Top Tips for loving life as a GP vet – a series of 6 podcasts.
In this series SPVS Past President Steph Writer-Davies shares her top tips on how best to thrive in practice and achieve a wider satisfaction from work as a GP.
The series will be of benefit to all practising vets from students to experienced vets and what we hope is that it will trigger conversations and discussions that take us all to a better place.
Stephanie Writer-Davies
Steph is a veterinary surgeon. She graduated from Bristol in 1984 and spent 4 years in mixed practice before deciding to concentrate on small animal work. She started her own practice in 1999 which grew from small beginnings to a 3.5 full-time vet equivalent practice which was a Veterinary Nurse Training Centre and Accredited General Practice of the RCVS Practice Standards Scheme.
She was elected a council member of SPVS in 2010 and joined the Officer team in 2012, serving as Hon PRO and Hon Editor before becoming Hon President in January 2016. The issue of recruitment and retention of veterinary staff was regularly discussed throughout Steph’s time as a SPVS Officer, and during her presidential year she was involved with BVA’s workforce issues working group when potential causes and solutions were explored.
As the SPVS veterinary nurse liaison for 10 years, Steph has also been very involved with the veterinary nursing profession and is a member of the VN Futures career progression working group; she supports a wider role for RVNs, being keen to see them performing broader and more challenging roles in our practices, believing that would benefit the RVNs, veterinary surgeons, clients, patients and the businesses! Steph has also provided Expert Witness services for the Disciplinary Committee of the RCVS and was a volunteer Mentor for BSAVA’s mentorship programme.
She left her practice at the end of June 2018 and since then has qualified as an accredited Neurolinguistic Programming practitioner and uses this psychologically based training whilst working with Colourful CPD where she has helped develop and present non-clinical skills courses for veterinary nurses and reception teams. In addition, Steph continues to work in a clinical role as a part-time locum.
37 years after qualifying, Steph says she has no regrets about her career choice; she feels extremely fortunate that she achieved her goal of becoming a vet. She has thoroughly enjoyed her life in first opinion practice, loving the variety in the role and particularly enjoying consulting and working with the clients to deliver the best outcome for their pets.
