Farewell and thank you for the privilege

As she leaves Council and the RCVS Presidential Team, Mandisa Greene reflects on the people she's met and the connections she's made on the way and hers and the College's achievements during her time on Council. 

Most people who speak with me about my presidency, start by offering commiserations on the awful luck of being a pandemic President - locked down and remote for the majority of my tenure. Many are surprised when I respond that I’m a firm believer in things turning out best for those who make the best of the way things turn out - in other words, playing the hand you are dealt. And whilst my Presidency was not an ordinary one in many ways, I was able to use my time to do some things rather unconventional for an RCVS President - which began with my children placing my Presidential chain of office on me, that hugely symbolic moment when Niall Connell passed on the chain and I became President. I also participated in the first ever Vet Voices pantomime which raised thousands for Vetlife, and I spoke throughout the UK and internationally to students, parents and at conferences about my meandering journey into veterinary medicine, and how my motivation, dedication and determination accounted for much more than my grades ever could.

And what about the year of events I missed? Since my Presidency ended, I’ve had the pleasure of attending many events, including dinner at the House of Lords, joining BVLGBT+ to celebrate Pride and the Petplan Awards to name but a few. Recently, I received an email from a former RCVS President, who I’ve never met in person, as she wrote to invite me as her guest to a Worshipful Company of Farriers dinner. She thought I must have missed out on this during my presidency and wanted to extend the offer.  I was beyond delighted and it reminded me of a Caribbean saying ‘what don’t meet you, won’t pass you’.  It’s a way of saying, if it’s meant to happen for you, it will. 

I have learned from my time on Council that RCVS is a dynamic organisation, open to listening and to change.  I am hugely proud of the team at the RCVS led by Lizzie Lockett who not only support Council members but also superbly conduct the day-to-day activities of the RCVS.  That the communication, finance, registration, professional standards, advancement of the professions and education departments, among others, were able to continue their support of the professions on a daily basis during the pandemic - all supported by the IT team - is mind blowing if you think about it. Furthermore, during that time, the College negotiated the sale and move of its headquarters. 

Whilst writing this farewell blog, I looked back on an article written about me eight years ago before I attended my first ever Council meeting.  Asked what my personal goals will be for my spell on council, I was described as being momentarily flummoxed and responded “I don’t know, I don’t really have any personal ambitions in professional politics.” The author John Bonner concluded it appeared that my motivation in standing for the council was much the same as that which first made me want to be a veterinary surgeon at the age of seven. “I guess that I would like to be able to feel I have done something to make things better.” I would like to think in some small way that I have achieved that.

Will you miss it? I’ve often been asked in the time coming to and since I stepped down from RCVS Council.  The short answer is absolutely! The long answer is like my response when asked about my ambitious desire for change. I used to say making change is a marathon, but I realised as I started my RCVS role that change is actually a relay. A team event needing more than one individual to complete it. I received my baton from the phenomenal women on RCVS Council that I had the pleasure of serving with, for example, former Presidents Hill, Molyneux and Boag to name a few. I ran my lap, with courage and to the very best of my ability under some very challenging circumstances. I now pass that baton to the outstretched hand of our new all-female Presidential Team, Drs Richards, Donald and Paterson, and I stand on the sides chairing them on to success. It is time for my change over and to get out of the way. I won’t end by saying 'hasta la vista baby', but saying that my time on RCVS Council and serving my professions has been an honour and a privilege.