Together with the Association of Veterinary Students (AVS), we will be running an online wellbeing symposium, the very first of its kind, which is specifically designed for veterinary students.

This symposium, titled ‘VetKind’, will be held on 24 November from 9am – 3pm and will be led by Jenny Moffett (pictured), Managing Director of Skilllstree, an organisation that provides personal and professional development for doctors, vets, nurses and other healthcare professionals through evidence-based training, coaching and simulation techniques.

The symposium has been organised by Eleanor Robertson (a final-year Liverpool veterinary student and AVS Senior Vice-President) and Hannah Fitzsimmonds (a fourth-year Bristol veterinary student and senior AVS Representative), who have put together a programme of expert speakers, activities and case-based learning experiences.

The aim is to explore the mind, mood and mental health issues that are specifically relevant to students, with an evidence-based approach to the presented topics.

The seminar will be split into two parts throughout the day, with the first section being run by Jenny and focusing on sessions around the Science of Happiness, perfectionism and the Imposter Syndrome, empathy, and how to maintain a healthy work-life balance.

There will be a specific focus on the evidence behind positive psychology, which can then be taken forward and practically applied to help manage veterinary life. The second half of the day will be focused on discussions of any prominent issues that may have arisen from the previous sessions. This seminar is set to be educational and engaging, with many universities counting this towards a student’s extra-mural studies (EMS).

Over the past year, the AVS has held Mental Health First Aid courses at every vet school, as well as holding ‘CV of Failures’ evenings, which were created for new graduates and clinicians to chat with students about inevitable career hiccups. These evenings, which were supported by Mind Matters, also seek to tackle and reduce the stigma around ‘failure’ as something to be ashamed of and avoided at all costs.

AVS Senior Vice-President, Eleanor Robertson, said:

“I am really looking forward to this online wellbeing symposium, and feel that all individuals who attend should gain a greater awareness of both their own, as well as other people’s, mental health and wellbeing. The day is set to cover many areas related to wellbeing, and I hope that all attendees find the seminar educational, beneficial, and enjoyable!”

Lizzie Lockett, MMI Director and RCVS CEO, said:

“This is a really innovative approach to supporting the mental health and wellbeing of students and we are delighted to support it through Mind Matters. For the veterinary profession of the future to be healthy, happy and sustainable it’s vital that the stigma around mental health and wellbeing is reduced, and individuals are given the skills and knowledge they need to help stay well. This course highlights the brilliant proactive approach from the AVS and points to a positive future cohort of professionals.”

To sign up, email avscommittee@gmail.com or contact university AVS representative.

In partnership with the Society for Practising Veterinary Surgeons, MMI is looking for the happiest practices in the UK for this year’s Vet Wellbeing Awards.

The Awards are now in their third year, having been started in 2016 in recognition of the fact that there were relatively high levels of work-related stress and poor mental health within the veterinary professions. The aim of the Awards has been to highlight the positivity of the profession by identifying examples of veterinary workplaces that were demonstrating their commitment to improving staff wellbeing through initiatives, management systems and other forms of staff engagement.

In the intervening years the Awards have evolved and, this year, they are placing a renewed emphasis on practices that take a holistic approach to wellbeing, with the Award judges looking for evidence that workplaces are devoted to improving wellbeing across the board.

Lizzie Lockett, Director of MMI, explains: “This year we aren’t just looking for practices that have nice initiatives such as fresh fruit bowls or free staff massages – although these are, of course, contributors to wellbeing – but want workplaces to show us evidence of practice-wide protocols, policies and initiatives that really do enhance wellbeing.

“What we are particularly keen to showcase with these awards is that wellbeing isn’t a bolt-on luxury that only practices with lots of money, time and staff can invest in but that it’s something that practices of all sizes can engage in and that there is a very strong business case for doing so as it improves retention rates, reduces stress and improves team cohesion.”

There are three award categories that practices can enter depending on the number of employees:  small practice (15 or fewer full time equivalent team members (FTE)), medium practice (16 to 50 FTEs) or large practice (51 or FTEs).

