The initial results of the Protect the Title survey have begun many discussions around why the title ‘veterinary nurse’ should be protected.

The survey of members of the public revealed that, out of 3,926 respondents, 91% would assume that someone who calls themselves a ‘veterinary nurse’ is fully qualified and regulated by a professional body. To prevent the public from any confusion, many practice teams have already started to implement positive steps ahead of legislative change, which can lead to challenging conversations.

Here’s how one clinical director reflects on the changes they have made in their practice since the release of the BVNA survey:

“Change is hard. Really hard. I took on a great veterinary practice, full of wonderfully skilled individuals. Unfortunately, none of them had any formal training to represent their skill sets, until I employed a part time RVN later down the line. The movement to Protect the Title that launched in 2022 made me realise that we needed to have tough discussions about the transparency about who could call themselves Veterinary Nurses.

“I can’t quite describe how nervous I was about this meeting, this team was full of friends, and to tell them they could no longer have the title of Veterinary Nurse is one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. I tried my best to get across to them how much I valued them, and how this didn’t change their job security or their position in the practice.

“I printed off spreadsheets full of training courses (both informal and the more formal VCA/SVN routes) and explained to them how much I wanted to invest in them all. I was met by unbelievable understanding, they were already aware that the situation had to change, and we changed job titles of all unqualified staff to Nursing Assistants. Job descriptions were issued, giving clear instruction on tasks that qualified and unqualified staff could perform.

“For anyone else thinking of making the same transition, I would say yes, it is tough. Keep the team on board through the process, show them how much you value them, and it will all be fine in the long run!”

The recent Protect the Title surveys received over 12,000 responses – the initial results can be found here.