What We Heard at IVECCS 2026
September 30, 2026
IVECCS 2026 in Savannah brought together incredible people who care for animals at some of their most critical moments and gave us an opportunity to connect with the community we’re proud to be part of.
It also gave us an opportunity to take an important step forward in how we show up as an organization: bringing the Ethos and NVA brands together in a more visible and connected way.
While IVECCS continues to be an important opportunity to showcase Ethos Veterinary Health and connect with emergency and critical care professionals interested in careers at our hospitals, this year we also used the conference to reflect the broader organization we’re becoming as the specialty and emergency care arm of NVA. Bringing the two brands together allowed us to highlight both the strength of Ethos’s clinical expertise and the broader scale, resources, and opportunities of NVA.
That broader perspective shaped how we engaged at the conference. In addition to recruiting conversations, we created more opportunities to share the breadth of expertise across our organization and connect with veterinary professionals around the topics shaping the future of the field: clinical care, science, nursing, education, and professional development.
Creating space for conversation
In addition to our table at the Career Fair at IVECCS, our expanded presence in the Exhibit Hall included our cobranded Ethos/NVA booth, Café Connect, and the CPR Battleground. The goal wasn’t simply to have a bigger footprint. It was to create new ways for people to engage with us.
While the booth was a hub of activity (including plenty of enthusiasm for our customized clippers!) the Café Connect offered a more relaxed setting for deeper conversations. Attendees could enjoy coffee and refreshments, connect with members of the Ethos team, and talk directly with experts across our Veterinary Nursing, Clinical Learning & Development, and Research teams, including Tracy Hill, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (SAIM), Gareth Buckley, MA, VetMB, DACVECC, DECVECC, Kristin Freitas BS, RVT, VTS (ECC), Chrissy Giovannielli, MBA, CVT, VTS (SAIM) and Annie Wayne, DVM, MPH, DACVECC.
Outside the Exhibit Hall, Nicole Shuey-Wisner, BS, CVT, VT, VTS (Anesthesia & Analgesia) shared her expertise through two CE sessions focused on anesthetic troubleshooting and anesthetic monitoring.
Our team heard directly from veterinary specialists, nurses, students, residents, and colleagues about the challenges they’re navigating, what they need from their teams and workplaces, and where they see opportunities for veterinary medicine to evolve.
The value of showing up
Perhaps our biggest takeaway was the value of simply being in the room.
The CPR Battleground added another dimension to the experience, bringing clinical skill, teamwork, and education into the Exhibit Hall in a way that drew people in and created another point of connection.
Ultimately, IVECCS reminded us that conferences are about more than visibility. They’re about listening, sharing expertise, and making it easier for people to connect with people and ideas that can help move veterinary medicine forward.
Thank you to everyone who stopped by, joined us for coffee, shared an idea, asked a question, or simply said hello. We’re grateful for the conversations, and we look forward to continuing them beyond IVECCS.
If you saw NVA/Ethos at IVECCS, we’d love to hear about your experience!
