A veterinary technician at VCA Canada assists with a patient examination.Supplied
After graduating from the Atlantic Veterinary College in May 2023, Roshan McGuinness stepped directly into his first role as an associate veterinarian at North End Animal Hospital in Halifax, part of VCA Canada Ltd., a network of veterinary hospitals with headquarters in Calgary. While the hospital’s welcoming environment made the transition smooth, McGuinness says it was the company’s mentorship program that truly set his experience apart.
“When I started, I was paired up with one of the doctors at the clinic to be my mentor, and she closely followed me throughout those first core couple of months,” says McGuinness. “But in general, the whole team of other doctors, including my mentor, helped me with my surgical skills so I would scrub in with them while they did their surgeries. It was very collaborative.”
That included an opportunity to assist with a gastropexy, a preventative procedure in dogs that attaches the stomach to the abdominal wall to prevent it from twisting.
“The veterinarian in charge allowed me to have an active role in the surgical procedure,” says McGuinness, who has a special interest in preventative medicine and soft tissue surgery. “I had instruments in hand and was able to do some of the incisions.
“You get only limited surgical experience in veterinary school so it was great to have different people show me their skills and how to improve. I think that’s the best way to learn: to do something hands on as opposed to just watching it.”
Christine Michalko, vice-president people and organization, says mentoring is a core part of VCA Canada’s organizational culture. The company has both a formal VCA Academy mentorship program for new veterinary graduates as well as less structured informal mentoring that happens regularly within hospitals.
“We attract new veterinarians, often coming into the organization directly from school,” says Michalko. “Getting them to be comfortable with their new roles takes time as well as some mentorship from seasoned veterinarians who have been through different scenarios in their careers. The graduates lean on those mentors quite a lot within their first few years.
“Mentorship is just part of our DNA. The network of expertise we have on our teams is quite spectacular in terms of what we can offer our associates from a mentorship perspective.”
VCA Canada also provides significant professional development and learning opportunities through multiple pathways. In addition to its mentorship and onboarding programs, the company offers continuing education through WOOF University (an in-house training and development platform), scholarships for veterinary technician programs and continuing education funding for employees. For example, the company supported McGuinness to do an ultrasound course at the University of Guelph and attend the recent Canadian Veterinary Medical Association convention in Victoria.
“We know that continuing education is important to keep up with the market and the industry,” says Michalko. “We make sure that our associates have the opportunity to continue their development through leadership training and external education funding.”
That kind of investment makes VCA Canada very attractive to young people. Another advantage is that the company has a network of hospitals and support offices across the country so career mobility is a strength, allowing employees to move to different locations and grow within the organization.
“It’s a very open and accepting environment,” says McGuinness. “The culture here welcomes young people. Most of us are freshly out of school in the past 10 years, so we’re up with the latest trends and newest information.”
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