April 15, 2021

The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons recently issued its plan for promoting diversity and inclusion at every stage in the United Kingdom’s veterinary profession, starting with school-age children who may be considering a career in veterinary medicine.

Published Feb. 17, the RCVS Diversity and Inclusion Group strategy identified several areas where the Royal College and other organizations that form the membership of the Diversity and Inclusion Group will work to make the profession more inclusive. Those areas are as follows.

• Recruitment to veterinary and veterinary nurse education and training: developing case studies, ambassadors, and career materials for school-age children from all backgrounds; commissioning research to better understand barriers to the veterinary profession; and working with organizations that support applications from individuals of diverse backgrounds.
• Retention and support within veterinary and veterinary nurse education: updating veterinary school standards to reflect diversity and inclusion aspirations; implementing suggestions made during the recent RCVS and Veterinary Schools Council Roundtable for Black, Asian, and minority ethnic veterinary students and holding a similar event for Black, Asian, and minority ethnic student veterinary nurses; and developing clear reporting systems and support for those who suffer from discrimination during extramural studies.
• Recruitment within the profession: encouraging veterinary organizations and workplaces to take up recruitment awards and standards; helping employers understand the business, moral, and societal case for diversity and inclusion; and working with employers to develop a toolkit to support better recruitment practices and encourage people to call out poor examples.
• Retention and support within the profession: strengthening standards regarding staff support; encouraging members of the veterinary team to attend diversity and inclusion training; producing materials that support difficult conversations; and strengthening the RCVS Code of Professional Conduct to enable more confident reporting of poor behaviors.
• Organizational policies and procedures: RCVS and other organizations within the Diversity and Inclusion Group ensuring their policies promote and support diversity and inclusion; developing a toolkit to better support in-house conversations around diversity; and encouraging veterinary organizations to have regular discussions around diversity and inclusion and visible statements of intent.
• Culture change: improving the diversity of governance and leadership within the veterinary profession; ensuring diversity and inclusion is included in agendas at events; and enabling organizations to have, via the RCVS Diversity and Inclusion Group, a safe space to discuss progress and identify where they may need further help and guidance.

The RCVS Diversity and Inclusion Group includes representation from, among others, the Association of Veterinary Students, British Veterinary Association, and Veterinary Schools Council. The group is responsible for monitoring and evaluating progress within the six areas on an ongoing basis.

“If we are losing colleagues to discrimination or just not attracting people from diverse backgrounds in the first place because they think it’s ‘not for people like them,’ then we are losing out as a profession, and if we aren’t drawing on a diverse range of backgrounds, experiences, and attitudes in our work, then we are also potentially doing a disservice to our patients and clients,” said Dr. Niall Connell, RCVS senior vice president and chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Group. “This is why this strategy is not just a case of being seen to be doing something, but is actually crucial for the ongoing vitality and credibility of the veterinary team.”

Download a PDF of the RCVS strategy.