How does attendance at Schwartz Rounds affect veterinary professionals' experience in clinical practice?

Schwartz Rounds are a group reflective forum for healthcare staff to openly and safely discuss the emotional aspects of their work. With the plethora of challenges facing veterinary professionals, any organisational intervention that could help support team wellbeing should be evaluated to provide evidence for any beneficial claims.

Ten veterinary professionals who had attended two or more Schwartz Rounds in clinical practice were interviewed to explore their experience with the initiative. Transcripts were processed via reflexive thematic analysis to generate themes.

Three themes were generated: 'enabling compassion', 'empowering vulnerability' and 'enhancing organisational insight'. Schwartz Rounds attendees showed compassion for themselves and others through shared storytelling and active listening. Witnessing senior colleagues showcased vulnerabilities, built team connectedness and helped humanise leaders. Finally, Schwartz Rounds provided attendees with organisational insight into the wider workplace experience of others.

Non-clinical team members' experiences were not included in this study. Impacts on patient care and client experience would broaden clinical practice insights.

There is evidence to show that Schwartz Rounds positively impact the working conditions of veterinary professionals in clinical practice and leads to changes in workplace culture through shared understanding, improved colleague relationships and enabling compassion in the workplace.