Head Vet

Overall purpose:

This is a fantastic opportunity for a dedicated, customer-focused Head Vet to join the team at our Warringtonsurgery.

You’ll be a key member of our surgery’s management team, delivering excellence in clinical care and customer service. You’ll be responsible for delivering preventive services, treating sick and injured pets and be able to demonstrate a real passion for promoting pet wellbeing. 

This role spearheads continuous improvement of the service capability of the surgery and the upskilling of colleagues in order to become a centre of clinical excellence. In doing so, this role is key to driving turnover and profitability.

As the surgery’s senior clinician, this role is responsible for all aspects of clinical governance and for helping to steer the overall direction and unify the clinical culture of the business.

About us:

We’re part of the UK’s largest, independent, family-owned veterinary group with a nationwide presence. We offer exceptional care in the local communities we serve, helping pets to live long, happy and healthy lives with their families.

Our state-of-the-art surgeries are purpose-built, light and spacious and equipped with the latest technology. We’re committed to creating an environment that offers exceptional clinical care and where our colleagues love to work, our patients are calm and our customers feel assured.

We’re continually investing in developing our growing team and there's never been a better time to join us! 

To attract and retain the best talent in the sector, we offer market-leading salaries, flexible work patterns and locations, a generous bonus scheme, opportunities for voluntary work overseas, fully-funded post-grad certificates, quarterly recognition payments and electric company cars.

Duties and responsibilities

People

Work in partnership with the other members of the surgery’s management team:

• To create an environment in which all colleagues are happy, healthy and stimulated
• To run the surgery at its optimum efficiency and productivity
• To deliver the best customer experience and patient care
• Recruit and induct new Veterinary Surgeons, ensuring they have the necessary support and have a clear understanding of The Vet's expectations, based on the practice procedures manual

  
  

Manage all Veterinary Surgeons (including Locums), ensuring:

• Their time and expertise is most effectively utilised
• They are proactively and thoroughly conducting case work-ups and follow-up appointments
• Their interactions with clients and patients are consistently excellent
• Their clinical records are accurate and up to date
• They are correctly invoicing

Ensure new graduates are:

• Adequately progressing the Vet graduate scheme
• Being supported by their mentors
• Foster a learning culture, agreeing CPD requirements for all Veterinary Surgeons, monitoring the effectiveness and sharing knowledge

Approve Veterinary Surgeons’:

• Work rotas
• Holiday requests
• Sickness absence
• Monitor clinical performance of all Veterinary Surgeons; and provide the appropriate development and coaching to drive their continuous improvement
• Conduct performance management and annual appraisals for all Veterinary Surgeons.
• Ensure there is regular opportunity for case discussions and the communication of clinical initiatives.

Operations

• Conduct consultations, investigations and surgical procedures, practicing outstanding first opinion medicine and surgery, with a focus on preventive and diagnostic driven healthcare.
• Adhere to and reinforce compliance to The Vet Practice Procedures Manual, Standard Operating Procedures and Standard Forms.
• Conduct clinical audits to develop the Vet team and to improve the surgery performance. Maintain a reflective no-blame culture of clinical audit.
• Investigate and resolve clinical adverse incidents and customer complaints using these as an opportunity to reflect and improve processes, standards and protocols. Influence and lead the team to change embedded ways of working to improve outcomes.
• Liaise with the Group Practice Manager on the findings and corrective action requirements from internal audits, ensuring they are completed in the agreed timescale.
• Maintain timely, accurate and up to date clinical notes for each patient; and ensure that the Vet team does the same.

Customer

• Lead by example by consistently demonstrating a caring, professional attitude to customers and patients.
• Intuitively read the customer, patient and the situation to anticipate needs. Influence customers to follow best-practise advice.
• Ensure exceptional clinical standards and if anything ever goes wrong, ensure that complaints and concerns are resolved timely, professionally and in line with the values. Escalate matters to the Group Practice Manager if VDS involvement is required.
• Communicate promptly and effectively with customers regarding progress of investigations, treatment and follow-up care.
• Ensure that inpatients receive the appropriate clinical care and an effective handover is conducted between colleagues and/or out of hours providers.
• Encourage the use of internal referrals and seek the assistance of appropriate colleagues or advisory bodies to deliver clinical excellence.

Strategic Activity

• Collaborate with the central leadership team to expand and improve the services provided at the surgery through eg purchase of new equipment, introducing new protocols, recruiting new roles, funding additional CPD.
• Lead from the front by fostering internal collaboration with the three functional teams (Vets, Nurses & Front of House) to deliver the best patient care and customer experience.
• Be an ambassador and lead the team to live The Vet’s purpose & values.
• Proactively plan and contribute to the overall strategy for the surgery and regularly analyse data to understand issues and identify opportunities to drive performance in line with the overall business strategy.
• Maximise the commercial performance of the clinic by monitoring key performance indicators such as average transaction values and diagnostic percentages. Identify and pursue opportunities to improve commercial and clinical performance.
• In line with best in class veterinary standards, coordinate the surgery’s efforts to maintain/work towards Practice Standards Scheme (PSS) certification and achieve further certification, where appropriate.
• Ensure the surgery meets its ethical requirements – all colleagues act in accordance with the RCVS code of conduct, PSS and VDS guidelines.
• Support the leadership team in promoting the strategic plan and the values of TPV and driving continuous improvement
• Special projects as agreed with the Managing Director

KPIs

• % audit corrective actions
• Daily surgery financials
• Monthly Veterinary Surgeons’ turnover
• % surgery follow-up consultations
• Year on year comparison of retention of Veterinary Surgeons

Behaviours

• The role is based in a fast-paced environment and the Head Vet must lead by example.
• This role requires strong communication, organisational and people management skills. The post holder must also demonstrate empathy, kindness and compassion.
• The post holder must be professional, confident and calm – inspiring confidence in the customers and team. Enthusiastic and positive yet emotionally resilient.
• The Head Vet must demonstrate flexibility and the willingness to provide cover for absences and weekends, if required, which may include working at other surgeries (by prior agreement).
• The post holder must work collaboratively with Head Vets across the group to share knowledge, experience and resource.
• The role requires a commitment to proactively developing own skills whilst completing CPD in accordance with The Pet Vet and the RCVS requirements.
• The Head Vet must adhere to health & safety guidelines, ensuring their Vet team does the same.

Skills & capabilities

• An accomplished all-rounder who can develop and coach clinicians to achieve their full potential, whilst demonstrating empathy to create an engaging, supportive and fun working environment.
• A first-class GP Vet. With a firm understanding of the importance of a “diagnostic-first” approach, rather than symptomatic therapy.
• Experience of audit and leading clinical change from audit processes, complaints and unexpected significant events.
• Confidence in engaging with customers and their pets and understands the benefit of augmenting the owner-pet bond.
• A highly engaging and memorable individual who can quickly establish credibility and respect to build strong relationships.
• Sound commercial acumen.

Working conditions

• Hours of work will be undertaken to reflect the needs of the business.
• Time will be available each week to complete essential administrative tasks, although this must be flexible so as not to adversely impact the effectiveness of the surgery, patient care nor customer satisfaction.
• This role will require the Head Vet to be active for long periods of time.
• The Head Vet must adhere at all times to the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons Code of Professional Conduct; and ensure that their direct reports do the same.

Direct reports

• Veterinary Surgeons
• Locum Veterinary Surgeons
• EMS Veterinary Students