Faye Cowdray
Crawley,West Sussex
Summary
Passionate, dedicated and hard working Head Nurse with 24 years experience. I have proven success juggling busy workload independently and providing administrative, diagnostic and surgical support to veterinary surgeons and the nursing team within the practice. I pride myself on building relationships with clients and their pets.
Additional roles include Head Hydrotherapist within the practice which I began in 2014 achieving level 3 certificate and Diploma in small animal hydrotherapy. In addition, I am NARCH registered.
I am also Practice Insurance Manager where I am in sole charge of processing claims within the practice. I have undertaken this role for over 17 years. This involves liaising with the veterinary surgeon, clients and insurance companies and utilising my years of knowledge within the veterinary industry. In addition to this I also undertake the task of dealing with outstanding client accounts. Continuing Professional Development is regularly completed and I have completed a Certificate in Canine Mobility.
Prior to my veterinary career, I worked within the Travel Industry starting my travel career at Going Places Travel Agency and moving onto Virgin Holidays. I returned back to Going Places and obtained the Assistant Manager position. Although this was some time ago, this has always stayed with me and I still have a huge passion for travel, visiting different destinations and organising and planning family and friends holidays.
Overview
30
30
years of professional experience
Work history
Head Nurse and Head Hydrotherapist
Medivet Maidenbower (Harvest Veterinary Clinic)
Maidenbower, Crawley, West Sussex
2002.09 - Current
- Educated pet owners on key aspects of animal health, such as specific medical conditions to improve patient health and wellbeing.
- Facilitated smooth practice operations, consistently managing and overseeing daily operations, appointments & nursing team.
- Performed routine and laboratory tests, such as radiography, urine tests and bloods tests to diagnose health conditions.
- Maintained cleanliness and hygiene of the practice, creating a safe environment for staff and patients.
- Maximised Veterinary Surgeon's productivity, completing preparatory work for surgical procedures.
- Managing nursing team to ensure all aspects of work are completed to a high standard.
- Maximised Veterinary's productivity by completing preparatory work for surgical procedures, including anaesthesia and instrument sterilisation.
- Maintained optimal patient flow by examining pets on arrival and prioritising treatment according to care needs.
- Assisted with routine activities and procedures related to animal dentistry.
- Carried out administrative activities to help veterinarian maintain up-to-date and accurate records.
- Stayed calm in veterinary emergencies and administered first aid in line with procedure.
- Maximised rehabilitation potential by building patient knowledge of treatments and conditions.
- Communicated closely with clients and veterinary surgeons.
- Treated patients with neurological and musculoskeletal conditions, offering comprehensive care to meet needs.
Insurance & Accounts Manager
Medivet Maidenbower (Harvest Veterinary Clinic)
Crawley, West Sussex
2002.09 - Current
- Developed relationships with clients to build trust, respect and reliability.
- Utilise veterinary knowledge and ability to read and understand medical history in order to submit claims.
- Handled customer concerns and complaints to resolve issues and build loyalty.
- Submission of Insurance claims to multiple insurance companies.
- Providing regular updates on client accounts.
- Ensuring all claims and accounts are dealt with efficiently and accurately.
- Liaising regularly with insurance companies.
- Have knowledge on multiple insurance companies policies, including policy limits, policy terms and policy excess'.
- Managing client accounts and communicating with clients either in writing, in person or by phone.
Travel Agent Assistant Manager
Going Places
East Grinstead , West Sussex
2000.09 - 2002.09
- Organised group tours, resulting in enjoyable shared adventures.
- Collaborated with hotels and airlines for affordable package deals.
- Maintained up-to-date knowledge of global destinations, enhancing service delivery.
- Performed administrative duties such as record-keeping, boosting office efficiency.
- Enhanced customer satisfaction by providing accurate travel advice and recommendations.
- Balanced sales targets whilst maintaining high standards of customer service.
- Utilised advanced reservation systems for efficient bookings.
- Tailored bespoke holiday packages for memorable experiences.
- Coordinated transport arrangements from airports to accommodation facilities.
- Tracked changing travel advisories, ensuring client safety during travels.
- Assisted clients with passport applications, ensuring timely submissions.
- Facilitated smooth booking processes to guarantee seamless travel experiences.
- Conducted market research to stay abreast of industry trends.
- Handled refunds and cancellations professionally, protecting client interests.
- Built lasting relationships with clients, fostering loyalty and repeat business.
