NZVNA Roadshow: Palmerston North
NZVNA is hitting the road for our first-ever national roadshow — proudly in collaboration with CAV and AVPRC!
Following the NZVNA and AVPRC presentations, stay for 'Providing comprehensive veterinary care for cats' by Dr Sarah Heath
This is your chance to connect face-to-face with fellow veterinary professionals, learn more about what we’re doing to support and advance Allied Veterinary Professionals across Aotearoa, and discover the benefits of being part of a united, compassionate, and future-focused community. Learn about why regulations matter with the AVPRC and the benefits of vet nurse registration. Whether you’re a vet or vet nurse, come along to meet the executive committee, ask questions, and see how membership can work for you. Let’s grow stronger together — we can’t wait to meet you!
6.30PM: NZVNA Talk
7.00PM: Drinks, nibbles & mingling
7.30PM: Dr Sarah Heath talk commences
Providing comprehensive veterinary care for cats talk by Dr Sarah Heath
Join us this November as Dr. Sarah Heath from Behaviour Referrals UK brings her expertise to New Zealand with a series of engaging roadshow events focused on enhancing veterinary care for cats. This is a must-attend opportunity for veterinarians and veterinary nurses keen to deepen their understanding of these fascinating but complicated creatures.
- Part one: Cats as companions – successfully meeting feline needs at home and in the clinic.Five Pillars of a healthy feline environment
- Our responsibility as feline caregivers
- Meeting the needs of companion cats
Part two: Complex cats and the clues we missed - understanding the role of emotional health in veterinary examination of cats.
- Recognising the importance of Emotional Health in feline veterinary examinations
- Highlighting cognitive decline in aging cats as case example.
This series of roadshows will include six events across New Zealand. Dr. Heath’s insights will provide invaluable knowledge for improving your approach to feline health and behaviour.
Dr Sarah Heath - BVSc DipECAWBM(BM) PGCert Vet Ed CCAB FHEA FRSM FRCVS
Sarah qualified from Bristol and spent four years in mixed general practice before setting up Behavioural Referrals Veterinary Practice in 1992. In 2018 she was made a Fellow of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons in recognition of her work in establishing Behavioural Medicine as a veterinary discipline.
She is an RCVS and EBVS® European Veterinary Specialist in Behavioural Medicine. Sarah is an External Lecturer in small animal behavioural medicine on the veterinary undergraduate courses at Liverpool University and also lectures at University of Central Lancashire School of Veterinary Medicine as well as veterinary schools in other countries.
She is a Certificated Clinical Animal Behaviourist under the ASAB accreditation scheme. Sarah sees clinical cases across North West England. In 2002 she became a Founding Diplomate of the European College of Animal Welfare and Behavioural Medicine (formerly the ECVBM-CA) and served as President from 2002 to 2008. She served as Treasurer of the College from 2011 to 2017, the Chair of the Behavioural Medicine Credentialing Committee from 2017 to 2024 and is currently the Chair of the Behavioural Medicine subspecialty of the College.
Sarah is the author of the Heath Model and promotes the concept of Comprehensive Veterinary Healthcare. She has a special interest in the interplay between emotional and physical illness in dogs and cats and particularly in the role of pain. She promotes the recognition of emotional health issues in companion animals and the role of the veterinary profession in safeguarding the welfare of animals in this context. Sarah lectures at home and abroad and is an author, co-author and editor of several books and papers.
