I came to veterinary nursing in my mid 30’s after over a decade as a Primary school teacher. I had been interested in becoming a veterinary nurse since leaving school, so when life events gave me an opportunity to follow that path, I grasped it with both hands.

Starting as a veterinary receptionist in a Referral practice, I was offered a student nursing position within two months and completed my Veterinary Nurse training alongside my full-time role which was perfect for me as I am a practical hands-on learner.

I enjoy learning and my nature drives me to always question how things can be developed and improved. Soon after qualifying I embarked on my Nursing Certificate in Anaesthesia and Critical Care which helped me develop knowledge and confidence with more challenging Referral cases.

I secured a senior Referral Nurse role alongside a Referral Surgeon at Rowe veterinary hospital in 2012 where wound management was the next area that caught my attention and introduced me to biofilms and the microbiological world!

Over the past 6 years it has been a huge learning curve developing my skills as a manager, but hugely rewarding to support practice teams in meeting the challenges of infection prevention & control in modern veterinary practices.

Was there a particular moment or experience that made you want to develop your career in infection prevention and control?

Looking back, it was inevitable that I would discover the vast area of infection prevention and control. I completed further training with BVNA ‘Infection Prevention for RCVS Practice Standards’ in 2018 and realised I had scratched the surface of an area in veterinary healthcare with the potential to impact patient healthcare, practice team wellbeing and safety as well as community and global animal and human health.

I was delighted to have the opportunity to work in a central role for IVC in 2020 in a new role as Infection Prevention & Control Manager for UK & Ireland practices – just as the Covid pandemic hit!

Networking with human healthcare IPC professionals through the Infection Prevention Society since 2023 has been an amazing opportunity to learn so much from human healthcare IPC experience – there is a huge community of incredibly driven individuals that are very generous with their time and knowledge in driving One Health and Sustainability initiatives to support developments within veterinary practices.

What does your current role as IPC Manager for the UK and Ireland involve, and what do you enjoy most about it?

I am so lucky to have so many aspects of work within my role. Supporting practice teams with their IPC standards, while meeting the requirements for RCVS Practice Standards Scheme, is an area where I have great passion. Being able to work with individuals and teams to develop knowledge and understanding in areas that we work with every day is a passion of mine.

I also get the opportunity to use my experience as a teacher to coach, mentor and train practice teams which is extremely satisfying. Developing training resources and engaging with learning and development teams to build training modules and courses is an aspect of my role that I love.

I get to meet with many central teams like procurement to ensure our teams have the right resources and equipment to meet high standards and more recently, due to our rebrand, I have been collaborating with our property team considering IPC planning as part of refurbishment and new builds providing an environment that enables our teams to practise efficiently and effectively to achieve high standards of patient care alongside supporting the teams wellbeing.

Attending conferences on stand is exhausting, but I love the opportunity to speak with people from a variety of practice situations and hear about how they are meeting demands with their teams.

I have been able to record a Podcast and write an article for the VBJ, which is something I never imagined I would be doing.

Your work on microfibre cleaning and targeted disinfection recently featured on the front cover of VBJ. What did it mean to see your work recognised in this way?

It was a big surprise to see that my article had featured on the front page, as it is the first time I have ventured into veterinary journalism!

My hope is that it will support practice leaders in understanding how infection control can be sustainably implemented and to engage with their teams to develop their own practice standards in this area.

I think like many in the veterinary profession, I am very focused on looking for things that can be improved so acknowledging success is something I am not so familiar with. I am proud that my article has been recognised in this way, and maybe it will encourage other veterinary nurses to give it a try.

What might seem like small changes in infection prevention can have a much bigger impact. Is there a change or initiative you’ve worked on that you’re particularly proud of?

I am proud of building an IVC IPC community of incredibly passionate individuals across UK & Ireland. Creating the IPC lead role in practice is unique and groundbreaking for veterinary healthcare.

Hearing of the infection prevention quality improvement projects is inspiring and that motivates me to continue to develop my role to support them through the challenges that practice teams are facing.

What does being an RVN mean to you after building such a varied career, and what continues to motivate you about nursing?

Being a veterinary nurse today is exciting and challenging at the same time. I don’t think there is another career that would have been so varied.

I feel privileged to have had the opportunities and experiences over the last 20 years and look forward to seeing what comes next with changes in the Veterinary Surgeons Act, sustainability and climate change challenges.

What would you say to an RVN who loves clinical nursing but is curious about where their skills could take them beyond a traditional clinical role?

There are many opportunities in veterinary healthcare today to be able to continue to practice clinical nursing whilst developing your career. Find your passion – the thing that makes you tick – and look for opportunities and individuals that support your development.

Exciting developments in veterinary nursing are opening avenues to follow a career path that is both rewarding and engaging. RVN’s are becoming respected professionals in modern veterinary healthcare.