

The Human-Savvy Symposium is a groundbreaking, one-of-a-kind event brought to you by Dr Liv Oginska of Human-Savvy, in collaboration with Platinum CPD. Renowned for her expertise in emotional intelligence, particularly as it pertains to our veterinary profession, award winning Dr. Liv brings a wealth of knowledge and inspiration to this transformative experience. Dedicated to empowering veterinary professionals to embrace the human beneath the scrubs, this event aims to enhance your emotional resilience, self-awareness, and connection. Through thought-provoking sessions and interactive workshops, you’ll gain practical tools to thrive professionally and personally, while building meaningful relationships.
In the demanding world of veterinary medicine, it’s easy to lose sight of the most important part of the profession—the human. This event is designed to empower you to strengthen your emotional resilience, embrace your authentic self, and build meaningful connections, creating a foundation for a thriving personal and professional life.
The Human-Savvy Symposium is a full-day immersive experience dedicated to enhancing your emotional intelligence, self-awareness, and interpersonal skills. Through a blend of engaging lectures, inspiring panel discussions, practical workshops and demonstrations,, each session is designed to provide actionable tools to help you thrive in your career and beyond.
Our carefully curated program combines evidence-based insights with interactive activities to foster real, actionable change. You’ll explore strategies to stay calm under pressure, create psychological safety, and navigate relationships with confidence. Whether tackling teamwork challenges or unlocking the art of listening, the Human-Savvy Symposium equips you with the skills to connect, lead, and inspire.
Session 1: The Science of Resilience and Emotional Health (lecture)
Session 2: Defeating Self-Doubt, Impostor Feelings, and Perfectionism (panel discussion)
Session 3: "Emotional Roulette" (workshop session)
Session 4: The Neuroscience of Self-Awareness and Healthy Relationships (lecture)
Session 5: "Get to Know Your Chimp" (workshop session)
Session 6: Teamwork and Leadership Through Emotional Intelligence (panel discussion)
Session 7: "Show Me Your Bubble" (workshop session)
Session 8: Empathy, Sympathy, and Compassion—Sustainable Strategies (lecture)
Session 9: The Art of Listening and Creating Psychological Safety (demonstration)
Session 10: "Welcome to My World" (workshop session)
The day will conclude with a reflection on key insights, a practical exercise to craft your personal growth plan, and a celebration of the connections and journey shared.
Dr. Liv Oginska is a veterinary surgeon, Emotional Intelligence Expert, and passionate advocate for enhancing team dynamics and veterinary leadership. As an internationally recognised keynote speaker on topics including emotional intelligence, team dynamics, incivility, conflict, and feedback skills, Liv combines her clinical experience with a deep understanding of human behavior. She holds a Master’s in Applied Positive Psychology and is a Certified Workplace Conflict Mediator, bringing evidence-based strategies to foster healthier workplace cultures.
As a Lecturer and PhD Candidate, Liv’s research investigates the impact of emotional intelligence in leadership and teams on psychological safety, mental health, and retention. Her dedication to empowering individuals and teams has earned her international recognition, including the prestigious Bright Minds UK Award 2023, in the category of the ‘Wellness Champion’.

Dr Emma McConnell is a passionate practising equine clinician, with over 15 years of equine veterinary experience. As an ECEIM Diplomate and Registered Specialist in Equine Medicine, Emma is obsessed with all things internal medicine; and loves nothing more than sharing her knowledge and experiences with like-minded colleagues. Having worked in multiple countries, in both academic and private practice settings, she has curated a fantastic network of extraordinary equine professionals, and will be calling on them to deliver special guest webinars and Q&A sessions, just for you!

I recently attended the Human Savvy symposium in Perth and found it be both super fun, engaging AND so informative. Liv and Emma are providing such a needed service to the vet community - empowering us with self awareness, knowledge and positive strategies to learn to thrive in what are most often pretty stressful environments with a lot of different personalities. I strongly recommend this symposium to anyone who's interested in learning more about themselves and the people they work with. Can't wait for the next one!!
Our team thoroughly enjoyed the Symposium — congratulations to you both on creating such a valuable and inspiring experience. The sessions were engaging and provided plenty of practical insights. We’re already looking at ways to implement some of the strategies across our hospital, and I’m excited to see how they can benefit our team moving forward.
The 2025 Human-Savvy Symposium was a relevant, real and outrageously important event for not only leaders, but everyone working in our industry. Content was thoughtfully created by both Liv and Emma for everyone attending on the day. With real life examples from panellists, group activities and a whole lot of support for attendees, we are all waiting for 2026!
A truly special day spent with like-minded professional learning crucial skills that will not only positively impact my time in clinic and my relationships within my team, but also extend benefits into my private life as well. If you want to understand the human condition and why we are all different (but also kind of all the same!), to gain some insights into why conflicts occur and how to fix them, how to build trust within your team and motivate people., or what phrasing to use in your next challenging conversation, you will not regret signing up for this event. Worth every cent and seeing the impact every day.