Member profile: Dr Ben Brightman

Mackay veterinarian Dr Ben Brightman loves the regional community in which he works, and is keen to share his enthusiasm about rural areas being an incredible place for new graduate veterinarians to start their careers.

“If I lived in a city I would never have had the opportunity to perform most of the large surgeries that I have been lucky enough to do, as without specialists around we are given opportunities to help these patients out when no one else can. The other thing that I love about being a vet in a regional area is the community - I love going to my local Woolworths and knowing half of the staff as they bring their pets to me!” said Dr Brightman.

Having grown up in Mackay, Dr Brightman moved to Townsville to study for his veterinary degree, which he completed in 2015. His first job was at Valley Veterinary Surgery back in Mackay, and apart from six months spent travelling and locuming around Australia with his veterinarian wife Annie, he has remained at the same vet practice and is now a managing partner.

“In August this year I became a partner in the practice and in October we opened a new clinic in Marian, taking us to three clinics in the Mackay area. There are many areas of veterinary science that I enjoy, however, the main reasons I enjoy being a vet are the relationships that I build with members of our community.”

“Whether it be from seeing the puppies enter the family for the first time, helping them out in the middle of the night in an emergency setting, or being out on the farm where you might be pulling a calf but also giving management advice for the whole farm,” shared Dr Brightman.

Community important

Making sure to be involved in the community is a priority for Dr Brightman, both within the town and within the veterinary profession too.

“Our local community here is fantastic, and I think being involved with your community is so important - and by that, I mean your local community but also your professional community. Go to the local AVA meeting and get to know the other vets in your area. Prior to this year I was the AVA North Queensland branch President. This year I stepped into the role of AVA Queensland division President.”

“The reason I have continued and furthered my involvement with the AVA is that I can see the great things they are doing to improve our profession. We’ve started hosting recent graduate dinners to offer support but also to allow them to meet other recent graduates in this area, to this date these events have been highly successful,” said Dr Brightman.

Family, fishing and friends

Outside of his veterinary work, Dr Brightman enjoys going fishing, and he and his wife recently welcomed their first child.

“My wife and I had a baby in May this year so that has definitely been a new challenge for us however coming home to him definitely makes some of the stress of work life seem less important now - he has definitely given me a new perspective!” said Dr Brightman.

For those entering the veterinary profession, Dr Brightman reflected on what is the key to successfully navigating the challenges of the early years of work.

“The main thing is to embrace your mistakes, we all make them and that’s how we learn and become better at what we do. Don’t bottle up your stress, call a fellow graduate or a mate and talk about it with them because I can almost guarantee that they will have a similar story to yours and having a chat can make something that seems like the end of the world seem not so bad,” said Dr Brightman.