Our Head of Nursing Services is using her passion for nursing to benefit colleagues both here at Cave and further afield. Bryony Gilder, who has been with us for more than 10 years, is promoting the nursing agenda on a number of fronts.
This includes her co-founding and co-running of our monthly Nurse CPD Club. It was started pre-Covid-19 and available free for all local veterinary nurses to join once monthly at our hospital in Wellington.
Covid-19 meant the Nurse CPD Club went online and, beneficially, this has meant more nurses could join. It attracts as many as 120 nurses in a session, both from within Linnaeus and outside, all keen to develop their skills in a variety of areas.
Topics range from anaesthesia through to surgery through to being feline-friendly, with the most popular discussion so far being how to clip a patient for surgery.
Meanwhile, Bryony was recently appointed as Head of Nursing Services, taking over from Helen Bye, who was promoted to a central nursing role within Linnaeus as Referral Nursing Director.
Bryony said: “Helen showed me how to be a leader and while the new role has challenged me, I’m enjoying it. I also try and lead by example, I wouldn’t expect anyone in my team to do something I wouldn’t do myself.
“It really is a great group of people I work with. It has a real family feel at Cave and I’m very proud to be working here and leading the team.”
Bryony is also currently working towards a VTS in neurology, a discipline she cares passionately about, and she will be just one of a handful of UK veterinary nurses to hold the esteemed US status if she passes her exams next year.
Bryony added: “My passion for neurology started when I did a post-graduate certificate in small animal rehabilitation and was on placement at DWR Veterinary Specialists, where I began having contact with neurology patients.
“When Cave introduced this discipline, I knew it’s what I wanted to do. I loved the patients, I loved nursing them – it was my lightbulb moment.”
Next in Bryony’s sights is to organise Cave Nurse CPD Club’s first congress where there will be a schedule of speakers covering a variety of topics and a chance to network with like minded people.
