RCVS celebrates VNs established and new at its biannual VN Day

Last week the RCVS celebrated veterinary nursing at London Zoo with an event welcoming new members of the profession and celebrating the achievements of one of its longest-serving members.

On Thursday 17 October, the latest of our Veterinary Nurses Day events was held in the Prince Albert Suite, ZSL London Zoo in Regent’s Park, to recognise the achievements of new veterinary nurses being welcomed to the Register as well as those achieving their Diploma in Advanced Veterinary Nursing (DipAVN).

This event allows them to celebrate their accomplishments and to be formally welcomed to the profession, in the company of friends and family, followed by the opportunity to spend some of their day enjoying the zoo grounds.

During the ceremony, Rachael Marshall, Chair of Veterinary Nurses Council, led the newly registered nurses through their professional declarations while our President, Dr Niall Connell presented each new veterinary nurse a scroll containing the text of their declarations.

Before leading the declarations, Racheal said: “I would encourage you all to take control of your career and find areas where you can take the lead, whether this be within your practice or by contributing to the wider profession.

“Sticking your head above the parapet can be scary and often daunting, however, the satisfaction of challenging yourself and achieving things outside of your comfort zone is all the more rewarding.

“Remember this is a career for life. However you choose to use your qualification always be rightly proud to stand tall and say ‘I am a veterinary nurse’.”

We hosted two separate ceremonies, one in the morning and afternoon, and around 175 new veterinary nurses collected their scrolls, as well as nine RVNs who had achieved their DipAVNs. Also being recognised at the event with a lifetime achievement award was Deborah Holland who qualified as a ‘registered animal nursing auxiliary’ (or RANA) in 1981 and has seen first-hand how the profession has changed and adapted over the last 40 years.

Racheal added: “It was not until 1984 that a change in the law allowed the use of the title of veterinary nurse, and a further 30 years until a new Royal Charter in 2015 formally granted the status of associates of the RCVS, making veterinary nursing a regulated profession in its own right. Last year a change in the governance of the RCVS Council has allowed two veterinary nurses to become members of Council, which further demonstrates the solid recognition of the importance of the VN role, which this day aims to highlight and celebrate.”

For this event the keynote speaker was Hayley Walters, Welfare and Anaesthesia Nurse at the University of Edinburgh’s Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies and the Jeanne Marchig International Centre for Animal Welfare Education, who was the recipient of the College’s Veterinary Nursing Golden Jubilee Award in 2014.

During her address, Hayley spoke about the varied experiences of her career to date, including her international work on rescuing bears in China from the bear-bile harvesting industry and her work in training both vets and VNs at Edinburgh. She hoped that her experiences would serve as an example of the many potential career opportunities that lay ahead of the newly registered VNs.

In his closing speech for both sessions, RCVS President Niall Connell spoke of the challenges of veterinary work and the importance of reaching out to your peers and colleagues in times of need.

Niall said: “Talk to colleagues, talk to friends and support each other. More than ever our veterinary professions are closer together so you should never feel you are alone. If you need advice, seek it. There are so many people you can ask, colleagues, your associations and you will always be welcome to call the College for advice on professional conduct, CPD and other issues.”

The vet nurses and their families were then invited to a reception where they had the opportunity to talk to staff and Officers from the College and have professional photographs taken with their guests.

One of those newly registered VNs was Louise Grimsby who commented: “I think it’s been a really good day, everyone’s been really welcoming. There’s been lots of great information from the speakers and lecturers and there are lots of nice memories from the pictures being taken. And I love the scroll we were given too!”

Another, Kerry Knight, said: “I think the day’s been really well organised, it’s such a lovely setting. I found the speakers really interesting, I was so inspired by Hayley Walters and all her travelling and international work. I think the event ran really smoothly, and I’ve just really enjoyed it.”