Each year at BVNA Congress during our Research Bites competition, we showcase research projects and case studies submitted by student and registered veterinary nurses. The session provides a fantastic opportunity to develop presenting skills, whilst discussing and sharing best veterinary nursing practice, and increasing the evidence base available to the profession.
This year, we were delighted to host the following research project presentations and posters:
Presentations and Posters
Rachel Gardiner – The veterinary nurse’s perception of the ethics of major maxillofacial surgery in dogs
Thomas Webb – Developing and evaluating a health pack to support dog owners to manage the weight of their companion animals
Dylan Dsouza – An investigation into the effectiveness of current Orthopaedic discharge procedures in small animal practice
Kay Eminson – Can correctly estimating surgical time improve patient surgical lists for the surgeon, the team and the patient?
Shannon Cox – An investigation into the current state of radiography safety in small animal practice
Posters
Charlotte Drew – A case study of the views of RVNs in one UK veterinary hospital on brachycephalic welfare and breeding practices
Charlotte Newberry – The impact of owner presence or absence on heart rate and behaviour in canines undergoing effleurage massage
Emily Bate – Ground reaction forces experienced by agility dogs over different jump widths
Katherine Hart – Does storage method and duration have an impact on sterility when using self-seal autoclave bags to sterilise surgical instrumentation?
Laurel Belverstone – An investigation into dog owner and veterinary perceptions of the canine obesity endemic in the United Kingdom
The presentation session culminated in the awarding of prizes for Best Presentation and Best Poster; these were awarded as follows:
Best Presentation – Kay Eminson (pictured below, left)
Best Poster – Rachel Gardiner (pictured below, right)
BVNA Learning, Development and Communications Manager, Charlotte Bullard, said: “We would like to thank all the candidates who submitted abstracts to us for presentation at BVNA Congress this year, and congratulate our prize winners. Once again, our submissions were of a truly fantastic standard, and BVNA is delighted to incorporate this competition as part of our Congress each year, to support veterinary nurses who continue to contribute towards the evidence base for the profession.
“Research Bites in its current format will be undergoing an exciting refresh for 2025, and we’re excited by the opportunity of providing a platform for even more SVNs and RVNs to present at BVNA Congress. We would encourage and welcome any veterinary nurse who is either undertaking research, or has provided nursing care to a particularly noteworthy case in practice, to showcase their work with us in 2025.”
The 2024 abstract submissions will be published in the VNJ over the coming months.
More details regarding next year’s competition will be available early in 2025, but if you have any questions regarding the competition in the meantime, please feel free to contact charlotte@bvna.co.uk for more details.