About the RCVS Mind Matters Initiative
One of the ambitions of the VN Futures Report and Action Plan was to build a ‘confident, resilient, healthy and well-supported’ veterinary nurse workforce. Supporting the mental health and wellbeing of veterinary nurses by encouraging awareness-raising of mental ill-health, training on how to prevent mental health issues as well as identify when they occur and encouraging people to take advantage of support mechanisms, is a key component for meeting this ambition.
The Mind Matters Initiative (MMI) aims to support the mental health and wellbeing of those in the veterinary team, including registered and student veterinary nurses. The initiative was launched in 2015 to meet the needs for mental health awareness and support in the veterinary professions. It is funded and run by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS), the regulatory body for veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses in the UK. The RCVS takes the mental health and welfare of members of the veterinary profession seriously, and its five-year, £1m commitment to Mind Matters reflects this.
Its core work is divided into three streams of activity – Prevent, Protect and Support.
The veterinary nursing profession is one of MMI’s key themes and areas of focus for 2022-2027.
Student veterinary nurse wellbeing
In 2021 MMI delivered the first part of a project addressing Student Veterinary Nurse Wellbeing, and you can find out more about this project here.
Resources and training from MMI
We encourage you to find out more for your reference and support from the following:
