Dear Reader

Welcome to the March edition of the VNJ. My name is Alexandra Taylor, and I am currently the Junior Vice President (JVP) of the BVNA. I am deeply passionate about feline welfare and some of you may know me as ‘The Cat Nurse’. As I sit here typing this, with a little black cat purring next to me, I have been thinking about how proud I am of the veterinary nursing profession, and how we have coped and adapted over what can only be described as an ‘annus horribilis’. These challenging and difficult times have spilled over into 2021, with further lockdowns and restrictions only meaning more limitations on the services veterinary professionals can offer in practice. This necessary, but testing third lockdown has taken its toll, testing our fortitude and resolve and on a daily basis, but veterinary nurses are strong, and we will get through this.

There is, however, a light at the end of the tunnel. With coronavirus vaccines being rolled out and administered to millions of people in the first few months of this year, we may, eventually, at least start to return to the normality that we all hope and crave for.

Despite all the restrictions over the last year, the BVNA has been forging ahead to represent and support our members and profession. We have lots planned for 2021 too, which BVNA staff and Council Members have worked incredibly hard to create and make happen. The BVNA are advisory members of the Animal Behaviour & Training Council (ABTC), and one aspect of my roles is to be the BVNA representative at ABTC meetings. I currently sit on the ABTC PAWG (practitioner assessment working group), where we are looking at how people working in the behaviour field can be accurately assessed and regulated. This is incredibly exciting, as one of the roles being looked at is the animal behaviour technician

(ABT), which will likely appeal to a lot of veterinary nurses. Not only does this role have the potential to impact significantly on animal welfare, but it could also be another accredited qualifica-tion for veterinary nurses too. The BVNA are currently working closely with the ABTC to create a behaviour pathway for veterinary nurses, which will lead to the ABT qualification. Imagine the positive impact of having a veterinary nurse with the ABT qualification in every practice in the UK!

Other BVNA projects I have been involved with include VN futures and creating a task and finish group to look at how the BVNA can help to support nurses with chronic illness. As BVNA JVP I sit on the board for VN Futures, and I attended my first meeting back in November 2020 via Zoom. In this meeting the VN Futures board looked at challenges faced by the profession over the last year, engaging more with veterinary nurses, creating new working groups with new topics or themes, and of course, ultimately the progression of the veterinary nursing profession.

I am incredibly excited about the recent formation of the BVNA task and finish group to help nurses with chronic illness. Having suffered from chronic illness myself, this is a topic that is close to my heart, and although the project is still very much in its infancy, we have some very dedicated and determined Council Members contributing to this group, so watch this space!

Finally, I would like to say a big thank you to all of our members for your continued support. The last year has not been easy, but the BVNA have planned lots for you for 2021 and will continue to do our absolute best to represent and support our members. I hope I get to see you at our 2021 Congress. Look after yourselves, sending you all a big virtual hug. If you would like to contact me or the BVNA Council about any issues that you think we can help on; please email council@bvna.co.uk

Alexandra Taylor RVN CertSAN ISFM Dip&AdvCertFB BVNA 

BVNA Junior Vice President 

Email: alexthecatnurse@gmail.com 

VOL 36 • March 2021 • Veterinary Nursing Journal