Any Vets here?

[NewGrad]

I’m a new grad vet and I just feel useless. My feedback from university was always stellar but said I was way too hard on myself and needed a plan for bad days.

I’ve just started my job and I feel crap. My surgery is slow, I’ve been out of practice for about 6 months, I feel like I can’t remember anything.

Does it get better? I am exhausted every night and can’t imagine ever having a life alongside work. I’m autistic which I put on my employment form but never heard anything more about it or if they can offer any accommodations.

It’s my first ever job too so I just feel way out of my depth in every way as I’m not sure how timesheets and being paid etc works which I know sounds ridiculous.

I just feel so stupid.

Hi. Twenty five years in and I still have tough days! Have you spoken to your Vet GDP mentor? How much support are you getting in practice? If you are new I’d expect you to have a consult blocked out every so often to catch up, time allocated to admin like reporting test results and someone on hand to run things past if you are uncertain about a plan. On ops days they should be giving you only routine surgeries you are happy with or having someone available to operate with you. Make sure that your rota gives you time off and that you practice separating work from home - it would be helpful to talk to your mentor at the end of a shift to ‘park’ any concerns.
Practical things like timesheets and wages should be really straightforward to sort out with the practice manager - just ask - and don’t let an admin detail stress you out.
In theory the profession has got better at protecting mental health of employees over the last few years - in practice not always - but if your practice don’t support you vote with your feet.
You may find the Facebook group VetWings helpful if you are not already in it - lots of support for final years and new grads there.

Thank you @Patchworksack
The thing is, I was confident with surgery when I saw them on EMS but now I feel like I’ve gone backwards. I don’t know if it’s nerves due to having my MRCVS.

I would really prefer someone to be on hand for my first few dog castrates and cat spays for a while but I don’t know if that’s practical.

Nobody has gone through the ear and skin treatments they stock with me and I haven’t had any time to go and look in pharmacy so lots of the things I feel happy prescribing we don’t stock.

My boss said I’m doing fine and it’s normal but I feel like all the knowledge has left my brain and like they’d be better off without me there.

I’m hoping it’s just the result of:

• being autistic and struggling with change
• normal new job things e.g. knowing where things are
• having had 4 months off over summer
• Being autistic and getting to know a new team

Forgot to add my GDP mentor doesn’t exist yet as no one has finished the training

I've been qualified over 30 years and was in practice till recently, when I moved to another role. It sounds to me like you are undersupported while finding your feet. I suggest you look online at support forums like Veterinary Voices (FB) where you will find lots and lots of support within the community - more than you will get here, where obviously there aren't many vets and it's an open forum that non-vets can see. Everything you are feeling is normal. I still remember my first ever consult, which was for a lame cat ... only it wasn't lame in the consult, which of course is often the case if the adrenaline masks a mild lameness, but at the time I was sure I was the worst vet in the world because I couldn't see the lameness. Then there was the time, about 6 weeks in, where I was doing the 2-2.30 pm Saturday afternoon surgery, sole charge, which was an open surgery with no appointments intended just for urgent cases - and 24 people turned up and my boss refused to come and help ...

If there are good nurses in the practice, they can be worth their weight in gold in helping and supporting. Work out some easy solutions to common problems - you say you don't know what ear medications are stocked, but you're bound to see an infected ear pretty much every day, so go and find out what is stocked and what antibiotic it contains and pre-decide what you would be thinking of prescribing as a first line ear treatment, etc. It's completely reasonable to want a hand hold for your first few spays - for a dog castrate, just having someone on the premises might be enough.

If you've only just started, you are at the bottom of the learning curve of being a real vet, at a point when the profession is in crisis and the country isn't in a great shape either. It's going to be tough, and that's not your fault. But it will get easier as you find allies in the team and nice clients and have some successes. And if the team isn't supportive, move! Vets with a pulse are like gold dust at the moment - you can get a better job instantly, no doubt. And you will be fine - there are so many people who feel like you, if it's the right job for you, you will be able to find your niche. If you hate it, you can always leave clinical work and do something else, but give it more time before deciding, as feeling like this at the outset is totally normal.

HTH, good luck!

Hi OP.
Firstly, sorry to hear you are feeling so stressed. I think because there is so much pressure, stress and time involved in joining the profession; when you finally get there it can be completely overwhelming.
I absolutely agree with everything written above. You are part of a team, and you should all be supporting each other- in whichever manner that should be. Don’t be afraid to ask for help and assistance when you need it, it will benefit the whole team to have you all working at the best you can be. At this stage in your career you are going to come across things that you don’t know what to do with, that is completely normal. Hell, I’m 10 years out and still come across stuff that taxes the old grey matter/ I need to pass over to a more adultier adult. Please do not feel disheartened. I know it’s a cliche, but lots of things come better with experience. It also sounds like your confidence is low, that, again, is very normal at this stage. But if this continues and is detrimental to your well being then you need to seek help either within the profession or outside.

