Medical Nursing Podcast | CPD for Veterinary Nurses

The microbiome is probably THE most talked about area of GI disease this year. And with good reason - because it's fascinating, and we're only learning more and more about it as time goes on. The microbiome is linked to so much more than 'just' dysbiosis - from gastrointestinal disease to cancer, emotional health and much more, this unseen but mighty 'virtual organ' is hugely important in our pati...

In episode 116 of the Medical Nursing Podcast I'm bringing you the updated need-to-know information on one of the most common gastrointestinal diseases we see - chronic inflammatory enteropathy, or what we used to call inflammatory bowel disease. Lots has changed in the management of this challenging condition over the years - and as we've learned more and more about it, the way we care for these...

Today I want to show you what happens when we GET to do more as veterinary nurses and technicians. I'm very aware that, as primarily a referral RVN, there are differences in what I do in referral vs what I do when I work in GP. However, there's one thing that remains the same regardless of the clinic I'm working in that day - I still get to use my skills with medical patients. Internal medicine so...

We're finishing off Veterinary Nursing Awareness Month 2026 with something a little different. No guests, no guidelines. Just me, twenty years of memories, a few things I wish someone had told me earlier, and some honest thoughts on where I think we go from here. In episode 114 of the Medical Nursing Podcast, I'm reflecting on nearly two decades of vet nursing - the good bits, the hard bits, the m...

In episode 113 of the Medical Nursing Podcast, I'm doing something different - something I've never done in history of the show. I'm bringing a vet on to chat with us. This isn't a clinical episode, though we do chat a little bit of internal medicine (it's impossible not to when you get a medicine RVN and a medic together!). It's a conversation that I think we ALL need to have, about what vets rea...

For a long time, we've talked about how 'utilising vet nurses' is important - and how everything gets better when our skills are really used. But how well are we REALLY doing that? In episode 112 of the Medical Nursing Podcast, and the first episode of VNAM 2026, we're talking all about what utilisation really looks like. We'll explore the workforce crisis driving this conversation, what the evide...

In this episode of the Medical Nursing Podcast, I'm joined by Alyssa Mages, Credentialled Veterinary Technician, panel member on the AAHA Veterinary Technician Utilisation Guidelines, mentor at MentorVet and CVO at Empowering Veterinary Teams. Alyssa and I sat down for a really important conversation - about the global challenges veterinary nurses and technicians face, about utilising our skills (...

In episode 110 of the Medical Nursing Podcast we're sitting down and talking about something we're often afraid to mention - and that's quality of life.  Not end of life, not euthanasia, but quality of life. An often misunderstood term, and one we need to normalise. Because the truth is, quality of life is the ultimate goal every single one of us have for every single one of our patients, every da...

In this episode, we're chatting about something every single one of us deals with, whether you're working in general practice, referral, or out-of-hours - and that's chronic kidney disease. CKD is one of the most commonly-diagnosed conditions in our senior patients - in both cats and dogs. Despite how often we see this disease, our role as nurses in caring for these patients is often quite limited...

In episode 108 of the medical nursing podcast, we're looking at a set of diseases we see all too often - feline lower urinary tract diseases. Now I say diseases, plural, deliberately - because thinking of FLUTD as a spectrum of diseases, rather than a standalone condition itself, is one of the most important shifts we can make in how we approach it.  I'm going to be bringing you the need-to-know i...

In episode 107 of the Medical Nursing Podcast we're talking about probably the most common and frustrating nursing issue we encounter… but the most rewarding to fix - inappetent cats. You know the ones - the ones who just won't eat despite you having tried almost every flavour, texture and variety of food, in every type of bowl, warmed, not warmed, where you've pretended to eat it first, and pract...

In episode 106 of the Medical Nursing Podcast we're diving into the 2021 AAHA Nutrition and Weight Management Guidelines for Dogs and Cats, so you can focus on giving great care to your inappetent patients in practice, confidently, while using more of your skills. Why? Because I promise you, there is so much more we can do to truly champion nutrition for all of our patients - and by the end of thi...

Diabetic patients are some of the most nursing-intensive cases we see… and there are LOTS of ways we can support them. In episode 105 of the podcast we're talking about the 2025 iCatCare consensus guidelines on the diagnosis and management of diabetes mellitus in cats.  I'm giving you the need-to-know information from the most up-to-date evidence on feline diabetes that we have, so you can give be...

