Celebrating 100 years of female vets

Thinking about all of my brilliant colleagues and peers in the veterinary profession – women and men of all ages, at different stages of their careers, working together to treat our country’s animals, enhance animal health and welfare and public health - I find it hard to believe that is was just 100 years ago that women were able to join the profession.

Today (23rd December 2019) is a day for celebration. It marks the centenary of Royal Assent being given to the “Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act 1919” that opened up the veterinary profession, as well as several others including law and accountancy, to women like me.

Putting to one side, for a moment, the uncomfortable reality that we had to wait for men to “allow” us to join the profession, this decision was the catalyst for remarkable change.

The Act enabled Aileen Cust, an extraordinary lady who had completed her veterinary degree in 1897 but had not been legally allowed to practise, to become the first woman on the RCVS register in 1922 and countless others have followed.

Leaping forward to the present day, the prominence and status of women in the veterinary profession gives cause for even greater celebration.

The profession is now majority (over 60%) female, as it has been since the late 2000’s, and the vast majority of vet students are women. Women are increasingly represented in all areas of our profession, including in leadership roles. Last year, I was the eighth female President of the Royal College, and next year the ninth female President will also be the first person of colour to hold the position.

Women also hold leadership roles in our representative organisations, including the BVA, and in senior government, private and third sector roles. It is a privilege to know, and work alongside, these women.

The grass is not, however, uniformly green – any woman in a leadership role will have been faced with questions about the negative impact of “feminisation” – I think it is unlikely many men faced questions about the problems with “masculinisation” in the last century!

An increased number of women in the workforce across all professions is a reality; and whilst this is represents change, when approached with a non-judgemental frame of mind, the extra skills, experience and perspectives now open to our profession can only be a good thing.

Despite the great strides of the last 100 years, the challenging and uncomfortable fact remains that progression within the profession is not a level playing field, however hard we might wish it so and however hard each of us as individuals feels we treat each other equally.

Whilst there are still clearly occasional examples of overt discrimination and these could and should be confronted, more insidiously, joint research conducted by the British Veterinary Association and the University of Exeter last year found that systematic discrimination within the profession is still a problem.

The research involved surveying UK-based employers, partners and managers and found that there was evidence of bias and discrimination when it came to employers’ recommendations on pay, competence and career advice.

Ironically, those who were most likely to discriminate were also the most likely to believe that discrimination against women in the veterinary professions wasn’t a problem. Perhaps unsurprisingly this is further reflected in the fact that there is a gender pay divide between men and women at all comparable career stages.

We are a scientific profession and for anyone whose instinct is to say “well that can’t be true”, I urge you to put your feelings to one side and engage with the evidence.

So how can we tackle the issues we face, acknowledge the fact that the profession is majority female and make sure that all of us are able to fulfil our potential within the professions?

Here the answers are less clear and, at the current time, less well evidenced. Equally as a female leader, these are realities I personally grapple with day in and day out - and the two areas I would like to highlight are the challenges of working schedules and confidence.

Clinical work is, of course, demanding and unpredictable with clinical cover required throughout both normal working and unsociable hours.

Twentieth century rota patterns do not meet the needs of those with caring responsibilities… it’s not so long since veterinary contracts required you to have a “wife” who could take the calls.

Development of creative flexible working patterns so that a balance can be struck between family, professional and personal life are possible and should be explored by all employers. And, of course, there should never be the assumption that – when it comes to caring responsibilities and especially children – women should be the sole or even primary carer.

Whilst more generous paternal and shared parental leave would of course support this, we all have a part to play. Whether as a partner, as an employer or as a friend, honest conversations with men with young families must be encouraged so that the share of caring is as works best collectively for family units rather than following an assumed pattern.

In terms of confidence, there is ample evidence from the broader community that suggests that often men will apply for jobs they don’t think they are quite qualified for, while women won’t apply for jobs unless they are absolutely sure they are qualified.

Clearly these are generalisations and don’t hold true in all circumstances, but women do seem more likely to suffer from ‘impostor syndrome’, in which we doubt our achievements and fear our perceived inadequacies being exposed. There is no simple and easy cure for this experience.

For both women and men, recognition that the phenomena exists, and is real, is the first step. Whether as an individual reflecting on our own next steps or as a mentor supporting colleagues in their career, recognising where we fit on the scale, and that others are not the same, will help us all achieve what we are capable of.

I look forward to the future - a future where all veterinary surgeons and nurses are given opportunities to fulfil their aspirations - meaning we will be seeing more female Fellows, Specialists, Advanced Practitioners and leaders across the spectrum of veterinary life.

The last few years has seen a focus on diversity and inclusivity from both the RCVS and others. I hope that whereas the last 100 years has seen it become possible and “normal” for veterinary professionals to be women, the next 100 years will see us all work in environments where we are supported fully in reaching our potential regardless of gender.

There is a great deal to celebrate and much to be done – here’s to another 100 years and beyond of women in the profession!