As the theme for this year’s Veterinary Nursing Awareness Month is empowerment, I sat and
thought about what part of every day is empowering, for me it’s teaching. As Head Nurse and a
Clinical Coach, I spend a lot of my time teaching and mentoring various members of the team
but particularly our Student Veterinary Nurses (SVNs).

Every SVN undergoes a combination of theory and practical teaching and assessment and
during their work placements they are assigned a Clinical Coach or Clinical Supervisor. These
can be vets or nurses but at Hollybank we feel a Registered Veterinary Nurse (RVN) is best
placed to carry out this role as we have been in their shoes and understand the system a little
more clearly.

When I did a search for the meaning of empowerment, I got this definition “the process of
becoming stronger and more confident”, it fits perfectly with how Clinical Coaches work alongside SVNs. Oddly teaching also helps the teacher, I’ve seen several RVNs who have become Clinical Coaches learn so much from the teaching process. Each time you teach a SVN a new skill it cements how far you have come since you learnt that skill, you now not only know how to do it at a day one level but you have learnt small adaptations to make it more fluid, it’s a bit like driving -suddenly you realise you are doing it without even thinking about the process. It also helps stop you from shying away from areas or skills you felt less confident in as a student, a bit of healthy pressure can bring out a confidence you weren’t aware you had.

The most rewarding part of being a Clinical Coach is seeing your SVN complete their placement and pass their exams. Don’t get me wrong, it’s their hard work and effort that gets them there, but we facilitate and empower them to want to reach that point.

All our RVNs, whether a trained Clinical Coach or not, are involved in the teaching of SVNs and less experienced vets, we also try to help our reception team understand the processes that happen during an appointment or a patient’s stay with us so they can better help you, our clients, as the first point of contact.