It’s already been one week since we witnessed thousands of veterinary professionals flocking to Victoria Docks for London Vet Show. From veterinary nurses to practice managers, would-be animal health graduates and even a few veterinary influencers, ExCel became a hotbed of animal health activity over two amazing days.
To find out what it’s like to help veterinary candidates get placed within this industry, I sat down with David Hawthorne, Senior Vet Nurse Recruitment Consultant at Purosearch—a market-leading specialist recruiter within the nursing and care markets.
With over 40 years’ experience in the business, Purosearch provides “clients and candidates with the best recruitment experience they will have encountered”.
So, what does a day in the life of a veterinary recruitment consultant look like? David is responsible for vet nurses across the UK. And then that includes anything from student nurses to practice managers.
“My day is spent talking to clients, getting in CV’s and going through those. Nowadays, we find [practices] are getting the same thing through all the time, so we are trying to adapt how we recruit. It’s a lot more tailored and bespoke to each candidate and each practice.”
The 28-year-old consultant—originally from Co Clare, Ireland—delves into what a potential vet nurse wants from their prospective employer. He’ll spend time chatting to “candidates to see what their ideal rota is, as well as getting info about career progression. It’s not about just finding something for now, it’s about getting to the bottom of where the candidate wants to be in three/four years’ time. “
Some of the more short-term/project-focused industries like media and entertainment have a notably high rate of turnover. But what about veterinary? Do vets and nurses have more staying power in practices?
David tells us:
“It’s actually changing a lot as we go on, when I did recruitment for vet surgeons before it was more a case of—you’re in, you’re good and we’ll keep paying you more because there was such a shortage of vets, but now it’s more fluid, you can move around like chess pieces; you can see more practices, or get a varied case load, learn new things, and even specialise in things like neurology.”
From his time spent in the industry, David sees how there has been a noticeable shift in the way practices may attract job hunters:
“One thing we’ve been talking about all is practice culture. A lot of people are recruiting for the same jobs. So we want to know: what are the benefits of working for you as opposed to another practice? We’ll learn more, for example, you might do a team day on a Friday, once a month, or you might provide additional training and development, helping candidates really grow within the role. So if there are vets planning ads, it’s key, nowadays, to put those details in to help your practice stand apart. Emphasising your culture as well as the role.”
And what helps a veterinary candidate stand apart? David explains how there are pillars, which he’ll look for on a resume, the first being a confident practitioner:
“With vets, it’s down to the area that they are in…like I said, neurology, first opinion, referral.
What you’re always looking for in your area is confidence. That’s massively important. You might come in qualified, but you really need to be able to confidently deal with clients coming to the practice.”
“Being flexible is also huge. So maybe a practice might shorten the week so they don’t work such long hours, having a four day week instead of a five; but then you might do some out of hours each month. So are you going to adapt to those hours and be flexible? And reliable?”
Once a place is secured, practices are making sure their staff are taking care of their wellbeing and health. David speaks to practices about employee wellbeing, but notices a shortage of vets may be the heart of the mental health crisis within the community:
“They are over worked and under pressure. But it’s so important to take time off; vets don’t do their job for any reason other than their love of animals. They do it for the love of the job. I notice from my conversations with them, that kind of personality finds it hard to switch off. They won’t take time off and they take work home with them. A lot of time when I ask vets about their personal time, or what they do when off work/hobbies, they say they haven’t really got many interests outside of work. It’s so important to take time, whether that’s going to the cinema, reading or whatever it may be. Vets just need to take more time for themselves.”
And it’s not just vets who might struggle to leave work at the office, as the York resident explains, it’s not exclusive to one industry:
“That’s the thing with recruitment too, it’s very easy to take your job home. It’s a lucrative role that I do, so I do need to be mindful of that. I may get a really great candidate in and give them a call in the evening, which I’m happy to do, but if I do that, work is great and I can take time back elsewhere. They are very flexible. I love the job and I love placing great candidates, seeing them secure positions and flourish in their career…I get to see them here at the show, or at the BVNA Conference. Meeting those people, who I may have helped place two years ago, now they are head of dept or whatever the case may be.”