Accreditation & Standards

We are very proud of the fact that we are a fully accredited AAHA hospital member, the highest category of accreditation achievable. Less than 14% of the small animal facilities in North America can claim this distinction. Our most recent re-evaluation in October, 2008 yielded an "excellent" rating in all categories.

AAHA Hospital Accreditation

To be an accredited American Animal Hospital Association Member, a veterinary practice must meet the Association's high standards for quality veterinary care. This is a voluntary membership whose goal is to uphold a substantially higher standard of medical care and facility resources than most states minimally require.

AAHA Hospital Standards

AAHA professionals regularly evaluate our hospital to ensure that we maintain the highest standards and provide the best veterinary care we can. The AAHA Standards of Excellence comprehensively cover the following areas and services in our hospital and require very specific adherence to the guidelines, which far exceed the minimum state requirements for a veterinary facility:

• Pet Medical Records
• Pharmacy
• Radiology Services
• Surgery
• Nursing Care
• Medical Library
• Examination Facilities
• Pathology Services
• Anesthesia
• Dentistry
• Housekeeping and Maintenance
• Emergency Services
  

Brief AAHA History and Purpose

Founded in November 1933, the American Animal Hospital Association started in Chicago with about 100 veterinarians attending the American Veterinary Medical Association annual meeting. At that time, most of the few veterinarians who treated pets offered only meager facilities. Dogs and cats were "second class citizens" as far as the profession was concerned and packing case "cages" were customary. Nursing care was nonexistent and surgery was crude.

These veterinarians saw the need to improve the practice of small animal medicine and recognized that the exchange of information through a fraternal association could be the genesis of improved standards and the foundation for a continuing education commitment from the profession.

Two years later, the Association was formally incorporated. On October 18,1935, the State of Illinois granted a charter to the American Animal Hospital Association.

Since its beginning, the AAHA has insisted on improvement. The founders were convinced that small animal practice was important and felt that veterinarians were obligated to provide better facilities and methods than were generally available. That philosophy is alive and well as a guiding principle of AAHA today. It has helped stimulate and maintain the growth and development not only of the Association but of the practice of small animal medicine throughout the world.

Today, AAHA is respected internationally for its dedication to professional development, hospital standards, outstanding publications, and the excellence of its education programs. This recognition and the strength of the organization are a tribute to the vision of its founders and the leadership and dedication of the many veterinarians who have sacrificed time and energy to serve the Association through the years. Their contributions are evident today in a strong, viable, and dynamic association that continues to be on the "leading edge" of the veterinary profession.