Re: Do nurses get the support they need?

wobbliebob — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 17:29:17 GMT

We get very little support from our senior partners/practice manager. I think that there could and should be a better way to speak out against thigs we see in practice and feel are not right.

Re: Do nurses get the support they need?

daisy — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 20:09:10 GMT

our head nurse is fantastic and gives us all the support i could ever ask for, i can honestly say she is the best head nurse i have ever had, she will fight tooth and nail for her team, but she is off at the moment and her stand in gives us NIL!!!

Re: Do nurses get the support they need?

hissycat — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 10:06:57 GMT

I have been asked to do and witnessed other nurses (both qualified and students) doing procedures that I believe are not legal under the vet. surgeons act. This includes castrating cats, inducing anaesthesia and extracting teeth. Even though I think the nurses involved have been capable of performing these procedures and I would have left my pets in their hands, the fact remains that it is illegal and should not be encouraged by practice owners. On occasions that I have rung practices regarding job adverts I have even been told over the phone that they are 'happy for nurses to do stuff like cat castrations and dentals'. I have always refused to do these things (other than scales, polishes, pulling half out teeth) and stuck to it, even though I think it makes me unpopular with certain colleagues who do not see why I should make a big deal of it. Also as an RVN i worry about the possibility of disciplinary action. I do worry that if I was not qualified I may have given in to the pressure and started doing these things out of fear of having my life made difficult. Having said that I have been told by a lot of vets (but never nurses) that they respect me more for refusing to do these things. These are usually the younger vets. I fear I was seen by the older vets as 'less of a nurse' and not as useful as people prepared to do whatever was asked of them . I am particularly worried about students being encouraged to do these things maybe not knowing any better and running into trouble later down the line when they qualify, as I cannot imagine the practice taking the rap for these things, it will be the nurses that suffer even if they have more or less been bullied into it.

I would never complain to the RCVS/anyone else as I believe this would make life so difficult and I would not want to get my colleagues into trouble. It would also be obvious it was me as I am the only one who was vocal about not doing these things. A few of the older vets seemed shocked when I told them we shouldn't be doing these things, they do not seem up to speed on the laws regarding nurses. (though ignorance is no excuse) Maybe it would be better to send something out to make sure they know what we can and cannot be expected to do? Maybe spot checks on practices would be a good idea.

Re: Do nurses get the support they need?

Caro Laithwaite VN — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 19:34:23 GMT

Arlo has a hotline to God [powers that be]