Inaugural THRIVE Wellness Symposium a resounding success

_{Image: members of the THRIVE Steering Group, from L-R Rosie Overfield, Benton Smith, Monika Cole, Anna Dawson, Cathy Warburton, Debbie Neutze, Warwick Vale and Michael Paton.}

This week saw veterinary professionals come from all corners of the country to attend the inaugural THRIVE Veterinary Wellness Symposium, sponsored by Hill’s Pet Nutrition and Provet/Covetrus. The event was extremely well attended, with 140 delegates present to watch three incredible speakers: Paul Davey, Amanda Goodfellow and Olivia (Liv) Oginska.

^{Image (L-R): speaker Amanda Goodfellow, Rosie Overfield (from the THRIVE Steering Group) and speaker Olivia (Liv) Oginska (credit: Anna Dawson)}

Dr Paul Davey, a veterinarian and partner at Grantham St Veterinary Clinic, is also a long-term contributor to the AVA Graduate Mentoring Program, VetHealth Initiatives, a Member of Veterinary Practice Board Western Australia and a Mental Health First Aider. He delivered a powerful presentation on safeguarding the mental health of veterinary teams that delivered concrete, practical guidance for fellow practice owners.

^{Image: Dr Paul Davey speaking at the THRIVE Wellness Symposium 2023 (credit: Mike Polaroid)}

Fostering a high degree of trust was a key message underpinning his message. Practice owners and managers, Dr Davey said, want to “help staff to grow and develop and be the best version of themselves. But [we] need to build that trust first before [we] play that game. You have to have trust… because it’s a very personal thing for your staff to reveal their personal mental health scenarios.” Dr Davey rounded out his incredible presentation with a selection of real-life case studies, drawn from his own experiences, that demonstrated how to navigate through some challenging team conflict situations.

^{Image: Dr Paul Davey lectures to a full audience}

Amanda Goodfellow, Director of Agile Mind and Corporate Meditation Teacher, focused on personal wellness through mindfulness and meditation. Holistic wellness is like a “three-legged stool: the physical self, the intellectual self, and the emotional self,” said Ms Goodfellow “ And we need all three to thrive.” A deficiency of any one of the three results in instability and challenges our mental wellness.

^{Image: Amanda Goodfellow leading a guided meditation (credit: Mike Polaroid)}

Delegates were taken through a series of guided meditations, then asked to check in on how this made them feel. The emphasis was on making meditation and mindfulness accessible, with just small commitments making a profound and lasting differences.

Last on the agenda was a presentation on building team culture, delivered by Dr Olivia (Liv) Oginska. Dr Ogniska is a veterinarian, Emotional Intelligence Coach and Certified Workplace Conflict Mediator. In her presentation, she emphasised how significantly one’s emotions can impact on the functioning of a veterinary team. “Instead of leaving [emotions] at the door,” Dr Oginska said, “how about we get better at reading them, understanding them, [and] utilising them?”

^{Image: Dr Liv Oginska teaching delegates how to foster good communication and culture within teams (credit: Anna Dawson)}

Dr Oginska provided a framework of six key factors, all of which contribute to an overarching team culture. Delegates enjoyed participating in a team-building exercise, utilisating common ingredients to create sculptures that represented team culture. Despite limitations on time and resources, many of the creations were impressive to behold!

^{Images above: Dr Liv Oginska leads a group activity, where each table was asked to construct a sculpture that represents team culture (credit: Anna Dawson)}

^{Image (L-R): Dr Kirby Inglis from Riverland Mobile Veterinary Services, Dr Michael Kidd from Hurlstone Park Veterinary Hospital and Dr George White from Hobart Community Veterinary Hospital working together}

Overall, the THRIVE Wellness Symposium was extremely well-received and was a wonderful way to kick off the 2023 AVA Annual Conference. Monika Cole, AVA Executive Officer for Wellness said, “What makes a successful event? For me, it is the rich tapestry that is woven by wonderful people coming together for the purpose of veterinary wellness. Thank you to the 140 veterinary professionals from around the country who attended our inaugural THRIVE Wellness Symposium, our sponsors, Hill’s Pet Nutrition and Provet/Covetrus, and our inspirational speakers, Paul Davey, Amanda Goodfellow and Olivia (Liv) Oginska. We gained some wisdom, discovered our inner child again and learnt the importance of being mindful and connecting with each other.”

^{Image: Monika Cole, AVA Executive Officer of Wellness, on hand to answer questions and chat to delegates at the THRIVE stand during the AVA Annual Conference 2023}