Becoming an Equine Veterinary Nurse (RVN) is just the beginning of your career; the qualification can take you to places you did not realise were possible as a student.

Equine veterinary nursing has progressed hugely in the last few years and continues to progress; this has allowed our role as equine nurses to develop and given us more opportunities within clinical practice. New opportunities are being created within practices, such as ambulatory nursing and nurse clinics. The EVN qualification can take your career further than the UK because the qualification allows the holder to register with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS); this is a recognised governing body internationally, which means that it opens up job opportunities worldwide. Travelling and working as a nurse worldwide allows nurses to understand different medical conditions, work within diverse teams, and learn new skills not used in the UK.

Education is another direction in which the EVN qualification can take you; clinical practice may not be possible for the whole of a nurse’s career, and education can create a fantastic opportunity to enable a nurse to train the next generation of nurses and maintain in touch with current medical practice and research.

Another non-clinical role that can see an RVN thrive is practice management; this suits a person with excellent people and organisational skills and may not be a direction that all feel they wish to follow, but it can be very rewarding when you see the team that you manage doing great things to support animal health.

The final area that can be discussed in this topic is the roles within drugs or equipment supply; these can involve large amounts of travel, so it is not the role for everyone but can lead to meeting and going to various practices and trying to maximise horse health by selling products that you believe in.

Whichever route you choose post-qualification, it is essential to remember that as an equine nurse, you can accomplish anything you set your sights on. Together we can shape a positive future for the role we love.

Rosina Lillywhite REVN