The process of training to become a registered veterinary nurse (RVN) is an exciting time for equine veterinary nursing students. While the process is exceptionally rewarding, it presents several challenges. These challenges should be viewed as an opportunity to develop problem solving skills, flexibility and resilience, all of which are vital attributes within the veterinary industry. The knowledge and experience of qualified members of the nursing team who have already overcome such challenges is invaluable to helping student nurses.
Veterinary nurse training
There are different routes that prospective nurses can take in order to qualify as a veterinary nurse. One of the most popular routes is the vocational route, whereby student veterinary nurses (SVNs) study for a level 3 diploma in veterinary nursing over a 2-3 year period while employed in a practice that has been approved for training by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS). They will typically attend college in person or online 1 day per week, or on a block release, while spending the rest of their time training on the job. This can be done as part of an apprenticeship or a privately funded course. There are many assessments that students undertaking this route will need to complete, including examinations, assignments and an electronic skills log which assesses the skills developed in practice. Once these are complete, student nurses need to pass their end point assessments (EPAs), which incorporate a professional discussion and a practical examination known as the objective structured clinical examination (OSCE).
An alternative route is through the completion of a degree, available at foundation degree (FdSc) and bachelor degree (BSc) levels. Students training through this route are typically not employed in practice, but are required to undertake a significant proportion of practical training (60 weeks) in an approved training practice alongside their course, in order to complete the electronic portfolio. They must also complete a rigorous series of assessments, similarly to students on the diploma course. Regardless of the route chosen, student nurses must complete a thorough course of assessments and be approved by the RCVS before being awarded the title of RVN.
Cases for nursing log
One of the initial challenges that the author faced was ensuring that they had the right types of cases to log in their electronic portfolio, referred to as the nursing progress log (NPL), at the relevant times in their training. A colleague who had recently qualified as a nurse advised them to create a document with a table outlining the cases needed, which allowed the author to colour code tasks by the year in their training. They were also able to group the tasks into those that required opening, those that were open but required further logging, and those that were ready to sign off when a relevant case presented itself. An example of this is shown in Table 1.
They were then able to pin this document in locations where colleagues could look at it and put them forward whenever they became aware of a relevant case coming in. As tasks were logged and signed off, the document was updated, with a new one posted every other month. It is extremely important to be proactive with nursing log tasks; SVNs putting themselves forward to assist with cases, and volunteering to help vets with ambulatory cases, will allow them to gain experience and assist with tasks that they may otherwise not be involved in.
There were some tasks that the author was not able to undertake while working in their employing practice. Once enrolled as a student nurse, it is beneficial to look at all tasks early on and identify which tasks, if any, may not be achievable in practice. This will allow students to plan ahead and schedule time to undertake these tasks elsewhere, at the discretion of their practice. For example, in order to undertake many laboratory tasks, the author visited a small animal hospital and referral practice that had the required facilities and equipment to perform various laboratory investigations for samples sent from their employing practice. Another option that students may need to consider is secondment. For a brief period of time, the author undertook work at another practice that performed procedures under general anaesthetic more frequently, which was extremely beneficial in supporting them to gain experience in a wide range of tasks.
Cases for assignments
Another challenge that many SVNs face is searching for cases that they have previously been involved in and obtaining relevant paperwork to include in the assignments. In order to overcome this, it is extremely helpful to collect paperwork for interesting cases as they arise. If a case that could possibly be used in an assignment is presented, students can photocopy relevant paperwork, such as nursing care plans, hospital records and anaesthetic records and then redact any confidential information on the photocopy. This can then be scanned and saved electronically so that it is easy to access, which will save time when it comes to writing assignments. Furthermore, students can have a discussion with their tutors regarding assignments that will be set during the course so that they can plan the cases that they will need information for, and ensure that they have a sufficient range of cases in order to meet learning objectives.
Work-life-study balance
Whether students are undertaking their qualification via the apprenticeship route or degree route, training to become an equine veterinary nurse can make it difficult to achieve a balance between working, studying and personal life. It can be easy for SVNs to view the impact of studying on their time as temporary, but nursing is a career in which you never stop learning; whether you opt to undertake further qualifications, you will be undertaking continuing professional development (CPD) to keep your knowledge and skills up to date. Furthermore, taking steps to avoid burnout while undertaking your qualification will not only make the period of training more enjoyable, it will also help wellbeing (both physical and mental) and give students the best possible chance of success in assessments.
