Meet Lauren Evans, who only recently started her apprenticeship at Northlands Veterinary Group. In this Q&A session we learn about her passion and commitment to become a Veterinary Nurse.

What is your name, job, and location?

My name is Lauren Evans, and I am a Veterinary Care Support for Northlands Veterinary Hospital.

How long have you been doing your apprenticeship?

I started a couple of months ago.

What or who inspired you in this career direction?

I think I have always liked animals, and this made me want to become a nurse to help a variety of animals. One person in particular, our Orthopaedic Vet Adrian, I used to watch how he is with animals and people, so polite and willing to show people how things should be done. I wanted to be just like that!

What skills are needed to pursue this line of work?

Have a lot of passion, willingness, and commitment to do anything. You must have a positive outlook on things to understand why they happened in a particular way, even if they do not end well.

What made you choose an apprenticeship?

From a young age, I have always wanted to be a Veterinary Nurse, so this was an opportunity to start from the bottom and work my way up. You can gain more knowledge as you go through each stage, instead of jumping straight in, which can be quite daunting.   

Being able to learn on the job allows you to engage more and, because you are physically doing the work, you can ask as many questions as possible and double-check if knowledge is accurate.

What are the main aspects of your day-to-day job?

Being involved in the clinical side of things and finding out the root cause of issues with the animals.

What’s the most enjoyable part of your job?

Just being with the animals and how practical it is to work and learn at the same time! The apprenticeship route is more beneficial, and you can learn at a faster pace.

What are your future goals?

Once I am qualified, I will go on to referrals or maybe work in a larger hospital. I may even go into something more specific, such as learning more about the heart.

How would you sum up your job in three words?

Keep trying and pursue your goal! Even if you think things will get in the way, don’t stop and you will get there!