During most clinical placements in vet school, there seemed to be an unspoken rule that as a student, you could go, get some lunch and have a sit down. But rarely would the vet you were shadowing also do this. Over 5 years of seeing practice, the culture of no or extremely quick breaks became embedded within me and most of my vet student peers.
From my personal experience, it was a refreshing change to see vets taking a lunch break and only happened on a couple of placements. Compared to the sheer number of weeks in practice, I could count the number of practices that scheduled and allowed vets their lunch break on one hand.
Sound healthy? Not to me.
So when new grads move into practice, nothing in all your training has told you that taking breaks is what vets do. All those other vets before have seemed to cope without! It’s just part of the job eating your lunch in the car at 4pm right? It’s just what practice is like…
I’m not sure this holds up. Legally, workers are entitled to a 20 minute break if working for 6 hours are more. And this culture of breaks not being a priority or god forbid you have to prove yourself by working through the day, is so toxic and frankly illegal.
And don’t get me wrong, when I graduated and started my internship, I revelled in being able to join the ‘I didn’t eat anything today’ conversation. Feeling like the hardship of grafting without a break, helped bump me up to a ‘proper vet’ and earn more respect.
What I don’t think I realised was, nobody else cares if you don’t take a break and you’re setting yourself up for slippery slide straight into burnout if you’re not careful.
How can we make the positive changes we need?
Recognition of why breaks are so important during the working day I think is the first step we need to make. In an American study, employees who took lunch breaks every day reported higher engagement in their work, based on metrics such as higher job satisfaction, productivity and the likelihood of recommending their employer to others.
In addition, it needs to be noted that just eating lunch is not enough to give your mind and body the proper rest and chance to reset it needs. Grabbing a sandwich while checking emails or returning phone calls does not count. Stepping outside of the building or pulling over in the car for half an hour is what really makes a difference. Think about getting some fresh air, talking to people or checking in with yourself while you take your lunch break!
Become the role model you needed as a vet student and new grad! Empowering others to take breaks and make the most of them starts with leaders within teams. If you’re an employer reading this – do you take breaks and encourage others to do so? In the great article by BVA past president Robin Hargreaves, he explains that he goes home for lunch every day and this fosters a psychologically safe environment for everyone in his team to take their break and do with it how they like.
Supporting team members rather than complaining about them ‘still being on their lunch’ sets a precedent of inclusion and wellbeing within the practice. Not only that, but EMS students who visit notice these small interactions and will hopefully be more likely to continue with this lunch positivity when they graduate themselves!
I’m of a very strong opinion that break rooms should be compulsory for vet practices (we’ve been campaigning for one at my own practice and plans have been starting to form!). Even if you aren’t able to venture out of the building for a break, having a safe space with no ringing phones or computers for you to bill work is absolutely crucial. And if you already have a break room then maybe you could think about sprucing it up! Make it somewhere people can truly relax – and not get bothered by reception to just quickly speak to Mrs Smith please!
Conclusion
Essentially, we are a long way behind when it comes to breaks but the more we talk about it, the more we can change this culture. There are huge wellbeing benefits to taking breaks and we should celebrate and enjoy taking them. If you struggle with the ‘break-taking guilt’, then consider trying to create a mindset change. Every time you want to think – ‘do I really need to take a lunch break?’. Change that to: ‘I get to take a lunch break’!
Remember even if you’ve had a quiet day, if you don’t take a break, the negative effects still compound! Go on, give yourself a break 🙂
ThisVetCan 