I’m Catherine, veterinary nurse and owner of Vet Staff Solutions. I am mum to one year old Esther and wife of a beef and sheep farmer. Animals are my life!
Like so many vets and nurses of my generation, my interest in Veterinary Medicine began with James Herriot and his tales of Vet life in Yorkshire.
A childhood move to the lovely Yorkshire market town of Otley meant I was able to see first-hand what veterinary medicine was all about.
I spent most of my teenage years doing work experience with our local mixed practice. What a fantastic practice this was, and still is. This practice had the best team. The Vets had a grueling oncall rota but still had the enthusiasm to take me out on calls and explain what they were doing along the way. I am eternally grateful for those opportunities. To say some of my memories from this time are not too far removed from some of James Herriot’s tales is not an exaggeration. I witnessed all manner of things from calvings to cat dentals and met some interesting characters along the way! That was it! I was hooked!
I qualified in 2005, and have worked in permanent, locum and volunteer roles across the UK and further afield. Over the years my work has spanned across referrals, OOH services, mixed and first-opinion practice; from state-of-the-art establishments to family-run village surgeries.
Over the last 25 years, I have seen the veterinary sector change exponentially. This has created many changes in the profession. Still, it’s no secret that it has undoubtedly affected the retention of vet professionals with a disappointing number opting to remove themselves from the register in recent years.
The expectations of both employer and employee are very different in many cases compared to 20 years ago when retention rates were much higher.
It’s no secret that locums play a vital role in the profession and I feel it is important that they are matched with practices that will suit them and their skill set.
I believe I can use my love and knowledge of the profession to connect vets and nurses with the right job for them and in turn improve retention rates within the profession.
It’s simple really, I want to match good people with good practices where teams can continue to develop and grow together.
Send me your CV and I'll match you with available positions.
Let me find you the right person for your practice.
I'd love to hear from you.
