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Beyond the basics… Mastering advanced veterinary nursing skills

£175 + VAT
register your interest (not implemented)
this course is available on demand

Beyond the basics… Mastering advanced veterinary nursing skills

12 lessons
|
Veterinary Nursing
|
17 CPD hours

Meet the speakers

Ashley Wemple

Registered Veterinary Nurse

Ashley grew up in a small town in rural North Carolina. From there she moved to a slightly bigger part of the state to go to university at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC where I  studied animal science and obtained a bachelors degree in that field in 2003. While studying, I started working nights at an ECC veterinary hospital and I developed a passion for ECC nursing and teaching. I moved to the UK in 2008 to take a job as an ECC nurse at Vets Now Gateshead and have been there ever since (currently as Principal Nurse Manager).  I earned my CertVNECC in 2010 and continue to tutor for that program, as well as other teaching and mentoring for IVC, Vets Now and the veterinary thought exchange.

Matteo Rossanese

Soft Tissue Surgery Specialist

Dr. Rossanese graduated from the University of Bologna (Italy) in 2009. After one year in general practice, in 2011 he started a postgraduate research project and internship in surgery and neurosurgery at North Downs Specialist Referrals and shortly afterwards joined the Animal Health Trust for a general internship. In 2013 Matteo gained the certificate of Specialist in Animal Health from the University of Padua and in 2015 he completed the RCVS Certificate in Advanced Veterinary Practice. In September 2015 Matteo joined the Small Animal Teaching Hospital of the University of Liverpool where he completed a three-year ECVS approved residency in Small Animal Surgery at the University of Liverpool. In 2018 Matteo successfully gained a Master in Veterinary Professional Studies. He is currently working as lecturer in Small Animal Surgery at the Royal Veterinary College. He has a particular interest in minimally invasive surgery including interventional radiology and video-assisted surgery. He is also interested in the therapeutic options for vascular anomalies, non-resectable cancers, and respiratory and urinary obstructions.

Liz Bode

Cardiology Specialist

Liz graduated from the University of Liverpool in 2006. She started her veterinary career in mixed practice in the East Ridings of Yorkshire, UK. However, she soon realised that she wanted to pursue a Specialist career. In 2008, Liz joined the University of Cambridge to undertake a rotating internship and then moved to the University of Manchester in 2009 to start a PhD. Her PhD focused on pathophysiology of heart failure and ageing, and was undertaken in the medical department. She gained her thesis in 2013 before starting a residency at the University of Edinburgh (where she met Scott and Andy). In 2016 Liz joined the University of Liverpool as a lecturer and subsequently senior lecturer. She was awarded her Diploma in 2017 and became a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy in 2019. 

In 2020 she took the leap into private practice and joined Chestergates Veterinary Specialists based in Chester, UK. She also had her first child that same year (it was very busy!). She has been at Chestergates ever since, and has been  promoted to Clinical Director and now Senior Clinical Director. She was awarded FRCVS for her Meritorious Contributions to Clinical Practice in 2022. 

Laura Jones

Registered Veterinary Nurse

Laura Jones qualified as a veterinary nurse in 2010, gained the DipAVN in 2014 and completed a degree in advanced veterinary nursing in 2017. Laura joined a newly-opened referral centre in Hampshire in 2015, to support and develop the Internal Medicine service. Here, her passion for medical nursing grew, leading to Veterinary Technician Specialist certification in small animal internal medicine in 2019. That same year, Laura developed a social media page and website, "Veterinary Internal Medicine Nursing', to educate and inspire nurses wanting to learn about medical patients, and speaks nationally on a variety of medical nursing topics.

Laura currently works at The Ralph Referral Centre, where she nurses both high-dependency and medical patients, whilst leading the team of internal medicine nurses.

Lacey Daniels

Registered Veterinary Nurse

Lacey took the long way round and trained to be an RVN via 3 different veterinary colleges each shaping her career and exploring her learning styles via the diploma route. She now works in various referral centres around the country alongside a permanent role as an OOH RVN in Central London. Lacey is passionate about nurses exploring their potential and breaking the mould.

Janette Bailey-Woods

Registered Veterinary Nurse

Janette qualified as an RVN in 2001 and worked in a mixed animal practice in Cumbria for 15 years. In 2013, Janette moved to work in an orthopaedic referral hospital before moving to Wear Referrals, a multi-discipline referral hospital in 2015, where she now works within the anaesthesia team as lead anaesthesia nurse. Janette has gained the NCert ECC and NCert Anaesthesia qualification, and in 2021 achieved the Veterinary Technician Specialist (VTS) in Anaesthesia and Analgesia, a prestigious credential awarded by the Academy of Veterinary Technicians in Anaesthesia and Analgesia and held by only a handful of veterinary nurses in the UK.