We have just taken on a new graduate, and she is requiring a lot of support. That was to be expected and we had prepared for that accordingly. The last thing we want is for her to loose her confidence at this early stage. It is frustrating that your employer has not got a GDP mentor in place. Like everything, it has it’s pitfalls, but it’s actually a very good solid scheme to have in place to make sure you are getting structured support. It shows that your employer understands their responsibility to you as well.

Again, I repeat what was said above. This is an employees market. You are hot property, and if you are not getting credible support, find somewhere that will provide this. All practices with GDP mentors will have a little symbol next to their name on the RCVS’ website.

Do you have any friends from University you can talk to? I found this very very helpful in the early years, especially when the inevitable disasters (in my opinion!) arose. It was very reassuring that I wasn’t the only one muddling my way through.

Nurses are also your friends- my biggest piece of advice would be to look after them! They know everything and are totally invaluable. I don’t know what I would have done without mine in my first job.

Remember- you are not alone. There are hundreds of you out there, and your peers will all be feeling just as reserved about aspects of their new careers. Everyone will have different concerns and worries.

Best of luck 😊

Thank you everyone!
I’m glad I’m not alone and it’s normal to take time to find your feet. I have a specific area (reptiles) that I am confident in which is why they offered me the job but then I haven’t been given any reptile cases myself yet despite other young vets asking my advice on them multiple times a day which is daunting and takes up more of my time when I’m already struggling. Obviously I am happy to help but I was asked to explain to a 2 year grad how I’d PTS a bearded dragon including pithing but no one took my consults so I was behind afterwards.

There are 20 vets so it’s a huge place and multiple are in the process of finishing their GDP. I haven’t even done 2 weeks yet so I know it’s way too early but I just feel like it’s consuming every moment of my life.

I had actually decided I didn’t think I’d cope with clinical work during uni but then I kept being offered jobs on placements. My mentor at uni said it would be such a shame not to at least try it as I was better than I give myself credit for so I accepted this one but I just feel like a shell of myself struggling to get through the day.

I got an awful case of autistic burntout during rotations to the point I was getting an average of 2 hours sleep a night and then would sleep 18 hours each day on the weekends. A large amount of my hair fell out and my periods stopped. I completely lost myself but I don’t know the solution. I don’t think I fully recovered even after the summer off. I spoke to both uni and my work and they said “you’ll be fine”. I can’t tell if I’m just being dramatic. I feel alert and safe at work but feel quite panicked during surgery. I am sleeping this time around but I’m doing 7am-7pm which means getting up at 5am due to the commute and getting back just before 8. I have dinner walk the dog and then go straight to bed. I can’t imagine ever having time for myself. On my day off (today) I’m not fit for much at all.

How many shifts are you working? 4 days of 12 hours plus some weekend hours? I do 10 hour shifts and I’m still cabbage by the end - I think it’s too much when it’s all new to you. Advocate for yourself and put some boundaries in place even if that means dropping hours. Talk to them about the exotics stuff too - they may be not giving you those consults trying to keep it simple for you but if that is actually your strength then it might be more fulfilling and less stressful to take those clinics. I work in a much smaller clinic but we swap stuff all the time ‘I’ll take the emergency but you need to cover my clinics’ or reception move stuff around to create capacity. You’ll be no good to anyone if you burn out rapidly and it’s a sign of maturity that you value and protect your mental health.

@Patchworksack

Four 12 hour days with a 1 hour (unpaid) lunch if I manage to take it. Plus 1 in 4 Saturdays (8-5).
I suggested I took more exotics as some of the other vets hate them yet get the majority. Management said they “need to learn”. We have our own columns and aren’t meant to swap.

It just makes no sense to me to have me sat trying to figure out something in a dog and another vet trying to decipher follicular stasis in a beardie when we could swap and see the same clients in less time.

I completely appreciate i need to get to grips with the basics in dogs and cats but I chose this clinic as they promised me lots of exotics. I even turned down the offer of an amazing internship as this location was closer to family and they said the case load is comparable. The original vet that brought in all the exotics has left the practice since I accepted the job. They currently don’t have anyone else with a keen interest in them. I’m worried the clients will move and I’ll be stuck. I don’t see myself being a dog/cat GP vet long term. At the moment I don’t see myself being a vet long term.

I know I probably sound pathetic.

This sounds like terrible management tbh. If a new grad in their first two weeks gets behind in consulting for any reason, which they all do, someone should be picking up some of their cases to help them stay on track, let alone if you are only behind because you were actually helping a colleague.
lf it’s huge and busy you’re going to find it more overwhelming and harder to find your feet. Also, you are currently trying to learn the basics with dogs and cats while also trying to develop a more specialised skill set with exotics. A lot of the skills you need to develop at the moment apply to both, though, because dealing with the workplace in general is what you are finding hard. I wouldn’t worry too much about what species you are treating right now. I would see if this place is more supportive over the next couple of weeks, and if not, move somewhere that is, asap, whether that has an exotics caseload or not. You can always move again or build your own caseload in exotics once you have that basic competency more embedded.

