VN Awareness Month interviews: Tori Page RVN

For VN Awareness Month in May 2023, we are profiling RCVS staff members who are registered veterinary nurses, to talk to them about their careers in vet nursing, the experience they bring to their role at the RCVS, and why it's so important to celebrate the vet nurse role. This interview is with Tori Page, who works for our Veterinary Nursing Department as a Qualifications Assessor. 

1. Tell us about your career as a veterinary nurse prior to joining the RCVS? 

I started out in a first opinion practice where I developed a love for dentals and nursing clinics, particularly focusing on overweight pets with the implementation of a monthly weight clinic. After leaving this practice I went on to work for Guide Dogs as a data analyst, and then as a PDSA Pet Check Nurse, travelling the country running pop-up health clinics, which was a hugely diverse role that I really enjoyed. Following this, I worked as a locum, spending some time at an orthopaedic referral centre, before taking a permanent position in another first opinion practice. In 2010, I changed roles completely and became an Internal Quality Assurer at a college delivering the Level 3 diploma and BSc (Hons) veterinary nursing programmes, where I worked for 10 years before moving to the RCVS in 2021.

2. What is your current role at the RCVS?

I work within the Veterinary Nursing Department as a Qualifications Assessor. I am responsible for the quality monitoring of all accredited higher education providers that deliver the FdSc and BSc (Hons) veterinary nursing degree within the UK. This is a very varied and interesting role that is predominantly homebased, however, I also get to travel across the country to the different university and college campuses, as well as visiting Training Practices that have degree students on clinical placement. I love working within the VN Department as we are a close-knit team that supports each other, and we are all very passionate about the profession.

3. How does your veterinary nursing career impact how you approach your job on a day-to-day basis?

I think being a veterinary nurse has equipped me with the skills and attributes required to carry out my current role as I am able to draw on past experiences and put myself in the shoes of the veterinary professionals and educators that I work with. The role of the RVN is a supportive, caring and at times highly pressured one, all of which I can transfer to my role and within my current team.

4. Why do you think it is so important to recognise and celebrate the VN profession?

To become an RVN is no easy feat, and, once qualified, whilst overall, the jobs is extremely rewarding, it can also be demanding and at times very stressful. Nurses are the ones crouching in kennels, comforting animals as they wake from anaesthesia, supporting owners through difficult decisions, and helping with the daily running of the practice. Yet it is often the case that the hard work, passion, and commitment of veterinary nurses is overlooked, as other veterinary professionals are more recognised for their contributions to a patient's care. The profession has come a long way in the last few decades, and I think that it is our responsibility to make sure that it keeps moving forward, and that nurses receive the recognition they deserve for their incredible commitment to the animals in their care and to the support they provide to their colleagues and the public.