(Practice manager Karen Rooney and associate veterinarian Karen Angele, DVM, hold up fresh-baked cookies they baked and distributed to staff and clients at AAHA-accredited Burr Ridge Veterinary Clinic in Darien, Illinois. Photo courtesy of Burr Ridge Veterinary Clinic.)

Despite being busy than ever, AAHA-member practices managed to take time out on July 22, AAHA-Accredited Practice Day, to celebrate their AAHA accreditation in person and on social media.

AAHA-accredited hospitals throughout the US and Canada wore red or custom-made gear and used the creativity of their teams to raise awareness about the value of AAHA accreditation.  

We saw social posts in languages ranging from French to Spanish, and across countries and territories from Canada to Puerto Rico. 

Ways practices celebrated this year:

• Goodie bags for clients with AAHA info inside
• Ice cream stands
• Snow cone stations
• Photo booths
• Social media pop quizzes and giveaways
• Pet owner education workshops
• Scavenger hunt for clients and their pets
• Raffles
• Baked goods
• Special treats for staff
• Hospital decorations
• Discounts on preventive meds With an AAHA Day discount code

A few hospitals went above and beyond, like AAHA-accredited Bellalago Veterinary Hospital in Kissimmee, Florida, which held a fundraiser for their Dr. Christa Young Memorial Angel Fund. The fund which provides emergency funding to clients who can’t afford to pay for lifesaving pet care.

Online awareness

The AAHA Day hashtag grew to over three thousand posts on Instagram alone this year, 2022, and the AAHA-accredited Hospital Day landing page on aaha.org saw more than 200 new visitors during AAHA week.  

AAHA-Accredited Practice Day was a hit on social media, too, with AAHA-accredited hospitals posting more than 350 posts tagged #AAHADay, including on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook.

Here at AAHA, July 22 is a day that serves to remind us that AAHA-Accredited Hospital Day isn’t about AAHA, it’s about our accredited hospitals—and more importantly, about the dedicated veterinary professionals who work there and spend their days upholding the AAHA Standards of Accreditation—standards that reflect their own expectations of themselves.

And for that, AAHA thanks you.

A happy customer poses with a staff-member at AAHA-accredited Wheatland Animal Hospital in Naperville, Illinois. Photo courtesy of Wheatland Animal Hospital.