I thank the Chairperson and members of the committee for the opportunity to address them. I am chairperson of the Irish Veterinary Nurses Association, the representative body for veterinary nurses in Ireland. Registered veterinary nurses are qualified, regulated healthcare professionals who are fundamental to the safe and effective delivery of veterinary services, contributing directly to patient outcomes, clinical governance, animal welfare standards and the overall sustainability of veterinary healthcare provision in Ireland. It is a profession that is overwhelmingly female, with 97% of registered veterinary nurses in Ireland being women, mostly aged between 20 and 30.
I am here to discuss a profession facing a serious retention crisis. Our colleges report that veterinary nursing programmes remain heavily oversubscribed and highly sought after. The profession is successfully recruiting people but is failing to retain them. The Veterinary Council's workforce report identified veterinary nursing workforce issues as its number one priority area and highlighted the need to improve recruitment, retention, recognition and utilisation of veterinary nurses. Nearly two years later, many nurses feel little has changed.
The retention crisis is worsening. Our 2026 survey found that nearly 76% of veterinary nurses are considering leaving, unsure about remaining or planning to leave the profession altogether. The main reasons are low pay, burn-out, poor work-life balance and limited career progression. Despite being highly skilled, regulated healthcare professionals with significant responsibility for patient care, many veterinary nurses earn an average salary of just €36,800 per year. Many report unpaid overtime, inadequate breaks and difficulties balancing family life and career. Nurses tell us repeatedly they love their work but cannot build a sustainable life around it. This is not simply a workforce issue; it is a women's workforce issue. When a predominantly female profession requires third level qualifications and carries significant responsibility, yet does not provide sufficient financial security or work-life balance to sustain a long-term career, we should be asking ourselves serious questions about how that profession is valued.
Confidence in regulation is alarmingly low. Only 24% of respondents felt comfortable reporting potential breaches of veterinary legislation, while 73% feared approaching the Veterinary Council with concerns. Only 6% believed the council effectively safeguarded the interests of veterinary nurses. We also found significant compliance concerns, with 39% reporting breaches of veterinary legislation and 66% reporting unregistered individuals performing veterinary nursing duties. This is not simply about professional identity. Title protection exists to protect the public, protect animal welfare and ensure that people carrying out veterinary nursing duties are appropriately qualified, accountable and regulated. When title protection is not visibly enforced, confidence in the system is weakened. Some 42% of respondents reported concerns regarding standards of care. Protecting animal welfare depends on maintaining a resilient veterinary workforce with the resources, support and accountability needed to consistently deliver high-quality care.
There is another issue that needs to be addressed: representation. Veterinary nurses make up over 1,200 regulated professionals in Ireland. We are a regulated profession in our own right, yet veterinary nurses have only one seat on the Veterinary Council, while veterinary surgeons have nine. It means that the profession most affected by many of these issues has limited influence over the decisions that shape its future. If we are serious about creating a sustainable veterinary workforce, veterinary nurses must have a stronger voice in the regulatory structures that govern them.
Veterinary nurses enter this profession out of dedication, compassion and a genuine commitment to improving the lives of animals. They accept the challenges, the responsibilities and the emotional demands because they believe in the value of their work. The tragedy is that many of these highly skilled professionals still love what they do, but increasingly feel the profession they have devoted themselves to cannot support them financially, professionally or personally in the long term. The consequences extend beyond veterinary nurses. They affect veterinary practices struggling to recruit staff. They affect rural communities trying to access veterinary services. They affect students seeking mentorship and clinical placements. They affect animal owners. Ultimately, they affect animal welfare.
We are asking for action. We are asking for stronger and more proportional veterinary nurse representation within the Veterinary Council. We are asking for meaningful enforcement and education around title protection and scope of practice. We are asking for confidential reporting mechanisms that allow professionals to raise concerns without fear of retaliation. We are asking for transparent career pathways, better utilisation of veterinary nursing skills, meaningful progression opportunities and support in developing a structured pay and career progression framework for veterinary nurses. We are asking that the recommendations identified in the Veterinary Council's workforce review be translated into measurable actions rather than remaining aspirations on paper.
The future of veterinary nurses in Ireland cannot be secured through recruitment alone. We are not facing a recruitment crisis; we are facing a retention crisis. The students are enrolling, the graduates are qualifying and the commitment is there. What we are missing is a profession that enables veterinary nurses to build a sustainable future within it. If we fail to address that now, we will continue to train highly skilled professionals only to watch them leave. For the sake of veterinary nurses, veterinary services, rural communities and animal welfare, we cannot afford to let that happen.