Seizures are probably the most common neurological issue we see in practice, and they can be one of the most daunting conditions to nurse (and be incredibly stressful to witness).  Thankfully, though, there's lots we can do to support these patients as veterinary nurses and technicians. To do this, we need to understand a bit more about what seizures are, why they happen, the impact they have on o...

Fluid therapy is one of those things we do every single day in practice.  We hang the bag, we set the rate, we check the pump, we monitor the patient. It feels routine - maybe even safe. But the reality is this: fluids are a drug, with complications and contraindications just like any other. They are not 'just supportive care.' They are pharmacologically active solutions that can either help our p...

There's a lot to think about when it comes to stabilising, treating and nursing cats and dogs with inflammatory CNS disease. But luckily, we've got a guest with us today to guide us through it! In episode 102 of the Medical Nursing Podcast I'm delighted to be joined once again by Zoe Hatfield who is bringing us her expertise on nursing neuro patients! Zoe is a neurology RVN and a Veterinary Techni...

In episode 101 of the Medical Nursing Podcast, join Zoe Hatfield (RVN, VTS in Neurology) and Laura Jones (RVN, VTS in Internal Medicine) as they discuss one of the most common neurological disorders seen in practice: intervertebral disc disease! There's so much more to the spinal patient than first meets the eye - and Zoe is here to share her expertise and break all of that down for us. Despite th...

For the 100th episode of the Medical Nursing Podcast, the tables are turned. Instead of leading the conversation, I hand the microphone to Cat, a registered veterinary nurse and Medical Nursing Academy student, who interviews me about career identity, internal medicine nursing, advocacy, and what the future of the profession could look like. This episode is a celebration of far more than hitting 1...

In episode 99 of the Medical Nursing Podcast, join Zoe Hatfield (RVN, VTS in Neurology) and Laura Jones (RVN, VTS in Internal Medicine) as they discuss one of the most common neurological disorders seen in practice: Myasthenia gravis, or MG. MG is a disorder of the neuromuscular junction causing significant weakness, megaoesophagus, regurgitation, aspiration and recumbency - and these patients nee...

In episode 98 of the Medical Nursing Podcast, join Zoe Hatfield (RVN, VTS in Neurology) and Laura Jones (RVN, VTS in Internal Medicine) as they chat about the neurological system - how it works, what we need to know as veterinary nurses, and what happens when it goes wrong. Whether you're revising for an exam, brushing up on your skills ahead of seeing a neurological patient, or just want to get n...

Episode 97 of the Medical Nursing Podcast gives you the action steps you need to start actually doing more and using more of your skills as a veterinary nurse. Because while it's one thing to talk about what needs to change, it's another to talk about what you can actually do, on shift, with your patients. So today I want to talk about the ways every single veterinary nurse can do more with their...

Join me for our unofficial 2025 Wrapped!  In this episode of the Medical Nursing Podcast we'll take a look back at what's happened across the profession this year, what the evidence about our role and skills is telling us, what it actually means for us as veterinary nurses and technicians, and why I'm ending this year feeling more hopeful about our role and more determined for our future than ever...

In episode 95 of the Medical Nursing Podcast we wrap up our toxicology series with a true emergency and one of the most dramatic, challenging and emotional conditions: inhalation of smoke, thermal and chemical airway injury in our feline and canine patients.  Managing fire-injury is so much more than 'just' dealing with smoke inhalation, and these patients can be challenging to nurse, since their...

In this episode, we're nearing the end of our toxicology series with a look at the common household hazards our patients ingest, and how to care for those patients confidently. Household hazards are something we see often - especially in my line of work, where things like caustic chemical ingestion or battery ingestion cause severe GI signs (or worse) needing intensive management. From fluid thera...

In episode 93 of the Medical Nursing Podcast, we're continuing our miniseries on toxicology with some of the common pesticide poisonings we see - specifically anticoagulant rodenticide, metaldehyde and organophosphate toxicity. These common pesticides and biotoxins cause severe, often life-threatening signs in our patients, and as veterinary nurses and technicians, we're often the ones responsible...