Your data on MRCVSonline
The nature of the services provided by Vision Media means that we might obtain certain information about you.
Please read our Data Protection and Privacy Policy for details.

In addition, (with your consent) some parts of our website may store a 'cookie' in your browser for the purposes of
functionality or performance monitoring.
Click here to manage your settings.
If you would like to forward this story on to a friend, simply fill in the form below and click send.

Your friend's email:
Your email:
Your name:
 
 
Send Cancel

Pennard Vets appoints first group clinical director
Serina Filler will lead clinical teams and develop new protocols across the group.
The independent vet group has welcomed Serina Filler to its team.

Pennard Vets, an independent veterinary group in Kent, has appointed Serina Filler as its first group clinical director.

The veterinary surgeon, industry speaker and published author will take on a leadership role at the group.

Dr Filler began her veterinary training in Austria, before completing her final year at Washington State University, USA. During her studies in Austria, Dr Filler ran a cat rescue network and, after qualifying, she worked in private clinics and a teaching hospital in Germany.

She studied for her postgraduate certificate in the UK, spending three years studying under professor Severine Tasker for her PhD in feline hemoplasmas.

Dr Filler went on to work at the London Cat Clinic, where she gained a clinical qualification in feline medicine and supported its transition to a 24-hour hospital. After a stint in a non-practice role, she returned to practice as a clinical lead at a subscription-based start-up.

In her role at Pennard Vets, Dr Filler will be mentoring and leading the clinical teams, as well as developing new protocols across the group. Her role will also involve strategic business planning and workflow improvements.

Dr Filler said: “From everything I know about Pennard Vets, it’s a place where people do the right thing, there is a genuine commitment to its teams, clients and pets to deliver excellence in veterinary care, and I can’t wait to be a part of that.”

Founded in 1890, Pennard Vets is an independent veterinary group consisting of eight practices across Kent.

In 2021, it became the largest practice in the world to transfer into employee ownership within an employee ownership trust (EOT). It also became B-Corp certified in 2022 – meaning it has displayed high standards of social and environmental performance, public transparency and legal accountability.

Matthew Flann, from Pennard Vets, said: “Having become an employee ownership trust, B-Corp certified and expanding to eight practices, as well as opening our brand-new state of the art practice in Sevenoaks, all in recent years, we felt now was the right time to create a new role of group clinical director.

“Serina’s qualifications, experience and personality made her the ideal fit for this position, and we can’t wait to see how the changes she implements benefit everyone associated with Pennard Vets.”

Image © Pennard Vets

Become a member or log in to add this story to your CPD history

New guidelines published for wildlife disease surveillance

News Story 1
 A set of international guidelines for disease surveillance in wildlife has been updated for the first time since 2015.

Released by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and the World Organisation for Animal Health, General Guidelines for Surveillance of Diseases, Pathogens and Toxic Agents in Free-ranging Wildlife is designed to help wildlife authorities and others working with wildlife carry out effective surveillance programmes.

The document, which cover areas including choosing appropriate strategies, safety and biosafety protocols, and ethical and legal considerations, can be read here.  

Click here for more...
News Shorts
Farmer survey to reveal on-farm impact of bluetongue

A nationwide survey has been launched to better understand how the bluetongue virus is affecting UK farms.

Results will inform the support that farmers receive for bluetongue, as well as preparing the livestock industry for the future.

The short online survey is open to all livestock farmers, regardless of whether they've had a confirmed case of bluetongue on their farm. It asks how many animals have been affected, the severity of their clinical signs and how it has impacted farm business.

The survey takes five minutes to complete and is fully anonymous.

It is led by Fiona Lovatt, of Flock Health Limited, and the Ruminant Health & Welfare bluetongue working group, in collaboration with AHDB and the University of Nottingham.

Dr Lovatt says: "We need to find out what level of clinical signs farmers are seeing in their animals, whether they are experiencing mortality with BTV-3 cases, and what their appetite is to vaccinate in future for bluetongue serotype 3."

The survey can be found here.