Out of work, Janette has two dogs, Hector and Goose, she is an outdoor enthusiast, spending time in the forest where she lives, walking up mountains or being on 'Precilla' her much loved mountain bike!

Jack Pye

Registered Veterinary Nurse

Jack began his career in a ‘first opinion’ practice where he quickly developed a passion for progression. He successfully qualified in 2018 and then went on to pursue a career in emergency & critical care, working out of hours at a busy small animal hospital. He completed his certificate in ECC in 2022. He is also a Tutor on the Improve International Nursing certificate in diagnostic imaging teaching the ultrasound modules. Jack is currently an account manager for IMV Imaging and can support practices on all of their diagnostic imaging needs and how they can get the most out of their imaging equipment and help practice growth. He also still carries out locum work to keep up to date with clinical practice. Jack’s specialist interests are ultrasonography. He regularly shares his experiences and ultrasonography content on his social media platforms (@Pye_rvn) with the hope of encouraging and supporting other veterinary professionals’ development. He also provides inhouse ultrasound CPD to practices around the country to empower veterinary nurses to carry out this useful imaging tool.

Inge Breathnach

Registered Veterinary Nurse

Inge qualified in 2007, spending 8 years in small animal practices in Ireland and Australia. In 2015 she relocated, working as both a surgical and medical oncology referral nurse, first in Surrey, and then Buckinghamshire. Inge moved to Bristol in 2023, working with an amazing team providing a wide range of veterinary cancer treatments including radiation therapy. Inge has developed a deep passion for supporting pet carers and helping enhance patient quality of life, inspired by her personal experience of losing her beloved dog, Erik, to cancer in recent years. She is also a firm advocate for veterinary nurse development and education and enjoys sharing her oncology knowledge with others via her Instagram page @OncologyRVN.

Inge Breathnach DipVn DipAVn (Small Animal) PgCert AVN (oncology) VTS/VNS (Oncology) RVN

Harry Swales

Internal Medicine Specialist

Harry graduated from the University of Liverpool in 2014, following which he undertook a rotating internship in the North West of England. Harry undertook a residency in veterinary internal medicine at the University of Liverpool and was awarded European specialist status in 2021. Harry has published research in internationally recognised scientific journals and spoken at international conferences. His interest areas include nephrology/urology (kidneys/urinary problems) and emergency and critical care.

Scott Kilpatrick

Director, Internal Medicine

Scott graduated from Edinburgh Vet School in 2007. Initially, he worked for the PDSA, before taking a Senior Veterinary Surgeon position with Vets Now in Edinburgh in 2010. Scott started his residency in internal medicine at the University of Edinburgh in 2012 after completing a year as a Teaching Fellow in Anatomy and Physiology. 

He completed his residency in 2016 after finishing his Masters in the pathogenesis of canine liver disease and has since been working in referral practice. Interventional radiology is something that really interests Scott, and he spent some time in 2018, working in this area at UC Davis in California. Scott has created and delivered a Post-graduate Certificate in Small Animal Emergency Medicine in association with the University of Chester. In 2023 he was awarded Fellow of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (FRCVS) for his meritorious contribution to clinical practice.

Overview

Our vtx nursing members wanted an advanced nursing course that will motivate and inspire them to learn from other experienced and inspirational speakers across a variety of topics. This course aims to be the UK leader in providing a completely holistic approach to CPD for registered veterinary nurses and vet techs.

This course will be delivered by a variety of speakers, including EBVS and RCVS recognised Specialists as well as nurses who hold advanced qualifications (e.g. Advanced certificates/qualifications) or who are recognised experts in their field. The course runs over an 12 week period and is equivalent to 17 hours of CPD/CE. It is delivered via pre-recorded video webinars and supplemented with a real-time discussion forum where delegates can ask questions about specific topic content or about cases that they are experiencing in practice – where they maybe just need a bit of support.

Speakers on this Advanced Skills course include Scott Kilpatrick (internal Medicine Specialist), Liz Bode (Cardiology Specialist), Ashley Wemple (RVN CertVNECC), Laura Jones (RVN, Dip AVN, VTS Internal Medicine), Lacey Daniels (EVN), Jack Pye (RVN), Inge Breatnach (RVN), Harry Swales (Internal Medicine Specialist), Janette Bailey-Woods (RVN) and Matteo Rossanese (Surgery Specialist).

