RCVS to present on its Workforce Action Plan at upcoming veterinary congress

Our Director of Advancement of the Professions, Angharad Belcher, and Director of Nursing Julie Dugmore, will be leading a session on the Workforce Action Plan at the forthcoming Veterinary Management Group (VMG) Congress.

The congress takes place at the Crowne Plaza in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire on Thursday 8 and Friday 9 June 2023. The Workforce talk, which is part of the ‘Our Future’ stream on the Friday between 1.50pm and 2.40pm, be an opportunity to look at the Workforce Ambitions in more detail following from the Action Plan which was published in November 2022.

The Action Plan came out of the November 2021 Workforce Summit which was convened by the RCVS and which brought together representative organisations, major employers, educational institutions and other key stakeholders to find solutions to the workforce shortages that are besetting the professions. The seven ambitions in the Action Plan cover areas such as creating leaders, expanding veterinary nurse responsibilities, doing more to establish general practice as a chosen career pathway, attracting back those who have left the profession, and improving the interaction and communication between veterinary professionals and clients.

Angharad (pictured) said: “Delegates will have the opportunity to choose one of each of the seven ambitions from the Action Plan, and then to focus on giving those who attend the time to consider what could happen within their organisation, and also celebrate what they have already started doing to make progress against key areas of recruitment, retention and return.

“Each table will have one of the themes, so delegates can choose which ambition they are keen to explore in more detail. We are hoping that delegates will come with an open mind and be keen to share what they are looking to achieve, what they have trialled already and what could happen.”

Jennie Jones, Head of the RCVS-funded Veterinary Client Mediation Service (VCMS), will be speaking on the same day about the future of complaint management for the veterinary professions and the importance of communication, mediation and resolution. Her talk is also part of the ‘Our Future’ stream and takes place from 9am to 9.50am.

In addition to the two talks, we will also have a stand at VMG Congress where delegates can visit to find out more about the RCVS Academy, our free, online learning platform, and our Mind Matters mental health initiative which recently published its Evaluation Report, reviewing the impact it has had since its launch in 2014, and its new Strategy, covering the next five years.