3 Dec
However, vet and MP argues social media condemnation of either the sector, or individual professionals and practices in it, was not representative of broader public opinion.
Allister Webb
Job Title
Senior vets have pleaded for unity to help “heal” the sector once the current regulatory investigation of its operations is completed.
Fears of a potential lack of trust between clinicians and clients were raised during a London Vet Show panel discussion of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) process.
But a vet and MP argued social media condemnation of either the sector, or individual professionals and practices within it, was not representative of broader public opinion.
Although the CMA is examining the collective provision of companion animal services, the shift towards corporate practice ownership is recognised as a key factor behind its intervention. When its initial review process was launched in September last year, the authority highlighted figures showing the proportion of independently owned practices had halved in just over a decade.
But CVS Group CVO Paul Higgs told the 15 November session the profession remained one to be “proud of”, regardless of who individual workers were employed by.
He said: “I believe that every practice in the country, whether independent or corporate, is full of vets and veterinary nurses and other associated professionals who are striving to do a good job every day no matter where they work and who they work for.
“We’re going to have some work to do at the end of this, as a profession, to heal some of these wounds. We need to come together to do that.”
The message was echoed by BSAVA senior vice-president Carl Gorman as he argued the sector should “all stand together as colleagues”.
He added: “What I really don’t want to see as a result of this is a lack of trust between clients and vets.”
The discussion followed attempts by the head of the CMA’s inquiry group, Martin Coleman, to reassure delegates about the scope of the inquiry and its concern for protecting animal welfare – an issue the authority has faced criticism over in recent months.
He argued welfare could not be effectively maintained if owners can’t meet the costs of doing so and pointed out the investigation was a response to concerns about service provision, rather than the direct cause.
But he also stressed his “great respect” for veterinary professionals’ work and insisted the process had not cast doubt on the vast majority of their work.
BVA council member Sara Jackson said she felt “comfortable” with the process, despite a degree of worry about it, and encouraged delegates to continue to engage with it.
Meanwhile, MP and RCVS council member Danny Chambers drew on his political experiences as he urged delegates not to engage with some of the more extreme opinions expressed about the sector’s work online.
Although he acknowledged that being a vet was often more than just a job for many professionals, and criticism of the sector could therefore feel like an attack on a clinician’s own identity, he maintained the profession was still liked and trusted by the public at large.
He said: “You barely hear a bad word about vets. Social media is not representative of how most people feel about those things.”
But, speaking from the floor, first opinion and social media vet Cat Henstridge argued there was “huge power” in engaging online by influencing people who read posts without commenting themselves.
