This news item from 'Scopes Magazine is about: It takes more than surgical skills to run an animal hospital, and no one has embraced this concept more than Dr. Susan Hackner. As both the chief medical officer and chief operating officer of Cornell University Veterinary Specialists (CUVS) in Connecticut, Hackner has seen the hospital blossom from the very beginning. “I’ve been with the project since its infancy,” she says. Over seven years ago, Dr. Michael Kotlikoff, then the dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine and currently provost of Cornell, approached Hackner with the immense project of bringing CUVS to life. As the first one hired, she knew from the start that for this project to succeed, it had to offer more than other animal hospitals in Connecticut; it had to provide a unique workplace culture and a dedication to customer service for a demanding clientele.