In order to achieve balance, it is important to employ study strategies that are time efficient. For example, student nurses could record lectures (with their tutor's permission) and listen to the recordings while undertaking other necessary tasks, such as the daily commute or household chores. This strategy can also be adopted for listening to equine veterinary podcasts that are relevant to topics being studied at the time.
Another time-saving strategy is the creation of revision resources that can be used multiple times to help better retain information. An initial strategy that the author adopted was the creation of flash cards that family and friends could use to test them on various topics, although a disadvantage of this was the time demands for family and friends. A key strategy that they found to be a particularly helpful alternative was the use of an app on which they could create quizzes comprising multiple-choice questions. Creating quizzes was a revision activity in itself, and understanding of the topics was necessary to generate the possible answers. By having access to these quizzes on an app, the author could undertake short periods of revision more frequently, as opposed to fewer lengthy revision sessions. They found that this was beneficial for fitting in revision around the demands of work and personal life, and it did not require other people to give up their time. Furthermore, the quizzes could be made public so it was possible for the cohort to divide topics among themselves so that they only needed to create a few quizzes, but then had access to a wide bank of revision questions.
Table 1. Planning for logging of cases
| Year | Task | Cases to use | Logged | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tasks ready to sign off | 1 | Intravenous injections | ||
| 1 | Restraint of patient for a range of procedures | |||
| Tasks that are open and require further logging | 2 | Collection of samples | ||
| 2 | Positioning patients for radiography | |||
| Tasks that need to be opened | 3 | Preparation of patients for general anaesthesia | ||
| 3 | Monitoring patients recovering from general anaesthesia |
Once time saving study strategies have been identified and implemented, it is important to ensure that time is made for other activities such as hobbies, exercise and spending time with friends and family. Student nurses can easily neglect these areas in favour of studying, which may turn out to be counterproductive. If this is the case, it may be necessary for students to schedule time for the aforementioned activities and have a friend or family member ensure that they make appropriate use of this time.
Friends and family are a great source of support for many student nurses while they are training. Not only can students turn to them for assistance with studying and daily tasks, but they are a source of support and someone to talk to if students are having difficulties.
Another good source of support for student nurses who may be struggling are helplines such as Vet Life. They provide independent, free and confidential support for all members of the veterinary community and are also available via anonymous emails. The support extends to finances, health and mental wellbeing.
Meetings with clinical coaches
While in practice, student nurses work alongside either a vet or qualified nurse who will be their clinical coach. Successful training requires frequent meetings between students and their coaches, which may be difficult to achieve in a fast-paced and unpredictable environment. In order to make meetings as efficient and productive as possible, forward planning is very helpful and clinical coaches will be grateful for the preparation. Try to schedule meetings in advance, but be prepared to reschedule them in the event of unforeseen circumstances, such as the admission of an emergency to the practice. Creation of the aforementioned table for planning cases required for the nursing log will also have the added benefit of helping students prepare to discuss the log with their clinical coach. Other strategies to help students prepare for meetings include creating a list of questions or topics to discuss, preparing a folder of paperwork that requires discussion or a signature from their coach, and identifying potential goals for them to achieve before their next meeting.
Objective structured clinical examinations
In order to achieve the qualification, student nurses must pass the OSCEs. During the OSCEs, specific tasks are assessed under exam conditions against set criteria. For many, the word ‘exam’ alone conjures feelings of dread and anxiety, and the thought of being assessed during a timed simulation can be overwhelming.
Students and coaches should familiarise themselves early on with the OSCE tasks that will be set by the awarding body. Before the examinations, students and coaches are able to see the criteria that assessors will mark them against, allowing them to practice each of the tasks in advance. Doing so early on gives students more time to become comfortable with the tasks and the criteria that they need to meet. When they start to develop confidence with tasks, it is useful to ask colleagues to time them or check that they are meeting the criteria when performing the task on a relevant case. This will help students become more comfortable with doing the task under exam conditions and remembering what the criteria are.
Conclusions
The process of training to become an equine veterinary nurse presents a range of challenges, but many of them can be overcome with a proactive approach and forward planning. Developing the skills to overcome these challenges will assist nurses in their career and help them make the most of an exciting and rewarding career where no two days are ever the same.
KEY POINTS
- Student veterinary nurses should keep and share a log of tasks that they need to develop experience in and be proactive with putting themselves forward and communicating their training needs to colleagues.
- Keep a file of case information to save time when it comes to writing assignments
- Use time-efficient study strategies to help achieve a work-study-life balance
- Prepare for meetings with clinical coaches to make them as productive and efficient as possible
- Students should prepare for objective structured clinical examinations early and simulate the tasks in the workplace to put themselves at ease.