In the practice, 92% of respondents indicated they use the computer at work. Forty-nine percent for inventory, 88.3% for client records, 57.1% for word-processing, and 46.8% for Internet access.

We did find that NAVTA members overall use their computers, both at home and work, significantly more than the Nonmember group. It is also interesting to note how infrequently the Internet is accessed in the workplace.

This is the first in a series of informational summaries. Detailed articles relating to the data are appearing in the 2004 quarterly issues of The NAVTA Journal.
A. Patrick Navarre, BS, RVT & Carlene A. Decker, BS, CVT

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