Coral Doherty, RVT

Coral is a Registered Veterinary Technologist who graduated from Centralia College in 1993. She has worked within a variety of workplace settings within veterinary medicine across Canada and the UK. These include:

• Small animal
• Mixed animal
• Locum experiences
• Medical research
• Medical pharma, devices, and laboratory equipment sales
• Racetrack RVT
• Practice Manager
• and Freelance Practice Manager

Throughout her workplace experiences, Coral has felt the ups and downs of her role within a workplace environment and seen the effects of stress on the mental health of those working in veterinary medical teams.

In 2017, Coral pursued a career as a self-employed, freelance practice manager. While she assisted various veterinary practices, she developed her management skills and in 2019, achieved a certificate in Quality Management from the University of Manitoba.

In that same year, a client approached her to present a lunch and learn that could address workplace mental health and help the owner build an inclusive and cohesive team. During her research for the presentation, Coral discovered the Canadian Standard for Psychological Health and Safety.

Around that time, the spotlight was being focused on the lack of mental health tools and support available to those who work in the veterinary profession.

Since the Standard has been designed to adapt to any workplace anywhere, Coral decided to become a Certified Psychological Health and Safety Advisor. In May of 2020, Coral conducted her first online presentation and the website, Better Mental Health for the Future was published.

Coral hopes that sharing her knowledge and experiences will result in more professional attrition, career satisfaction, and life enjoyment for all of those who are exposed to the emotional cost of veterinary healthcare with the hope that someday, the work we love to do won’t come at a cost to mental health and wellness.