Alumna Ami Sawran wins Practice Game Changer award
We caught up with farm vet, Ami, to find out more about the award, which she received at the London Vet Show.
Ami Sawran (BVSc 2011) has won the Practice Game Changer category in The Bridge Club's UK BrightMinds awards. The award was presented at the recent London Vet Show (16 - 17 November 2023) and recognises Ami’s emphasis on wellbeing at Westpoint Farm Vets in Chelmsford.
Ami shared her experience of winning the award at The London Vet Show: “It was lovely! I was particularly touched to have most of the senior management team at VetPartners whooping and hollering from the audience. The fact that they took the time out of a busy show schedule to support me just shows what an excellent culture we have.
It was also incredible to be recognised for something that I have been working really hard for and living by for a number of years. I learned on the day that I am the first farm vet to receive an award like this. To be honest, if it wasn’t me, I would have been glad if someone else in the farm sector had won it. I feel our side of practice can often be overlooked when it comes to profession-wide initiatives. I’m hoping I won’t be the last farm vet!
Since becoming a clinical director, my primary focus has been on improving the work life and fulfilment of the team that works with me. It’s always a tough balancing act, but I thought if we could make it work in a farm practice, with all the challenges that brings, then we could share lessons with colleagues elsewhere to help elevate practice cultures across the profession. It’s lovely to have that effort picked up and run with.”
Championing wellbeing at her practice has been a learning curve, one that Ami finds immensely rewarding, as she told us: “Originally, my efforts were focused on wellbeing, and to be honest, I didn’t fully understand the extent of research and effort required to do this well and consistently over time. I started by doing ‘little, nice things’ and then making a few operational changes that were based on my team’s biggest bugbears (which at the time were drive-times and finishing late). We worked on solutions as a team and set deadlines to evaluate our success. The key factor here is that we worked on it together. I may have chaired discussion and made final decisions, but the ideas all came from the team, and it was crucial for everyone to have agency in the direction in which we took the practice.
The difficult lesson was that only those that really shared the vision for the future of the practice could really get on board and stick with it - accepting that during a recruitment crisis was tough. However, building and maintaining a team of different, diverse people with shared values was fundamental. We have a very happy, fulfilled, secure team that truly support each other. I am not naive enough to rest on my laurels in that regard, but we are enjoying the moment, and we have space and time to drive areas of practice that we each enjoy, which I think that really promotes wellbeing. It also trickles down to client service; when you have a rested, enthusiastic team, the energy that can be focused on cases and clients is much higher and more productive.
I’m really enjoying exploring some more advanced clinical services now, and it keeps me interested in the work, where I think I could easily stagnate after over a decade in practice. In short, it’s about listening, taking action, and continually checking in on your teams to ensure that they have realistic goals, and the tools to achieve them.”
Remembering her time at Liverpool, Ami said: “One of my great influences during my clinical years was Jo Oultram (BVSc 1991). She took a great deal of care to ensure I did well. I wasn’t a particularly bright student in terms of my exam results (and sometimes, fundamental understanding of the theory!) but she helped me focus and showed me what it was to be an excellent farm vet. Happily, she is still there, no doubt inspiring some farm vets of tomorrow.
The whole farm team were very generous with affording us practical, clinical opportunities and were very relaxed. I think seeing how they worked made a career in farm look very attractive. There was a positive, can-do culture in that department and it stood out. To this day, I still lean on Karin Mueller for clinical support too. It was a great honour to present a workshop alongside her at least year’s British Cattle Veterinary Association Congress. She’s a great influence and encouraging mentor.”
Congratulations, Ami! Have you spotted a Liverpool graduate who deserves celebrating? Whether for a professional, sporting or personal achievement, send your updates to ulvaa@liverpool.ac.uk