In recent years, there has been an increased focus by the veterinary profession on the area of emotional and mental wellbeing. There are many stresses and strains of everyday work imposed on us as a vet, nurse or member of the veterinary team. Building on the work of the RCVS and BVA Vet Futures Action Plan, a peer support service was first developed in Northern Ireland in 2016.

Local research was completed, both in the form of questionnaires at meetings and events and through an online survey carried out by RCVS Mind Matters.

The collated results confirmed that there was a perceived need for support to combat and hopefully reduce the incidence of poor emotional health within the profession and the wider veterinary community.

Many members of the profession volunteered their services and with support and funding from RCVS Mind Matters, twelve individuals were carefully selected to be trained as peer supporters. The selection and training was carried out over several months in early 2017 by Creating Collaborative Organisations (CCO) and delivered by Dr Des Rice MRCVS and Paul Grant, both highly skilled and experienced psychotherapists.

In the years since its inception, Vet Support NI has spread to encompass Scotland and the Republic of Ireland. In 2021, the service was expanded to include support to individuals undergoing RCVS Professional Conduct investigations.

The peer supporters are all volunteers who are focussed on delivering safe and confidential support using coaching tools. They have been trained and successfully assessed. They are committed to ongoing training to ensure the quality of the service they deliver to help encourage and improve the emotional wellbeing of our veterinary family throughout the UK and Ireland.

A group of 9 vets and 2 veterinary nurses are available within the service. They vary in their age, geographical location and sector of work and can be trusted completely in terms of confidentiality and integrity. Please be assured that in our book there is no such thing as a trivial concern or worry.