Veterinary Surgeons

At Hollybank we have a team of seven vets, led by Practice Principal Richard Hewitt.

We have a very varied and interesting job. We consult throughout the day and see patients for routine appointments such as vaccinations and health checks as well as unwell animals. These can range from very straight forward problems that can be diagnosed during the consultation, to more complex cases that require further investigations.

We undertake these investigations in the practice and we have a wide range of diagnostic equipment to aid with this, such as an in-house laboratory, imaging suite and often most importantly, each other! The vet team talk about every case we see at Hollybank and this can be invaluable, especially with more unusual problems. We even have a dedicated time, every afternoon, for all staff to talk about the patients we are currently seeing and discuss their progress.

We perform operations every week day – some of these are routine procedures such as neutering or dentals and other times they can be more complex – eye removals or amputations. In addition, we care for any patients we have in the hospital – monitoring their response to medication and fluid therapy.

We are a 24/7 practice which means there is a vet on call all the time. We are available anytime 24 hours a day to care for any emergencies that may occur. You can contact us on the normal number and there is always a member of staff on site.

Veterinary Nurses

Veterinary nurses work alongside veterinary surgeons providing supportive care for animals receiving treatment within a veterinary practice. Veterinary nurses train for a minimum of two years and are skilled in undertaking a range of diagnostic tests in our in-house laboratory, administering medical treatments for patients on our wards and minor surgical procedures, under veterinary direction. Veterinary nurses monitor patients under anaesthetic, take x-rays and assist during surgery. Other duties which they perform include dressing changes, post operative checks, pharmacy/dispensing, manning reception, processing insurance claims and stock control.

As well as caring for sick animals, veterinary nurses also play a significant role in the education of owners about maintaining the health and welfare of their pets when they are well. At Hollybank Veterinary Centre our qualified veterinary nurses run a variety of clinics aimed at keeping our patients healthy! These clinics include weight loss, senior pet health checks, physiotherapy sessions and puppy socialisation. Our Veterinary nurses are also on hand to help administer medication, clean ears, clip nails, empty anal glands and many other grooming issues!

Veterinary Receptionists

The role of a receptionist within a vet practice is very varied. They are the first point of call for clients who may be worried about their animal and so we have to be approachable and friendly, caring and interested and obtain the facts about the injury/ illness so that the vet knows what to expect.

We are responsible for booking clients in for appointments, either face to face or over the telephone and we also have to take orders for medications and food and messages for the vets. We have to take payments from clients and make sure that any insurance forms handed in are correctly filled out and dated and then passed onto one of our nurses.

Sometimes clients have questions that we as receptionists cannot answer and then we have to liaise with the vets/nurses to obtain the correct answer to give to the client.

We also have to keep reception clean and tidy and make Hollybank as welcoming as possible to clients and their animals. As our weighing scales are in reception we sometimes have to help clients to weigh their dogs. We are also on hand to help clients to carry food orders or pets to their cars.

At Hollybank we are a small but close team and it is very reassuring to us as receptionists to know that if we need help with anything the other members of the team are on hand to help us.