Human Nursing v Veterinary Nursing - Guest Blog

Guest Blog by @piranna92 - Hannah Emily Kelly

As a second year veterinary nurse and full time employee in the veterinary industry I find it extremely interesting that Veterinary medicine often replicates that of human medicine. We both deal with a very different type of patient, most Human nurses specify to deal with a certain type of patient be it paediatric, midwifery or cancer patients. Veterinary nurses however deal with a variety of different species, cases and monitor anaesthetics, so I’m guessing the real question is which value of life is more important?

Human life is almost undebatably more important and I have the upmost respect for the people that work within a hospital, I think it takes real courage to work with people when they are terminally ill or in severe pain I know I certainly could not cope with the situation. As I cut my finger open once and bandaged it for two days before admitting I needed stitches, I would not be the best person to react under that pressure.

However there have been recent studies explaining about the importance of people with the human-animal bond, this bond can be interpreted in three ways parent-child, child-parent and sibling -sibling. This “bond” has been described as an emotional tie to even loved ones that have passed or a helping hand through a difficult time of life. So therefore isn’t someone’s “child” just as important as an actual child? There have been several studies that elderly people are more likely to stay and be healthier if they have a pet to keep them company, they are also more likely to maintain a better mental state for longer and spend less time in hospital.

I recently read a article in a nursing magazine comparing the level of compassionate nursing between human and veterinary nursing, good ole Florence nightingale! She was the forefront of the article and how she is known throughout history for her caring nature towards her patients in the most disastrous circumstances. And as much as I reckon I’d look smoking in a bonnet but it’s just not surgically acceptable and there is no way I have enough time on my hands to curl my hair.............even in the old fashioned way, I still like to think that in some way every nurse steps up to her job in whatever field because they care, genuinely care about their patients. We wouldn’t keep going if we didn’t love it, patients or their owners can be aggressive and you may suffer the odd bite or two but when it really comes to it I love my job I want my patients to leave feeling more comfortable than they did when they came in. Nurses whatever kind, work very hard and no matter what every day they are there to hold someone’s hand, paw or claw.