The Award application form covers six key aspects of work that, if well-managed, can promote wellbeing and reduce the risk of work-related stress, and the Award judges will be looking for evidence of commitment to enhancing wellbeing for each of these. These are:

• Work demands
• Workload and work scheduling
• Relationships at work
• Career development
• Communication at work
• Promoting physical and psychological health at work

Further information and examples of the type of evidence and initiatives that the Awards are looking for in each of these areas are available on the Vet Wellbeing Awards website and in a booklet available for download from the resources section of this website.

The Awards’ entry form can also be found on the Vet Wellbeing Awards website in addition to case studies of winners from previous years.

Throughout the application period the RCVS will also be publishing a series of podcasts featuring interviews with previous years’ award winners, talking about their own initiatives and how improving staff wellbeing has benefitted their business.

Nick Stuart, former SPVS President and Vet Wellbeing Awards Coordinator, says:  “In the previous two years we have had some excellent and very deserving winners who have some outstanding stories to tell about the steps they’ve taken to improve wellbeing and the difference it’s made to their teams, their business, the clients and the animals they treat.

“We look forward to seeing more excellent entries this year.  If practices make this a team effort, brainstorming and sharing ideas and generating feedback then the entry process itself can be an exercise in engagement and provide a useful audit of wellbeing.

The closing date for entries is Friday 23 November 2018. The prize for each category includes two registrations and banquet tickets for SPVS/Veterinary Management Group (VMG) Congress 2018 where the winners will be announced to the media and will be available for interview.

You can also follow the awards on Twitter @vetwellbeing and Facebook /vetwellbeingawards/.

Would you like to help make a real difference to the mental health and wellbeing of the veterinary profession? We are recruiting for a Mind Matters Manager to join us in the RCVS offices in Westminster and help deliver programmes, tools, training and campaigns for the whole veterinary team.

You can find a full job description outlining key responsibilities and person specifications for the role on the RCVS website.

To apply please send your CV and cover letter to recruitment@rcvs.org.uk. The closing date for applications is Thursday 15 March 2018.

We have developed a guide on wellbeing in the veterinary workplace in association with Dr Elinor O’Connor, Senior Lecturer in Occupational Psychology at Alliance Manchester Business School, University of Manchester.

‘A Guide to Enhancing Wellbeing and Managing Work Stress in the Veterinary Workplace’ will be launched at the Society of Practising Veterinary Surgeons/Veterinary Management Group (SPVS/VMG) Congress from 25-27 January 2018, in Newport. Designed for anyone with an interest in the wellbeing of the veterinary team, it provides practical advice to veterinary workplaces on managing stress and promoting wellbeing, alongside examples from the three winning practices of the 2016 MMI/SPVS Wellbeing Awards.

Dr O’Connor said: “Addressing stress in veterinary work not only has benefits for the health and wellbeing of each person in the veterinary team, but the business case for reducing work-related stress is clear; stress is associated with poorer performance, increased absenteeism and higher employee turnover. The wellbeing guide provides information about proven techniques for reducing stress at work combined with suggestions for how they might be applied in veterinary workplaces.”

Lizzie Lockett, RCVS CEO and MMI Director, said: “Stress at work is an important issue right across the veterinary team. It is sometimes considered just an acceptable part of working in an environment that can be difficult to control, but things can change. By making wellbeing a priority practices can support individuals and help their team work better together, and thus provide the best treatment for the animals under their care. This leaflet unpacks some of the root causes of work-related stress and may be of particular interest to practice managers, line managers or health and safety officers.”

For a copy of the guide, please visit Mind Matters Stand 51 at SPVS/VMG Congress, or download a digital version.

The Society for Practising Veterinary Surgeons (SPVS) and the Mind Matters Initiative (MMI) are building on the success of last year’s SPVS Wellbeing Awards to launch the new Vet Wellbeing Awards.

The Awards are open to UK practices, branch surgeries or other organisations who employ vets or vet nurses. They were created to highlight wellbeing in the veterinary profession and celebrate workplaces where:

• health and happiness are valued;
• there are systems and initiatives that motivate;
• staff are engaged;
• communication is positive;
• there is commitment to being a better place to work.

