Q: I’m not sure if I can ask to be allowed to do a bit more?
A: There isn’t a right answer to this but some tips are:
- Make sure you ask the relevant person – your mentor/assessor
- Try to ask as politely and constructively as possible
- Try to ask at a time when the vet or nurse isn’t too busy
- Don’t ask in front of a client
e.g. “I’m not very confident with calculating iv fluid rates, would there be any chance of having a go the next time a suitable case comes in please?”
“If you want to do a bit more it is good to ask. We can get in such a routine that we sometimes take a blood sample and then realise, oh I could have asked my student if they would have liked to have done that – but it’s too late”
“It’s important when you are signing off your skills to think ‘if I was in a different place, would I be able to do this?’; if you can’t, perhaps you shouldn’t ask for it to be signed off – just say ‘I’d prefer to do it a bit more first'”
Tips from staff.