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Student Information

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We regularly accept students from all walks of life undertaking EMS from veterinary schools in the UK and overseas. We are also a partner practice of Surrey Veterinary School, providing final year placements as part of their curriculum. We hope to give students a good practical experience of farm work in this part of the world. If you have a keen interest in farm work and would like to see practice with us, please fill the application form and return it to us. 

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Please apply in good time if you wish to join us as we often get booked up in advance.

Student Guidelines

Aims and Goals

We would like you to think about some aims and goals for the time you spend with us. If you have an idea of what you would like to learn please let us know and we will try and make time for you to achieve this. Think about your practical skills, understanding of theory, areas of weakness and how we can help you improve. 

Please email rachel.cook@farmfirstvets.co.uk for further information.​​​

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Organising your days

Please ring or email Rachel a week before your placement to discuss your first morning.

On Call

Most emergencies (calvings, prolapses) occur out of hours and are often a rare occurrence. We do not require students to be on call with us at night or at the weekends but if you would like to be involved, please provide your mobile number to reception and let the vets on call know that you would like to know if they are called out. You need to stay near Abergavenny to participate in this aspect of EMS.
If you need accommodation please ring or email for information.

Health & Safety

Upon confirmation we will send you some documents to read through thoroughly and sign and return, we will also require an emergency contact form to be signed. This is important when dealing with large, sometimes unpredictable animals where safety is paramount.

Farm Investigations

We will aim to give you a specific task such as mobility scoring or mastitis sampling when you are here. Don’t worry though as we’ll give you full details of everything beforehand and ensure you fully understand what’s expected. This will allow you to develop practical and communication skills necessary for life as a vet.

Tasks within the Practice

There are a few things that you could help out with if we're quiet:

Operating Kits: Ask in the office how these should be washed and prepared. This allows you to become familiar with the equipment necessary to perform common LA surgical procedures.

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Ovacyte Machine: Our in house lab has an Ovacyte machine to run faecal worm egg counts. There will be opportunities to assist with running and interpreting samples.

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Vet's Vans: When you return to the practice ask the vet if you can restock their car and what they will require. This will allow you to understand what materials are necessary to perform our jobs.

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Hot Drinks: Feel free to use the kitchen to make yourself a coffee or tea. But if you are, the rule goes that you must ask everyone else in the practice whether they'd like one as well!

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Newsletter: We produce newsletters on a regular basis to inform our clients of seasonal problems and topics of interest. Please ask Jane if you would like to help write an article for our newsletter.

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Essentials:

  • Wellingtons

  • Waterproof trousers

  • Two pairs of waterproof parlour tops

  • A hat and waterproof jacket

  • Stethoscope and thermometer

  • Lunch

  • Boot brush

 

Dress - Smart casual​​

Biosecurity

We aim to maintain the highest standards of biosecurity possible, and it is essential that students arrive with clean protective clothing, and that it is thoroughly cleaned and disinfected at the end of each visit. Please ask for help, to use the washing machine or to borrow some clothing if your kit has got very contaminated and needs further attention.

Health and Safety

Working in farm practice comes with unique risks. Please refer to our Student Risk Assessment for a broad overview of the risks involved. These will be discussed further at the start of your placement.

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Client Confidentiality

It is very important that the confidentiality of our clients' business is respected. When you leave the practice each day, by all means, talk about what you have seen, but please do not mention the farm names or farmers. When you are on farms with us, if you do mention what you have seen elsewhere, just don't identify the farm by name.

Accommodation

We are not able to supply accommodation but can provide you with contacts of nearby accommodation if you need somewhere to stay.

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