In this blog for Veterinary Nursing Awareness Month, BVNA Council Member Krishna Mistry discusses how she has experienced firsthand how transformative it is to work alongside colleagues who check in, who offer understanding, and who create space for vulnerability without fear of judgement.
Find out more about VNAM here, and how you can get involved this year.
Compassion and empathy are words we use often in veterinary nursing. They appear in job descriptions, professional values, and are embedded within the RCVS Code of Professional Conduct. At times, these words can feel like abstract concepts or professional jargon, but their true impact is woven into our everyday work. When we enter the profession and make the declaration of professional registration, to “promise and solemnly declare” to pursue our work with integrity, to accept our responsibilities to the public, our clients, the profession, and the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, and above all to ensure the health and welfare of animals committed to our care, we are committing to far more than clinical competence alone. That promise reflects how we care for our patients, how we support clients, and how we show kindness, understanding, and empathy to one another within the veterinary team. For me, compassion and empathy have not only been something I strive to give as a veterinary nurse, but something I have been deeply grateful to receive from colleagues and clients throughout my journey.
Working as a veterinary nurse is a privilege. We are invited into some of the most emotionally charged moments of people’s lives, moments of fear, grief, guilt, uncertainty, and love. Clients come to us when their animals are unwell, injured, or dying. In one consult room an owner is saying goodbye to their companion of twelve years, in an another we are celebrating the addition of a new family member. In those moments, our clinical skills matter enormously, but so does our ability to sit with discomfort, to listen without judgement, and to respond with empathy and kindness.
But the emotional load does not stop with patients and clients. Behind the scenes, veterinary teams are navigating long shifts, ethical dilemmas, compassion fatigue, and personal challenges of their own. I have experienced firsthand how transformative it is to work alongside colleagues who recognise this, who check in, who offer understanding, who create space for vulnerability without fear of judgement and creating a physiological safe space for curiosity, learnings and growth.
One of the hardest lessons I have learned is that compassion without boundaries can lead to burnout. There is a tendency within caring professions to focus compassion outward, while neglecting it inward. As nurses, many of us are natural carers. We are drawn to helping roles, often placing others’ needs far above our own. Those long busy shifts, missing lunch and holding our bladders has become the punch line of jokes within nursing. However, this should not be praised. By normalising rest, by encouraging reflection, and by reminding each other that struggling does not equate to failure, we can change. When empathy and compassion are embedded into team culture, this benefits everyone: patients receive better care, clients feel supported, and professionals are more likely to remain engaged and fulfilled.
Creating compassionate workplaces means recognising that our colleagues bring their whole selves to work, their backgrounds, cultures, experiences, and identities. When we foster inclusive, empathetic environments, we enable people to thrive, not just survive. Compassionate leadership, peer support, and open conversations about emotional wellbeing are essential if we want a sustainable profession.
As we reflect during Veterinary Nurse Awareness Month, I encourage us to broaden how we think about compassion and empathy. Let it include understanding different journeys into the profession. Let it include kindness towards colleagues and clients whose experiences may differ from our own. Let it include the love and advocation for our patients. And let it include compassion for us, because caring for others is only sustainable when we also allow ourselves to be cared for.
Krishna Mistry, BVNA Council Member