Access to this course is for 12 months from the start of the course going live on our website.  The course is delivered via video webinars and supplemented with a real-time discussion forum, giving you the opportunity to ask questions or discuss cases you may be facing in your practice. The discussion forum will be monitored for the course duration only.

Lessons

Lesson 1: Bloodwork interpretation… It’s all about the base, about the base, ‘Base Excess!’ (Scott Kilpatrick)

Available immediately upon purchase of the course
  • You know how to run the tests; Let’s look in more detail at what the results mean for your patients.
  • Electrolytes and blood gas analysis can be confusing. In this lesson we will crack the code of acid base!
  • We will review some more unusual tests… from coagulation to Coombs.

Lesson 2: Fluid therapy in practice… When Hartmanns is the wrong choice! (Harry Swales)

Available following completion of previous lessons
  • When is fluid therapy indicated and what are maintenance fluids/rates
  • Be confident in fluid calculations, even the complicated ones
  • Understand the difference between fluid types and the indications
  • Case based examples

Lesson 3: The infamous blood smear… How do you make yours? (Ashley Wemple)

Available following completion of previous lessons
  • Comfortably assess a blood smear from a healthy patient (canine / feline)
  • Identify changes consistent with RBC regeneration & non-regenerative anaemia
  • Identify abnormal RBC distribution and explain when a saline agglutination might be warranted
  • Perform a platelet count
  • Identify types of white blood cells & toxic changes in neutrophils
  • Practically apply the information from blood smears to specific cases such as IMHA, IMTP, parvovirus, chronic renal failure, and more.

Lesson 4: Getting the most from your cytology… Is everything clear? (Scott Kilpatrick)

Available following completion of previous lessons
  • Be confident looking under the microscope.
  • Understand the common conditions that can be diagnosed with the help of fine needle aspiration and cytology.
  • Review what other fluids look like under the microscope. Taking the confusion out of effusions.

Lesson 5: The chemotherapy journey (Inge Breathnach)

Available following completion of previous lessons
  • Understand the end to end process of chemotherapy in practice.
  • Review health and safety of chemotherapy drugs and how to use them safely in practice.
  • Understand how to support pet carers during chemotherapy treatment.
  • Strategies to make the process positive for our patients.

Lesson 6: Tubes, drains & catheters… Understanding the what, how and why? (Laura Jones)

Available following completion of previous lessons
  • The indications for, placement techniques of and nursing care of different feeding tubes
  • Considerations for placing, using and caring for central venous catheters.
  • How to care for and manage patients with chest drains
  • How to place and care for urinary catheters in both male and female patients
  • How to place and maintain arterial catheters

Lesson 7: Advanced nutrition… When to reach for the TPN (Total Parenteral Nutrition) Scott Kilpatrick

Available following completion of previous lessons
  • Review what feeding tube options we have and when to use them.
  • Understand what to feed and when.
  • Review the role of appetite stimulation and when is this appropriate.
  • Is there a need for prokinetic and gastroprotectant medication in our anorexic patients?
  • What is total parenteral nutrition and when do we use it.

Lesson 8: Common ECG abnormalities.. How to identify arrhythmias (Liz Bode)

Available following completion of previous lessons
  • Describe how the ECG is generated.
  • Review the approach to the ECG
  • Be confident in identifying common ECG abnormalities

Lesson 9: Utilising ultrasound in practice for veterinary nurses (Jack Pye)

Available following completion of previous lessons
  • Understand and the controls on the ultrasound machines
  • Be able to identify key anatomical landmarks
  • Understand the benefits of nurses carrying out ultrasound in practice

Lesson 10: Advanced Anaesthesia… What the ‘fentanyl’ is happening? (Janette Bailey-Woods)

Available following completion of previous lessons
  • Understand how to take your anaesthesia skills to the next level.
  • Learn how to maximise your anaesthesia equipment to optimise patient care
  • When anaesthesia goes wrong… Stay calm and carry on!
  • Case based scenarios… Examples to get you thinking?

Lesson 11: Advanced Surgical Skills for RVNs (Matteo Rossanese)

Available following completion of previous lessons
  • Vascular access: how to place a central line and an arterial line
  • Hot to correctly use the different surgical instruments
  • How to perform common suture patterns
  • How to perform basic surgical procedures

Lesson 12: Evidence Based Veterinary Medicine… Your contribution matters (Lacey Daniels)

Available following completion of previous lessons
  • Understand what EBVM is and why it matters to the veterinary profession.
  • Optimising the nurse’s contribution to EBVM in practice.
  • Have you always thought about writing a veterinary article? Let us talk you through the process and give hints and tips.

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