Understanding the roles of equine veterinary nursing teams in UK practices: A cross-sectional study.

Overview

• This study investigates the roles and professional experiences of equine veterinary nurses in the UK, focusing on their current responsibilities, job satisfaction, and the barriers they face in career progression.
• It highlights their desire for greater clinical involvement and the challenges preventing the full utilization of their skills, which impacts their job satisfaction and retention.

Background and Purpose

• Previous research identified factors such as feeling undervalued, limited clinical skill use, and poor career progression as negative influences on the satisfaction and retention of small animal registered veterinary nurses (RVNs).
• This study extends the investigation to equine veterinary nurses to understand their specific roles, activities, and professional challenges within UK practices.
• The main aim was to explore their current clinical and ambulatory nursing activities, and to identify what prevents or facilitates their professional growth.

Methodology

• A cross-sectional, anonymous online questionnaire was distributed specifically to RVNs and student veterinary nurses working with horses within VetPartners practices in the UK.
• The survey collected data on the nurses’ everyday roles, their involvement in clinical tasks (including Schedule 3 procedures, which require delegation), and ambulatory nursing duties.
• Participants also shared their views on barriers to their professional progression and suggestions for making better use of their skills.

Key Findings

• Out of 89 respondents, a majority expressed a strong desire for more clinical involvement:
  • 75% (57 out of 76) wanted more opportunities in wound management.
  • 67.1% (51 out of 76) sought to perform more intramuscular injections.
• The most commonly reported barrier to increasing clinical responsibilities was a lack of delegation from senior staff, affecting 78.7% (48 out of 61) of respondents.
• Regarding job valuation, respondents felt that the following factors would enhance their sense of being valued:
  • 41.5% (22 out of 53) indicated that more opportunities to use professional skills would help.
  • 24.5% (13 out of 53) suggested improved salary and benefits would increase their job satisfaction.

Conclusions and Limitations

• The study found that equine veterinary nurses are eager for expanded clinical roles, greater responsibility, and more delegation, especially involving Schedule 3 procedures and ambulatory services.
• Increasing the delegation and utilization of their clinical skills may improve job satisfaction, feelings of being valued, and potentially improve retention.
• However, the study is limited to a single UK corporate group (VetPartners), which may restrict how generalizable the findings are across the whole veterinary nursing profession.
• Despite the anonymous survey design, social acceptability bias could potentially influence respondents’ answers, perhaps leading to under- or over-reporting of certain attitudes and experiences.

Implications

• Employers and veterinary practice managers may consider increasing delegation of clinical tasks to equine veterinary nurses to utilize their skill sets more fully.
• Better recognition, career development opportunities, and salary improvements could enhance job satisfaction and retention among equine veterinary nursing teams.
• Further research involving a more diverse range of practices may help confirm these findings and support broader professional development initiatives.