Veterinary hospitals are filled with many essential team members who care for pet owners and their furry companions. The first one you’ll likely meet is a client care specialist (CCS)—incredible people who can juggle many things at once, without dropping the ball. From handling non-stop ringing phones to the excited puppy who urinated on the rug, your Stone Ridge Conroe client care specialists meet each situation with a calm, can-do attitude. We think our client care specialists are the best in the business, and we’d like to shine the spotlight on one person in particular—Melissa Lemons, who has been fielding our pet owners’ questions and concerns with care and compassion since 2018. Let’s take a sneak peek at the hectic workday of a CCS, and learn more about Melissa along the way. 

What does a veterinary client care specialist do?

Generically termed “receptionists,” our client care specialists do much more than simply answer the phones. A full day can keep a CCS on their feet, moving from the phone, to the computer, to our veterinarians, to the scale, and more, as they zip around to ensure our clients’ needs are catered to in a timely fashion. A CCS focuses on client service and communication, and is usually your first and last contact point with our hospital. Some common CCS duties include:

  • Client relations tasks — Our client care specialists are often the face of our hospital, and keep things running smoothly from the front to the back. You’ll find Melissa answering and routing phone calls, handling client questions, scheduling appointments, recording vital information in patient and client histories, providing knowledgeable advice about pet care and prevention products, and creating treatment plan estimates.
  • Financial tasks — The financial duties a CCS handles must be accurate, and Melissa does a fantastic job ensuring charges are entered correctly, invoices are explained, and proper payment is collected and change returned.
  • Administrative tasks — Medical records are an extremely important task that a CCS performs, and Melissa stays on top of these vital documents, whether they remain in our hospital or are sent to a specialist. She also manages laboratory reports, health certificates, and consent forms, ensuring all necessary documents are in order.
  • Client education and marketing tasks — As the team member who often handles parasite prevention sales, Melissa is knowledgeable about all the products we carry, ranging from dental health care to grooming aids. She is also familiar with our wellness protocols and can help schedule your new puppy or kitten’s vaccination series, or discuss what each visit entails.

Client care specialists are impressively busy people, juggling a wide range of duties each day. We’re fortunate to have Melissa as part of our CCS team, and we’d like to encourage our community to get to know this amazing client care specialist a little better. 

Meet Melissa, client care specialist extraordinaire

Melissa Lemons, a Houston native, has been part of the Stone Ridge Conroe team for almost three years. With her heart already set on working with animals, she fell totally in love with the idea during her FFA experience in school. While working at another practice, she considers herself fortunate to have met Dr. Pettyjohn, whom she knew when they met, would be an amazing doctor and practice owner, and she was excited to find a home here at Stone Ridge Conroe. During her time here as a client care specialist, Melissa has been delighted with meeting and getting to know the people and their pets in the Conroe community. She’s especially pleased that she has the opportunity to constantly learn new information and grow here at our hospital.

When Melissa isn’t on the clock, she enjoys spending time with her pack of pooches and her human family. She shares her home with two blue lacy dogs, Kimber and Wyatt, one catahoula/heeler mix, Rouger, and two schnauzers, Piper and Cinco. She and her husband, Doyle, have three children, Mason, Brooklyn, and Mckenna.

Although she loves spending time at home with her family, Melissa would rather be outdoors with her gang. The entire family—dogs included—are always eager to experience the beauty of the outdoors. Any outdoor activity you can think of, you can bet Melissa has done it. From hunting and fishing, to hiking and camping, she’s most at peace when gazing at beautiful scenery and enjoying nature. On a typical weekend, you can find her hunting or camping, gulping down a Dr. Pepper, and devouring delicious authentic Mexican food. In the future, she hopes to travel to Alaska, to explore all the wonders of its wild terrain. 

Now that you know your client care specialist, Melissa, a little better, you can chat about your outdoor adventures together while waiting for your pet to have their nails trimmed. And, you’ll know that friendly voice on the other end of the phone better, too, when you call to schedule your furry pal’s appointment.