Recent meeting with the Australasian Veterinary Boards Council (AVBC)

Earlier this year, the AVA hosted a Workforce Forum to discuss some of the issues affecting the veterinary profession. Approximately 10% of the profession registered for the event, and 300 comments or questions were submitted prior to the event which were categorised into themes. During the forum, a continual stream of consciousness unfolded in the chat, and from this, further comments and questions were collected, totaling over 1000 statements and questions.

There was commentary around issues which the Australasian Veterinary Boards Council (AVBC) oversees, and recently the AVA met with them to discuss these issues.

The themes identified within the AVBC’s remit predominantly sat in the areas of:

• Regulation by Veterinary Surgeons Boards
• Immigration

We communicated the deep concerns of our members around the perception of how complaints are handled by the veterinary boards, and the negative impact this has on the wellbeing of veterinary professionals. We communicated that our early career colleagues are particularly apprehensive about this issue, and also discussed the concern that we have about how this negatively impacts workforce sustainability. This sentiment is similar to the feedback that the AVBC has received, and through their new Sustainable Practice Committee, under the leadership of Dr Zoe Lenard, projects are under way to investigate  a national framework to improve the process. The meeting also heard that the profession is concerned about the implications of seeking assistance, and reporting mental health issues to veterinary boards. The way this is currently perceived is a potential  barrier to  individuals requiring assistance.

Those present at the forum also showed support for an expansion of regulation of para-veterinary professionals (veterinary nurses and veterinary technicians), and recognition by the veterinary boards of the tasks they undertake. This will allow veterinary teams to function more effectively, and to enhance career satisfaction across the team. This has also been identified as an issue by the AVBC, and feasibility is being examined in light of the many complexities that contribute to this issue.

The forum indicated that the profession would like consideration given to accommodation of limited registration. This relates particularly to those individuals with veterinary degrees that are not recognised for the purpose of registration in Australia, but who have undertaken specialist credentialing approved by the AVBC.  The expansion of additional veterinary degrees, to be recognized by the AVBC was also raised. The AVA communicated both issues to the AVBC for their consideration.

 It is apparent that both the AVBC and the AVA share similar concerns on a number of issues affecting workforce sustainability. Through the Sustainable Practice Committee, the AVBC is addressing the issues which sit within their remit, and we look forward to continued engagement for the betterment of the profession.