- Arranged travel accommodation for groups, couples, executives and special needs clients.
- Supervised payments via credit and debit cards and handled all sensitive information with professionalism and discreteness.
- Provided exemplary customer service to new and existing clients, which helped build lasting relationships and secure new travel assignments.
- Developed loyal clientele base due to excellent listening and research skills and a keen understanding of travel budgets.
- Asked open-ended questions to better ascertain client needs and determine best travel offerings.
- Discussed benefits of and information regarding travel insurance with clients and ensured that the best rates were achieved.
- Foreign Exchange experience
Customer Services Adviser
Virgin Holidays
Crawley , West Sussex
1997.07 - 2000.09
- Logged customer complaints accurately, expedited corrective actions effectively.
- Coordinated with other teams to resolve multi-faceted client problems swiftly.
- Improved customer satisfaction by promptly addressing queries and complaints.
- Strengthened client relationships with clear communication and problem-solving skills.
- Enhanced brand loyalty, provided excellent service at all times.
- Responded to difficult situations calmly, gained trust of aggrieved customers.
- Managed complex customer issues to successful resolution.
- Built rapport with clients through empathetic handling of concerns.
- Handled requests with friendly, knowledgeable service and support, continually achieving positive customer feedback.
- Recorded and processed customer data accurately.
- Fam trips to the States and Europe to view hotels and liaise with hoteliers.
Travel agent
Going Places
Dorking , Surrey
1996.07 - 1997.07
- Tailored bespoke holiday packages for memorable experiences.
- Utilised advanced reservation systems for efficient bookings.
- Maintained up-to-date knowledge of global destinations, enhancing service delivery.
- Facilitated smooth booking processes to guarantee seamless travel experiences.
- Balanced sales targets whilst maintaining high standards of customer service.
- Built lasting relationships with clients, fostering loyalty and repeat business.
- Enhanced customer satisfaction by providing accurate travel advice and recommendations.
- Handled refunds and cancellations professionally, protecting client interests.
- Foreign Exchange
Education
Quality Licence Scheme - Certificate in Canine Mobility Nursing QLS level 4
Animal Rehabilitation & Health Academy
Crawley2024-04
ABC Level 3 Diploma - Small Animal Hydrotherapy
Greyfriars Hydrotherapy & Rehabilitation Centre
Guilford 2015-11
ABC Diploma - Animal Psychology Level 3
Stonebridge
Cornwall2015-02
ABC Level 3 Certificate - Small Animal Hydrotherapy
Greyfriars Hydrotherapy & Rehabilitation Centre
Guildford2014-09
NVQ Level 3 - Veterinary Nursing
RCVS
London2005-09
NVQ Level 2 - Veterinary Nursing
RCVS
London2004-08
Access to Higher Education - Health Studies
Crawley College
Crawley2002-07
NVQ Level 2 - Travel Services
EDEXCEL FOUNDATION
London 2001.04 -
Skills
- Calm and level-headed
- Day-to-day management of operations, appointments and nursing team
- Patient care - Medical & Surgical
- Surgical assistance - anaesthesia, pre and post op monitoring
- Medical record management
- Sample collection, diagnostic testing
- RCVS registered
- Administrative support
- Training and development
- Veterinary X-rays
- Account management
Timeline
Head Nurse and Head Hydrotherapist
Medivet Maidenbower (Harvest Veterinary Clinic)
2002.09 - Current
Insurance & Accounts Manager
Medivet Maidenbower (Harvest Veterinary Clinic)
2002.09 - Current
NVQ Level 2 - Travel Services
EDEXCEL FOUNDATION
2001.04 -
Travel Agent Assistant Manager
Going Places
2000.09 - 2002.09
Customer Services Adviser
Virgin Holidays
1997.07 - 2000.09
Travel agent
Going Places
1996.07 - 1997.07
Quality Licence Scheme - Certificate in Canine Mobility Nursing QLS level 4
Animal Rehabilitation & Health Academy
ABC Level 3 Diploma - Small Animal Hydrotherapy
Greyfriars Hydrotherapy & Rehabilitation Centre
ABC Diploma - Animal Psychology Level 3
Stonebridge
ABC Level 3 Certificate - Small Animal Hydrotherapy
Greyfriars Hydrotherapy & Rehabilitation Centre
NVQ Level 3 - Veterinary Nursing
RCVS
NVQ Level 2 - Veterinary Nursing
RCVS
Access to Higher Education - Health Studies
Crawley College