Coping With Stress And Burnout As A Veterinarian

Being a veterinarian can be a rewarding, challenging and demanding career requiring a passion for animals, great interpersonal skills and a strong work ethic. It also has a dark and very dangerous side. The suicide rate for veterinarians is almost four times higher than the general population across the UK, Australia, US, New Zealand and Canada. The effects of working long hours, performing euthanasia on animals, emotional pressure, financial issues, unrealistic expectations, and dealing with distressed clients places considerable stress on both the vet themselves and their families at home. Failure to cope with such stress upsets mental wellbeing and can lead to serious emotional, physical, and behavioural issues. For some it leads to death. If we are to reduce this tsuffering we need to find out what hinders a vet’s wellbeing and use targeted solutions that work. In this unique book, psychologist Dr Nadine Hamilton presents an examination of the problem, the ways vet mental health is influenced by their daily work and the science we can use to tackle it head on. Drawing from the fields of positive psychology, acceptance and commitment therapy, career construction theory, and resiliency studies, she outlines a promising new weapon in the profession’s fight against suicide. Included in this book is a concise self-help version of her ground-breaking Coping and Wellbeing Program for Veterinary Professionals — an evidence-based psycho-educational intervention to educate vets on how to develop protective attitudes, enhance wellbeing, and increase their coping skills. This is a book for every veterinarian, veterinary student and veterinary nurse.

The leading evidence-based resource supporting better wellbeing for veterinary professionals The best way to tackle the unique nature of veterinary stress that can lead to anxiety, depression and suicide is to use evidence-based research to create an intervention able to have a scientifically measurable positive impact on wellbeing.That's why psychologist Dr Nadine Hamilton wrote this book after spending over 15 years researching, working with thousands of stressed vets, and consulting with industry associations, practice managers and owners. This unique resource combines reading on mindfulness, positive psychology, wellbeing, and resiliency training with a ‘toolkit’ of practical tasks and tips to teach people how to cope with everyday pressures, so they no longer feel like suicide is the only way out. Its approach has been tested with statistically significant results showing reduced stress, depression, anxiety, and negative affect. "As a vet of nearly 20 years experience, I cannot believe the difference that your book has made to the way I see myself, my profession, and my coworkers. I am genuinely enjoying being a vet again.” "There are copies of this book at every Greencross Vets clinic as a means to empower vets in their everyday routines. It's a tough conversation to have, but an important one.”Andrew McInerney, Chief Operating Officer, Greencross "I greatly enjoyed reading this book. It is an excellent resource. Every third-year DVM student at our school gets a copy of this book.” Prof. Anna Meredith, Head of Melbourne Veterinary School Being a veterinarian can be a rewarding, challenging and demanding career requiring a passion for animals, great interpersonal skills and a strong work ethic. It also has a dark and very dangerous side. The suicide rate for veterinarians is almost four times higher than the general population across the UK, Australia, US, New Zealand and Canada. The effects of working long hours, performing euthanasia on animals, emotional pressure, financial issues, unrealistic expectations, and dealing with distressed clients places considerable stress on both the vet themselves and their families at home. Failure to cope with such stress upsets mental wellbeing and can lead to serious emotional, physical, and behavioural issues. For some it leads to death. If we are to reduce this suffering we need to find out what hinders a vet’s wellbeing and use targeted solutions that work. In this unique book, psychologist Dr Nadine Hamilton presents an examination of the problem, the ways vet mental health is influenced by their daily work and the science we can use to tackle it head on. Drawing from the fields of positive psychology, acceptance and commitment therapy, career construction theory, and resiliency studies, she outlines a promising new weapon in the profession’s fight against suicide. Included in this book is a concise self-help version of her ground-breaking Coping and Wellbeing Program for Veterinary Professionals — an evidence-based psycho-educational intervention to educate vets on how to develop protective attitudes, enhance wellbeing, and increase their coping skills. This is a book for every veterinarian, veterinary student and veterinary nurse.

There is a need to publicize the syndromes occurring in veterinary personnel due to work-related stress. Vets are apathetic or leaving the profession. It is vital for their emotional health that they know about these syndromes and the importance of seeking help early on. The up-to-date compilation of studies gives a clinical and human vision of these challenges based on the authors’ experience.

A Call to Life aims to help veterinary caregivers increase self-efficacy, decrease unnecessary suffering, and increase sustainability in their mission to support animal health around the world. The veterinary profession is powered by dedicated, bright, and selfless individuals. Unfortunately, the long-standing and dysfunctional culture in classrooms and practices around the world expects veterinary caregivers to be ready to sacrifice everything – their time, their health, their personal lives – in the name of being deemed qualified and ‘worthy.’ Integrating real-life stories from a range of veterinary caregivers with evidence-based theory, practical activities, discussion and reflection points, and insights drawn from the author’s own experiences, the book empowers veterinarians by showing that they have the ability and the control to choose a healthier way forward for themselves and for their profession. It describes how to: Normalize the conversation around mental and emotional health challenges in caregiving environments Discuss and collaboratively create systemic solutions that promote healthier ‘ecosystems’ for vets to work within Develop the skills of reframing, mindfulness, and self-care strategy implementation supporting holistic veterinary well-being Collectively choose to shift the framework of professional conversations towards psychological safety, optimism, and purpose-driven experiences. Creating Wellbeing and Building Resilience in the Veterinary Profession: A Call to Life uniquely combines shared experiences (personal stories) with academic research into the contributing factors of compassion fatigue and how to counter these. Normalizing the conversation in the profession, it provides a wide array of possible solutions to build resilience and to shape a culture of collaboration and support where caregivers can flourish.

Life can be full of challenges rocking our boat so strongly that we risk drowning in a sea of stress and mental ill-health. That’s why self-care is such a vital skill. Dr Nadine Hamilton has spent over 17 years in her speciality psychology practice helping professionals and businesses get on top of stress and psychological fatigue to avoid burnout, depression and self-harm. Her 2019 international best-seller Coping With Stress and Burnout as a Veterinarian targeted a profession with a suicide rate almost four times higher than the general population. Now, after two years of social, personal, and financial impacts from a global pandemic, she has found herself working with her clients (and herself) more and more on self-care — how to use self-understanding and practical psychological tools to attain and maintain better mental wellbeing. Time then, to release a new book to help anyone who is finding life at work and home a tough ask at times. Nadine gives us a clever guide to self-care covering topics such as setting boundaries, dealing with stress and anxiety, self-esteem, coping with grief, resilience, compassion fatigue, mentally healthy workplaces, and the imperative to build more hope and optimism into our daily lives.

This book is dedicated to the fundamental clinical signs of astute observation, careful differential diagnosis and analytical therapeutic decision-making in emergency veterinary settings. It clearly defines the physiological and clinical principles fundamental to the management of the critically ill small animal patient. With clear guidelines for organizing an emergency/critical care unit, the book also discusses ethical and legal concerns. The 80 expert authors have created a clinically specific resource for the specialist, residents in training, veterinary practitioners, technicians and students.Published by Teton New Media in the USA and distributed by CRC Press outside of North America.