My role at Pride Veterinary centre is to help lead the Client Care Team and ensuring a smooth client journey from the very start. Being on the front line this is very important in making both owners and pets feel at ease from the first time they make contact with us whether it is over the phone or face to face. Day to running for the Client Care Advisor team can include managing the phone lines, emails and front desk, passing messages over to clinicians, assisting clients with any queries they may have and providing a gold standard service.

How long have you been part of the Pride team and what first attracted you to working in a veterinary referral hospital?

I have now been a member of the Pride team for just over 5 and a half years. I first started at the hospital as a Client Care Advisor and have no progressed to be a Client Care Team Leader. I was very lucky to join the team during the height of Covid-19. I have always had a background in working with animals since a young age and have always worked in animal charity, rescue and hospital settings.

As a Client Care Team Leader, what are the key responsibilities within your role?

As a Team Leader I have to help oversee day to day running's, ensure gold standard client care, monitoring performance and development within the Client Care Team and provide support where it may be needed. A typical day can include managing the phone lines, managing the front desk, maintaining client relationships and welfare, supporting the client care team by training and mentoring, assisting vets where needed, administrative tasks, and helping with any complicated situations that may occur to ensure the team feels support where required, with this I also help to resolve any client concerns.

The client care team are often the first point of contact for owners. What do you think makes a great client experience in a referral setting?

For me what I feel makes a great client experience is being greeted quickly and efficiently on arrival to our hospital, looked after by the team with care and compassion putting both the owner and the pet first in what would be a difficult time for them. Empathy, kindness and care is what makes a great client experience.

How does the client care team work alongside clinicians, nurses and other departments within the hospital?

The Client Care Team works closely alongside all departments of the hospital, this is essential to ensure smooth running of day to day tasks. We work closely in terms of communication and ensuring client messages are relayed in a timely and accurate manner. We are also quick to respond in emergency situation for instance running pets straight through to medical professionals to ensure treatment can be started as soon as possible relaying what information we can to the clinical team.

What is one part of your role that people might not realise is important behind the scenes?

There are a few aspects to the role that people may not think about or realise, this could be things like problem prevention. This means we need to spots issues before they arise such as double-booked rooms, late arrivals, or upset visitors . We need to ensure we fix these issues before anyone knows there was a potential problem.

What do you enjoy most about working at Pride Veterinary Referrals?

What I enjoy most about my role is the vast variety of cases we see. Its really rewarding seeing the complex cases that come in and and seeing them leave happy with their owners after a difficult course of treatment.

Is there a moment or experience in your role that has been particularly memorable or rewarding?

A rewarding moment in my role was that I was given the opportunity to qualify as a Mental Health First Aider, this was particularly rewarding as this is a subject that lies very closely with me, and being given the tools and facilities to help others is a great achievement.

What qualities do you think make a strong client care team in a busy referral hospital?

The qualities that make a strong client care team are being Pro-active, empathetic, compassionate, kind, caring, good self initiative, able to make decisions quickly, hard working and the ability to work well under pressure. Alongside this you need to work well within a team and independently.

What do you enjoy doing outside of work?

Outside of work I enjoy spending time with my family and dogs. I love spending time outdoors and being active. Travelling is a big enjoyment for me as I like to learn about different cultures and try new cuisines.