When she was at school, Stephanie Phillips can clearly remember a teacher telling her she’d never fulfil her dreams of working in the veterinary profession. But Stephanie has proved that teacher spectacularly wrong by going from an Animal Care Assistant to Clinic Manager at our thriving Vets Now Newport clinic.
As we mark our fifth milestone anniversary, Stephanie tells us how she couldn’t be happier as she helps lead the talented team at our clinic.
What inspired you to join the veterinary world?
I grew up around animals, and when my rabbit fell ill and I couldn’t do anything, I knew I wanted to help animals from that moment. I started in veterinary at 16, joining a clinic in Cardiff to work both on reception and as a Nursing Assistant.
I was there for 18 years and really enjoyed both roles, dealing with clients and looking after the animals, before moving to another practice.
When the out-of-hours there was transferred to Vets Now Newport, I joined for the opening in April 2020, initially as an Animal Care Assistant (ACA).
Animal Care Assistants are integral members of the team, and assist in basic procedures as well as making sure pets are comfortable and well looked after.
What makes Newport a great place to work?
Clients will initially call their own vets with emergencies, but if they’re unable to get an appointment for whatever reason, the client can call us, and we’ll see them.
We get a lot of patient transfers from our partner practices. Some transfers get sent to us early in the day if a procedure is needed. Other patients in overnight can stay with us rather than be transferred back and we can do procedures during the daytime. Our host and partner practices really depend on us.
Teamwork is important in our clinic too – we work together to ensure every pet gets the treatment they need, no matter the time of day.
You’ve had a great career progression, tell us more about that
My manager at the time had great belief in me, recognising I had transferrable skills from my many years at other clinics. That gave me the confidence to take on more and more duties before he asked whether I had any interest in line managing.
I started off managing the ACAs, then other support staff as Customer Lead, and I finally became Clinic Manager over three years ago.
So, what do your Clinic Manager duties involve?
A mix of things, from operational and financial duties, to liaising with our host practice on topics like building maintenance.
When I come in, I’ll look at what inpatients we have in, chat to the nurses and the vets and find out who’s going home, who’s staying in and what clients need to be called. It’s a bit of a handover with the team, but necessary.
It’s hard to summarise my role, I sometimes feel like my role is a cross between an agony aunt and a firefighter. Everyone knows my door is always open and people come to me if they have issues, be it work-related or personal. That’s the agony aunt side.
The firefighting bit comes in when something isn’t going to plan, like if the clinic is busy and I’ve been contacted regarding a sickness, or a piece of equipment breaks, and I need to jump into action and resolve the situation
How has working at Vets Now helped with your career progression?
A huge amount, right from that initial encouragement from my manager and the head nurse. And I know there’s so much help and advice on hand, be it from HR, Finance or the GAPS team.
I didn’t go to university, so I don’t have loads of qualifications and still remember being told by a teacher that my dreams of a career in veterinary would never happen. It was so demoralising – my mum really kicked off!
That does give you doubts, but Vets Now has always championed me and the encouragement to succeed has been there from the start.
Have you done courses or taken up development opportunities?
I’m actually in the middle of doing a Certificate in Veterinary Practice Management, which has been really insightful. Some of what I’m learning I realise I’ve been doing anyway, which reinforces that you are on the right track and gives you a boost.
Do you like working with animals? Is there any case that still stands out for you?
I loved helping the animals and I had such a sense of pride knowing I contributed to helping the patients recover.
I can still recall so many cases, like a beautiful stray cat that came into my first clinic over 20 years ago after being hit by a car. It had a fractured pelvis and a broken leg. I really took to it and when the vet managed to fix the pelvis, I ended up adopting him and named him Paws.
When we are really busy here, I have been known to put on my scrubs or an apron to lend a hand, which I love doing.
How have you seen the clinic grow alongside how you’ve come along?
We’ve really flourished and probably surpassed expectations. At first, I remember expecting that we might just see one or two procedures a month, but we were so busy right from the start. It’s been a rollercoaster, but a fun ride!
Tell us more about your team!
We’ve got an amazing team, some who have been here from the start – and others who have joined along the way.
I think we had two receptionists, four ACAS, six nurses and five vets when we started. Now we have six receptionists, 11 ACAS, 15 nurses and a dozen vets, so we’ve really expanded.
The team is so supportive of one another, they’re a fantastic bunch. We also have a bank of locums that pick-up shifts here. We’ve had feedback from locums that they really enjoy working here, which is so lovely to hear.
What would you say to that careers teacher who said you’d never make it in veterinary?
That people can succeed with the right attitude and support. There’s a brilliant buzz here and it would be really satisfying to go back and just show what I’m doing and tell her she got it really wrong!