Professional veterinary recruitment

Returning from Maternity leave

Any long period away from work can be make it difficult to adjust when getting back to it, but if the thought of returning to practice after having a baby is becoming a burden on your daily life, we have put together some key bits of advice to remember.

Make a plan:

Knowing when you want too/are ready to return to work may seem an obvious thing to consider, but often it can be a last minute or rushed decision which could mean the timing being wrong. Talk to your partner regularly about how you will manage things if you are out of the house most the day and consider the day to day costs of childcare. It best to be sure about your timeframe before discussing it with your work, as they often wont want to get involved with the initial politics of your decision.

Efficient working:

A lot of the time people return to work on the same hours as before and with no major changes to your daily structure, this might not be the case for you and you might need to consider reducing your daily/weekly hours. In the veterinary industry its important to consider busy periods within the practice and when its going to be most efficient for you to be back working. When are you going to be used the most? Or perhaps you would prefer to ease yourself back in during the quieter periods.

Saying No:

Before leaving the practice for your maternity leave you may have been the most flexible, easy going and helpful member of the team and this does not need to change when you come back to work. However, you do need to be more prepared to say no when asked to do extra or swap working hours last minute. Having a back up plan is also a great way to keep things moving smoothly, consider your childcare arrangements and if work can cover you should you need to be off.

The positives:

Getting past the initial worry of returning to normal and leaving your child in someone else's care can be put to the back of your mind whilst you get back to doing what you trained to do, caring for animals. The adult contact will be very beneficial to you and will give you a break mentally from spending all day with your young one!! Read here to find out some top tips from Woman who have recently made the transition back to practice.

If you are returning back from maternity leave it's easy to assume that everything's going to be back to normal when you return to work, but six or nine months is a long time and there may have been a lot of change at work and most of all, in your own life.

However, sometimes it may just not practical to go back into the exact same position / hours etc. E.g. your role involved working 5 days a week with OOH's and weekends on a rota basis - this may just not be feasible for you to do any more.

What to do?

• Plan what you are wanting to do at work and home. Speak with your partner if applicable, think about childcare arrangements, the financial aspects, speak with friends and family etc
• Once you have decided, speak with your current employer. You may be surprised on how forthcoming they are. Discuss what you have planned, what options they can offer you and outweigh the pros and cons of everything
• Perhaps you are feeling a little under confident being out of practice so long, well there are a number of Vet / Nurse CPD refresher courses / programmes available
• Or perhaps it may just not work out for either party for many reasons but stay positive.
• Have other options available to you, this is where we come in. Let us know what you are looking for and we will be able to provide these options for you.

Is this you?

• Due to childcare I can only work Monday and Tuesday's each week…
• I'm only looking to cover one Saturday a month, as my partner can hold the fort….
• Due to school runs, I can only work between 9.00am – 3.00pm Monday – Friday….
• I would only be able to work two nights per week, Friday and Saturday due to childcare ….

We regularly speak with vets & nurses that are looking to return back to work with specific working days / hours in mind.

If this you, we can help source you a suitable position to match your desired criteria to fit around your current circumstances.

Get in touch with our team to see how we can help you: info@vetseekers.co.uk - 0333 014 7374