VetPartners Ireland Congress hailed a success by practice colleagues

COLLEAGUES from across Ireland came together for the two-day VetPartners Ireland Spring Congress.

From sharing ideas on how to progress veterinary care together to tips on looking after our mental health, there was something for everyone who attended the two-day event.

Hosted by VetPartners Ireland Managing Director Gavin McCoubrey and Business Development Director Austin Donnelly, everyone from our Ireland practices was invited to the event in Glasson, Athlone.

It provided an opportunity for 80 team members to meet colleagues from other practices, share ideas, discuss fresh ways of working and feel part of a larger group.

Gavin McCoubrey, VetPartners Ireland MD, said: “We’ve had teams from across the island of Ireland coming together, and it’s been great to meet them and listen to their views and ideas. It’s a great opportunity for colleagues to share ideas, learn from what other practices are doing, and also have some fun along the way.

“We want to provide our teams with an opportunity to meet each other, network and develop clinical communities, which is so important and among the benefits of being part of a larger group of practices.”

As well as a keynote speaker Hamish Taylor, there were also talks from VetPartners Mental Health Trainer Tessa Beecroft, Director of Clinical Research and Excellence in Practice Rachel Dean and Business Support Manager Fiona Andrew.

Tessa talked about the importance of looking after mental health and the care and support available to colleagues, including resources on VetPartners Learning.

Rachel, pictured left, spoke about working together, not only in practices but between practices, to help progress care. Her talk, entitled Driving Innovation in Clinical Practice: Together we can, also updated teams on our Quality Improvement (QI) work, which looks at the great work we already do across our practices and how we make it even better.

On the second day, there was a full programme of clinical CPD for small animal vets and student vet nurses from MSD, as well as a roundtable and CPD session for our Ireland farm vets.

VetPartners Farm Director Ian Cure shared a business update and farm vets also heard a vision and strategy for ruminant animal health to 2030 and beyond.

Among the external speakers was ultrasound vet Rosie Ellis, who provided tips for improving abdominal ultrasounds. Melanie O’Donoghue, from Vet Assist, provided CPD on running clinics.

Sophie Bonnevie, a mixed vet at Westgate Vets in County Louth and County Meath, said: “It’s been a great event and very interesting with lots of speakers talking about different themes. It was interesting meeting other people from other practices as you don’t often have the opportunity to do this.

“It has been a great experience, and I feel I have learned a lot from attending. There were a lot of informative talks, and I was particularly interested in the talk on sustainability as I feel this is a really important topic.”

Eugene McGrath, from McGrath Vets in Tralee, County Kerry, said: “This year’s VetPartners Ireland Congress was a massive success and everyone had a great time. It was fantastic to see all the practices so well represented, and I enjoyed the opportunity to meet people and network. The speakers were excellent, and I came away feeling like VetPartners

Ireland is going from strength to strength.”

Brendan McDonald, a Clinical Director at All Creatures Veterinary Group in Monaghan, said: “A big part was focusing on the needs of clients and patients to use that information improve the service we are offering, along with the use of new technology.”

Grainne Lawless, Practice Manager at Westgate Vets, added: “I thought it was such a great opportunity to meet up with all the VetPartners Ireland teams from around the country. The talks were very interesting with speakers that were really engaging.

“The practice manager meeting (pictured left) on the second day was so useful to chat about how we are all getting on in the roles and to make plans for support from the VetPartners Ireland going forward. It felt good to see the increase in numbers attending the event.”

Watch our video here: VetPartners Ireland Spring Congress 2025 on Vimeo

Article by Amanda Little, VetPartners PR and Communications Director. Email amanda.little@vetpartners.co.uk