I’m Back — So, What Did I Think of AAHA CON?
After three packed days of learning, networking, honest conversations, and a little exhaustion, I’m finally answering the question: What did I really think of AAHA CON? From the sessions and speakers to the conversations with fellow veterinary professionals—and even a few moments that challenged my perspective—here’s my unfiltered review of the experience and whether I’d do it all over again.
I’m back!
Which means catching up on emails, returning phone calls, getting back into the normal rhythm of work, and—most importantly—spending some much-needed time with my husband and kids. It’s surprising how much I missed in just a few days away. Apparently, everyone continues living their lives when I leave town. Rude.
Now that I’ve had a little time to process the experience, I can finally answer the question: What did I actually think of AAHA CON?
Overall, my experience was positive.
One thing I genuinely enjoyed was the pace of the conference. I love to have fun—and yes, I absolutely love to dance—but I’m not someone who needs constant noise, crowds, and chaos to have a good time. After a full day of learning and networking, I actually appreciated having some breathing room.
You could walk. You could think. You could sit down and relax between sessions. If you needed a quiet space for a few minutes, you could find one.
There was plenty happening without feeling like something was constantly happening at you.
The AAHA Team
One of the biggest positives for me was the AAHA team itself.
Every person I encountered was friendly, approachable, and helpful. Whether I had a question, needed directions, or was just interacting with someone in passing, my experiences with the staff were consistently positive.
That matters.
You can have great speakers and beautiful venues, but the people representing an organization have a huge impact on how an event actually feels.
The Continuing Education
I attended almost exclusively management-related CE, so I can't really speak to the medical education offered at the conference.
That also means I still have some work to do when it comes to earning the medical CE I need for my RVT requirements. Apparently, I cannot survive on management CE alone. Who knew?
As far as the management sessions went, I thought they were positive, informative, and useful. A lot of the information reinforced things I already believe or have implemented in practice, but I don't necessarily see that as a negative. Sometimes hearing another experienced professional validate an approach makes you stop and think, Okay, maybe I really am on the right track here.
I definitely had favorite speakers. Once I figured out whose teaching styles really connected with me, I rearranged portions of my schedule so I could attend more of their sessions.
That's probably one of my biggest takeaways from conferences in general: follow the speakers who make you think.
A Few Little Things
The coffee was good—and available.
This is important.
The meals were also good, and overall I felt comfortable throughout the conference.
My biggest frustration was actually the conference app. I wanted to be able to leave feedback and reviews for individual CE sessions and speakers, and I couldn't seem to do that. There were several speakers I genuinely wanted to recognize because I thought they did an excellent job.
Hopefully that's something that can be improved in the future.
Was Something Missing?
I spoke with a few people who had attended AAHA conferences in previous years, and some felt this year's conference fell a little short compared with past experiences.
They described previous conferences as being more of an overall experience, including additional activities and off-site events.
I don't really have a point of reference because this was my first AAHA CON, so I can't fairly compare the two.
What I can say is that this pace suited me.
After spending the day learning, networking, meeting new people, and taking in a ridiculous amount of information, I didn't mind having some space to decompress afterward. Could I have been convinced to go dancing? Absolutely. But I didn't need every minute of the conference scheduled for me.
Give me good CE, interesting conversations, decent food, available coffee, and enough breathing room to process everything, and I'm pretty happy.
So, Would I Go Again?
Yes.
AAHA CON gave me an opportunity to learn, network with other veterinary professionals, hear different perspectives, and—maybe most importantly—step outside of my own hospital long enough to think about veterinary management from a broader perspective.
Not every session changed the way I manage. Some reinforced what I'm already doing. Some made me question things. Some gave me ideas I want to explore further.
And I think that's exactly what continuing education should do.
So, after three days of CE, networking, walking, thinking, questioning, drinking coffee, and occasionally wondering why I voluntarily signed myself up for this much human interaction...
AAHA CON gets a positive review from me.
Now, back to reality.
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