Passing on wisdom

In my position as a lecturer and programme manager, I sometimes act as a mentor for my students, particularly for those who have nobody else to turn to. This last week I was approached by a student who thanked me for some advice I had given her several months before. She was now going for her speciality certification in intensive care and loved her new job. She was convinced that the advice had saved her career.

When she had initially come to me for advice, her problem was surprisingly common, and personally familiar to me. She began by stating that she was considering leaving the field altogether, that she feared veterinary nursing was not her calling. That particular statement is a red flag to me, and I proceeded to tell her the same story that I have told dozens of students in the past…

Before moving to New Zealand, I worked in a general practice in California. It was a beautiful clinic, well equipped, and well staffed with two veterinarians and four veterinary nurses. The atmosphere was friendly and we all got along very well. From the outside it seemed to be the ideal place to work. Once I arrived in New Zealand, I took a year long holiday and in that time became certain that I no longer wanted to be a veterinary nurse. I didn't want to go back into practice. I was burned out.