Welcome to the January edition of the VNJ. It is with great pleasure that I take over the helm from Helen Ballantyne as Editor-in-chief of Veterinary Nursing’s longest running, peer-reviewed, academic journal. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Helen for everything she has done to continue the progression of the VNJ to meet the demands of a profession evolving at such a rapid rate. I am also extremely pleased that Helen has agreed to continue her involvement with the VNJ as part of the new editorial board
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It is a truly exciting time to be a part of the Veterinary Nursing profession and this was especially highlighted by the success of the clinical abstract stream at the recent BVNA congress. The number of abstracts submitted surpassed expectations and is a clear indicator that all levels of the profession, from the students to those long qualified, are reflecting on and challenging the current evidence base. The quality of the research presented was admirable and made all those in attendance proud to be part of this showcase of evidence based Veterinary Nursing.
Producing evidence-based veterinary nursing has to require the dissemination of the research produced to not only raise awareness of the research being conducted but to also make it easily accessible to RVNs and SVNs in all sectors of the profession. I believe that the VNJ is ideally placed to publish this research and as the representative journal of the BVNA should be at the forefront of the production of this Veterinary Nursing evidence base. I would therefore encourage anyone who is currently undertaking a research project, may have completed a dissertation or undergraduate project as part of their veterinary nursing degree or is considering conducting a clinical review, audit or research project in practice to publish in the VNJ. As reflective practitioners we can all benefit from this and it can only help to drive the profession forward over the next few years.
My vision for the progression of the journal also involves developing our current peer review system even further. As you will be aware the journal has always held peer review status but it is now evolving to a double blind peer review system to match the stringent requirements of many academic journals in human medicine. This seemed the logical step for the VNJ as it progresses to expand the publication of relevant research papers and continues to challenge the current evidence base. To this end we welcome several new members to the editorial board of the VNJ to assist with this peer review process and the anticipated increase in article submissions in a timely manner and we hope to continue this expansion.
Finally, with my first message as editor-in-chief I want to remind you that this is your journal and that we truly value your feedback. Following the inauguration onto BVNA council of the new student council members the VNJ aims to be further representative of the student voice however we strive to be a journal that appeals to all levels of the profession. The VNJ is a journal that is exclusively edited by veterinary nurses for veterinary nurses and feedback is appreciated on what you value most about the journal alongside improvements that you feel could be made. As the journal evolves and expands to meet the growing needs of a profession with an ever increasing voice, we must also maintain a level of critical refection to ensure it is meeting these needs in the best way possible for our readers.
Editor-in-Chief