Veterinary Nursing Vision Project goes stateside

In this month’s blog, VN Futures Lead, Jill Macdonald, and Director of Veterinary Nursing, Julie Dugmore, reflect on their recent experience hosting a Veterinary Nursing (VN) Vision event in Anaheim, California.

In spring of 2024, at the start of our VN Vision Project, we spotted an opportunity to apply to speak at the North American Veterinary Community’s (NAVC) Vet Nurse and Teach HiVE event. The NAVC is a non-profit organisation that creates opportunities for the veterinary community that foster lifelong learning, encourage growth and promote wellbeing to advance animal care worldwide.

Delighted to be accepted, we began to plan the session, excited about the opportunities it would bring on a US stage. The fact that the proposed event was HiVE Anaheim (in California) was just an added bonus!

A quick recap

In case you missed it, the VN Vision events have taken place across the UK throughout 2024, asking veterinary nurses and veterinary nursing students; ‘what is your vision for the future of veterinary healthcare delivery, and what is the RVNs role in that picture?’.

The events have been a source of true inspiration – nurses have been enthusiastic, open, insightful, practical and collaborative in their approach to considering where our profession is, or should be, going, and how veterinary nurses can contribute to this. A huge amount of data has been collected so far, with both common themes and unique ideas emerging.

Why US vet techs?

So, what’s the relevance of a US audience when we are gathering data for UK veterinary nurses, we hear you ask?

Well, whilst the data may not directly feed into the picture we’re creating, it provides us with a broader perspective on professional roles, educational insights, and innovations on an international scale. We were pleased to see that the discussions held in Anaheim were reflective of those held in the UK, with views on the future of the profession being clearly shared.

The conference

We loved the feel and setup of the conference, which was held in the conference suite of the Marriot Hotel - so it was a gentle hike (see later about other hikes!) through the lobby to get to the event. The organisers did a fabulous job of making the conference an opportunity for networking and relaxing, as well as learning, by providing plenty of seating areas, breaks, and a social event on the Saturday evening. It was great to be able to meet and chat with both fellow veterinary nurses and exhibitors.

VN Vision

Our VN Vision event was held within the exhibition space. We initially thought this might be a drawback but it was perfect - the hall emptied as we started, leaving just us and our attendees. We had microphones too, so everyone could hear each other clearly. The exhibitors were also watching and listening from the sidelines. We lost count of the number of times that those observers from beyond the actual workshop commented and commended us on the session. The whole experience was really collaborative and heartening. It was fantastic to see such a wide range of people engaging and being drawn into the conversation.

The past, present, and future

We also provided a session on ‘The past, present and future of veterinary nursing’, during which we briefly covered the history of vet nursing in the UK. We then moved onto the ‘present’, including how schedule 3 informs what veterinary nurses and students can currently do within practice, as well as proposed changes to legislation. This was followed by a discussion about the potential future of veterinary nursing based on our research so far. We had quite a few questions on legislation and education, which helped us to see where we may need to provide more opportunities for cross-continent learning in the future.

The people

The veterinary nurses and technicians who attended our event reminded us very much of our VNs back home. One of the most rewarding aspects of running these events this past year has been the response from RVNs and their desire to have an input into the future of their profession – this was reflected in Anaheim too. It’s really made us think about how often RVNs are actually asked for their views.

Outside of surveys and consultations provided by the RCVS, BVNA and other associations, how often are nurses given the chance to have a meaningful input to change within the profession?

Our VN Vision discussions have been so fascinating. There have been explorations of many different facets of team based veterinary healthcare, with input from those coming from so many backgrounds and experiences.

What did we learn?

That the challenges are similar. US veterinary nurses also want more opportunities for increased responsibility and autonomy, wider leadership training and support, and a more standardised approach to veterinary nursing progression and pay. We could see that like the UK, there are many veterinary nurses in leadership positions, helping to forge the future for nursing.

What else?

In addition to attending the conference, we also had the privilege of a private viewing of a Veterinary Emergency Group (VEG) practice, which runs as ‘open plan’, and owners (‘parents,’ as they were referred to) are able to stay with their pets throughout treatment. They can, and are encouraged, to be present for consults, during treatment, and even during induction of anaesthesia. Whilst we could see the benefits of this level of transparency and openness, we could also imagine that this might not suit some clients, especially in an emergency situation. It will be interesting to see how extensively this model is rolled out over the coming years.

Anaheim

Anaheim is a city that lies just east of Los Angeles in California. It is also home to Disneyland!

The typical Californian climate is warm and sunny, as you probably all know, with only 30 days of rainfall per year. Unfortunately, we were unlucky, as it rained for two of the days we were there! This, of course, incited lots of comments from Californians about how we had ‘brought the weather with us’…

We also discovered that in Anaheim and the wider area, if you want to get anywhere, you have to walk a LONG way (or get an Uber!). Let’s just say, over the two days that we remembered to measure it, when in Venice, on the coast outside LA, we walked over 26 miles!

The NAVC generously covered the significant cost of our flights and conference accommodation, as well as providing speaker fees, which was very gratefully received.