Veterinary Nursing Awareness Month – May 2026
Each May, BVNA spearheads the annual Veterinary Nursing Awareness Month (VNAM) campaign. Having now run for over 20 years, the campaign celebrates what it means to be a veterinary nurse, raising awareness of the significant contributions made by veterinary nurses to animal health and welfare, and that of the public too.
Veterinary nurses’ crucial work both in and out of veterinary practice often goes unseen by the public – VNAM is a vital opportunity for our veterinary colleagues to come together and put this right.
This year, the campaign theme is ‘Compassion and Empathy’. We will reflect the dedication and passion required to both train and practise as a veterinary nurse. Plus, we will highlight the compassion towards patients and people which underpins the skilled care provided by veterinary nurses every day.
VNAM 2026 will follow four weekly sub-themes:
- Week 1 – Compassion
- Week 2 – Mental Health
- Week 3 – Empathy
- Week 4 – Passion
Unsung Heroes Nominations
As a brand-new addition for 2026, we are inviting nominations from veterinary colleagues and the public to put veterinary nurses into the spotlight, providing thanks and recognition for their work.
Find out more and nominate someone here.
Downloadable Assets (Social Media and Posters)
Ideas Board
How to increase social media post engagement
Organising a practice open day
Top tips for public speaking and running a practice event
Raising awareness through volunteer work
Setting up webinars and podcasts
Previous Winners – Testimonials
Georgia Jeffery (was Lowe) RVN (Competition Winner, 2021)
Find out more and view all of the 2021 competition entries here.
“I’m Georgia, a previous VNAM competition winner in 2021. Taking part in the VNAM competition was a really positive experience for me, and winning is something I still look back on with a lot of pride. My entry focused on designing a recruitment poster to help to promote the veterinary nursing profession. I chose to draw pictures to make it feel a bit more personal, and while I’m absolutely no artist(!), it was fun to get creative with the task. A big motivation behind my entry was wanting to encourage people to consider veterinary nursing as a career, I think it’s such a rewarding profession but I think it is often overlooked or not fully understood. Through the design I wanted to try to showcase what we can do and highlight how important RVNs are to the overall running of a practice. I still strive to empower veterinary nurses and ensure they are as utilized as possible. I’m so glad that more of my colleagues and I are getting the chance to develop new skills within practice, and educate pet owners how important our role is as well. I would definitely encourage others to get involved in VNAM, whether that’s through competitions, campaigns, displays/social media posts or just having discussions with your fellow vets, receptionists, clients and family and friends about what you do. It is a great excuse to share your skills and celebrate our profession! Since 2021 I have gone on to develop my own skills and regularly undergo Schedule 3 surgical procedures in practice which I’m so proud of. There are so many incredible opportunities for RVNs, and VNAM is a great time to explore and promote them.”
Fenton Vets (Competition Winner, 2023)
Find out more and view all of the 2023 competition entries here.
“I’m Chloe, an RVN at Fenton Vets in the beautiful coastal county of Pembrokeshire in West Wales. I love any opportunity to have fun and get creative, so when the VNAM theme for 2023 was “empowerment”, I jumped at the chance to showcase what our nurses mean to us.
The process of getting members of the team to share their thoughts and feelings about the nursing team was so inspiring – We are quite a large mixed practice and I was overwhelmed at how many members of the team responded and were excited to get involved in the video.
We RVNs know we are valued members of the team, but this process really was empowering and left us all feeling very proud to be part of such a vital and diverse profession. VNAM gives us the opportunity to take a moment to really appreciate what we do as passionate, caring individuals to provide professional excellence, compassion and care to owners and animals.
We were truly overwhelmed by the recognition and immensely grateful that our video was chosen to win the competition. We used the prize, and a lovely contribution from our directors, on a well-deserved RVN social. Thank you so much!”
Chestergates Veterinary Specialists (Competition Winner, 2025)
Find out more and view all of the 2025 competition entries here.
Previous Winners – Hall of Fame
Thank you to our VNAM 2026 sponsors;