Stress management is a legal health and safety requirement and research from across the world shows that a happy, healthy workforce improves productivity and staff retention.

The new-look awards have been developed in collaboration with Dr Elinor O’Connor, Senior Lecturer in Occupational Psychology at Alliance Manchester Business School. She said: “A good working environment has positive effects on our health, wellbeing and job satisfaction. In contrast, work-related stress can cause physical and psychological ill-health, and in turn compromise organisational effectiveness and productivity.

“Data from the Health and Safety Executive shows that 11.7 million working days were lost to work-related stress in the UK in 2015-16. The Vet Wellbeing Awards will recognise veterinary workplaces that actively support colleagues’ wellbeing, as well as enabling the profession to share ideas for increasing wellbeing in veterinary work.”

Nick Stuart from SPVS said: “We were delighted with the quality of entries we received last year and were encouraged with both the activities and incentives that practices are undertaking to ensure that their team members’ wellbeing is encouraged and maintained through what we all know can be very busy and stressful jobs.”

Lizzie Lockett, MMI Director, said: “A happy, healthy workforce means improved animal health and welfare and better client service. Although there are legal requirements around stress management, our Wellbeing Awards recognise and celebrate those who go one step further – or in some cases, many steps – to ensure their team can be at their best, both in and out of work.”

The Vet Wellbeing Awards are open to practices, branch surgeries and any organisations who employ vets or vet nurses in the UK and entries can be made now via the website www.vetwellbeingawards.org.uk.

The closing date for entries is Friday 24 November 2017. The prize for each category includes two registrations and banquet tickets for SPVS/VPMA Congress 2018 where the winners will be announced to the media and will be available for interview.

You can also follow the awards on twitter @vetwellbeing and Facebook /vetwellbeingawards/.

RCVS recently teamed up with Stonewall, the charity that campaigns for equality of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, to become a Stonewall Diversity Champion with the aim of ensuring that all people are accepted, without exception, within the veterinary profession.

By becoming a Stonewall Diversity Champion, we join over 750 other organisations who are striving to create workplaces that are equal, inclusive and accepting.

Lizzie Lockett , RCVS Deputy CEO and Director of the Mind Matters Initiative, says: “We are delighted to be working with Stonewall and will benefit greatly from its expertise and energy. These may not be easy issues to tackle but we hope that this tie-up with Stonewall will, in itself, send a positive message of our intent to take the issues seriously and make the RCVS, and the veterinary profession at large, as inclusive as possible

“There are three aspects to the work we plan: first, to ensure the RCVS is a welcoming and accepting employer by integrating inclusion and diversity into all aspects of our organisation; second, to review our policies and procedures around areas such as registration, to make sure that they take account of the diversity within the veterinary profession; and, finally, through our Mind Matters Initiative, we aim to work with our partners to develop inclusive workplaces throughout the veterinary profession. The ability to be oneself in the workplace has a big impact on mental health and wellbeing so it’s a core issue for Mind Matters.”

The move to link up with Stonewall was catalysed by discussions with Mat Hennessey, President of the British Veterinary Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender group, who says: “We are extremely excited about the collaboration between the RCVS and Stonewall, and feel this positive move to culture equality and inclusivity will benefit the profession as a whole. Stonewall is the largest LGBT+ charity in the UK and Europe and thus has a wealth of knowledge and resources relating to LGBT+ issues. We look forward to continuing to work with both parties during this important venture.”

Meanwhile, Abby Crawford, Public Sector Client Manager at Stonewall, is “thrilled that the RCVS has joined the Stonewall Diversity Champions programme to advance LGBT inclusion in the workplace.”

She adds: “We know that LGBT staff can face specific barriers in the workplace and it’s great that the RCVS has taken a strong commitment to LGBT equality in this way. We look forward to working with them to create more inclusive environments for their staff and service users – working towards a world where all lesbian, gay, bi and trans people are accepted without exception.”