Thank you @WhiteArsenic
Had a few good days then an awful day this week where I asked for advice, was told I needed to use my old judgement and then berated when I was wrong. It was about a choice of suture material too so hardly something I could Google.
constantly ran behind that day and I was rushed through ops. I’m really hating it. Finishing late and walking the dog and going straight to bed pretty much. There’s no room for anything at the moment other than work. I have a meeting next week and I’m worried they’re going to say I’m too slow/I’ve made a mistake/ I’m fired

This just sounds like a terrible mentor or practice or both. Obviously there are some common sense things with suture material and some guidelines, but much of it is down to experience or personal preference. The only reasonable response to a new grad asking about suture material is to say “I usually use x but y would also be fine, see what you prefer”.

This is an unsupportive environment. I really suggest you look elsewhere. If you have a probation period you might be able to leave with very short notice. You should have way more support than this at this stage. You can’t tell if you like the career when the workplace is so bad; it doesn’t have to be like this.

What are the nurses like?

Thank you @WhiteArsenic
I have a 6 month probation period, I’ll have to check my contract to see when I could leave. The choice I made was the wrong size, I picked something a bit big which made burying knots difficult :( I didn’t do something hugely stupid or anything but got the comment “things would’ve been much easier if you’d made the right choice of suture material” with no attempt to help me correct it for next time. I was worrying I’d picked the wrong type e.g. monocryl vs PDS and had to ask another vet where I could improve. They suggested one size down.

The nurses are mostly amazing! 1 or 2 are lovely. Most of the vets would help too I think but I’m on shift with my mentor every day and it’s making things so difficult. Another vet saw me typing notes at the computer trying to hide I was crying and they were really sympathetic and told me to ask the CDs if I could be put on shift with them once a week under the guise of “seeing how others approach things”. I’m going to try that.

The other younger vets are having a much better experience, I think I’m just unlucky.

Not a vet but ex-RVN here (I have just retrained and completely changed direction but was in practice for 15 years). I would definitely look for a nice nurse and befriend them, I was in a practice that got a lot of new grads before they went off to specialise :( i always aimed to help them and particularly any that were struggling. Also it is totally normal, you are very new and we always thought it took about a year before they were confident and even then you are always learning. Can you get together in the office with other vets to discuss cases? We have had this in varying degrees depending on the team at the time but I really think it was valuable and I certainly learnt a lot from it, even just cases that were interesting. Finally are you on that vet fb group and the other online forum? Good luck but I’m sure you will be grand.

Also don’t be afraid to ask nurses what other vets do/ use.

@NewGrad your mentor sounds awful. Selecting what size suture to choose is just an experience thing and would take 10s to say ‘I prefer 2/0’ or whatever. To not answer that is just obstructive and being unnecessarily difficult.

That’s a great idea. I was berated for asking the nurse for advice because it’s “my patient”. Typically a few have had issues like vomiting, diarrhoea, high pain score etc after the procedure and my mentor won’t help me with what to do. I’ve been adding in extra pain relief/prevomax/switching what they go home on etc but no one is there to reassure me.

Even with things like estimates. I keep making stupid mistakes that wouldn’t happen if someone would just help me. I have felt like screaming a few times and nearly had a meltdown at work the other day. I spent my whole lunch break just trying to catch my breath as I felt so panicked.

I know it shouldn’t be like this but it’s also so hard to get out of. I feel like a spoilt petulant child whenever I ask for anything.

That’s awful 😢 I’m so sorry to hear this. I know it’s easy for me to say when I’m not in the situation but if you think there is a nurse or vet that you could speak to that isn’t your mentor you could tell them all this and they might be able to help you. I have advocated for colleagues before or tried to help there where I can.
also remember that vets are in short supply so don’t be afraid to look for something else, there is no shame in admitting it isn’t the right role for you and there may be something much more supportive. We had a new grad leave this time last year after about 6 weeks as it just didn’t suit what they wanted/ expected.

OP your practice sounds awful!2 weeks in you should still be in induction and being supported properly not being berated for asking colleagues!I'm so cross for you that this is happening and it's no wonder there's not enough vets.as above it's an employees market you should look at other options or ask for a meeting with the partners or practice manager etc and be confident in asking for better. You should think what would help,double consult slots until your ready or being in with another vet for ops etc,or taking on a higher exotic caseload etc and expect them to support you.many of the corporates have graduate support programs?sounds like you have nothing in place to help you.this I would say without even knowing about you being autistic,they clearly haven't been supportive for this either.part time could help? Certainly 2 weeks in they should be supportive.id also befriend reception team and make sure they know to book you exotics and to go gentle on booking complicated appointments,maybe they don't realise and just need to know your struggling.most of all don't be ashamed of struggling it's so normal to need time in a new job and it will take time.and support!

Yes, this sounds mostly like a terrible and uninterested mentor who is being an unnecessary arse. It’s not your fault and you shouldn’t have to cope with this! Definitely flag it to someone else in the practice and see if things can be shifted to give you a different mentor. If not, remember that probation works two ways. It’s not a prison sentence. It’s a time when either side can terminate the contract more quickly if things aren’t working.