"How long is life worth living for the horse?" A focus group study on how Austrian equine stakeholders assess quality of life for chronically ill or old horses.

BACKGROUND: Quality of life (QoL) provides a comprehensive concept underpinning veterinary decision-making that encompasses factors beyond physical health. It becomes particularly pertinent when seeking responsible choices for chronically ill or old horses that emphasise their well-being and a good QoL over the extension of life. How different stakeholders use the concept of QoL is highly relevant when considering the complexity of these decisions in real-life situations. METHODS: Seven focus group discussions (N = 39) were conducted to gain insights into how stakeholders assess and use equine QoL in veterinary care decisions for chronically ill and/or old horses. The discussions included horse owners (n = 17), equine veterinarians (n = 7), veterinary officers (n = 6), farriers (n = 4), and horse caregivers (n = 5). The combination of deductive and inductive qualitative content analysis of the group discussions focused on identifying both similarities and differences in the views of these groups regarding QoL for old and/or chronically ill horses. RESULTS: Findings show agreement about two issues: the importance of the individuality of the horse for assessing QoL and the relevance of QoL in making decisions about veterinary interventions. We identified differences between the groups with respect to three issues: the time required to assess QoL, stakeholders' contributions to QoL assessments, and challenges resulting from those contributions. While owners and caregivers of horses emphasised their knowledge of a horse and the relevance of the time they spend with their horse, the veterinarians in the study focused on the differences between their own QoL assessments and those of horse owners. In response to challenges regarding QoL assessments and decision-making, stakeholders described different strategies such as drawing comparisons to human experiences. CONCLUSIONS: Differences between stakeholders regarding equine QoL assessments contribute to challenges when making decisions about the care of chronically ill or old horses. The results of this study suggest that individual and collaborative reflection about a horse's QoL should be encouraged, for example by developing practicable QoL assessment tools that support relevant stakeholders in this process.

Development, validation, and cut-off points for a questionnaire to measure sources of stress in veterinary medicine (SOS-VetMed).

BACKGROUND: Occupational stress is a serious problem in veterinary medicine; however, validated instruments to measure this problem are lacking. The aim of the current study was to address this literature gap by designing and validating a questionnaire and establishing the cut-off points for identifying veterinarians with high and low levels of stress. METHODS: The study involved two sub-studies with two Spanish samples. The first study (N = 30 veterinarians; 66.7% women; 63.33% from small animal clinics) investigated the factors related to the work environment that caused the most stress; the results were analyzed using thematic content analysis. The second study (N = 1082; 70.8% women; 71.4% from small animal clinics) involved designing and validating a questionnaire to measure sources of stress in veterinary medicine, as well as establishing the cut-off points for interpreting the results using receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis. RESULTS: The first study showed the main sources of stress and allowed items to be defined for the questionnaire. The second study validated the Sources of Stress in Veterinarian Medicine (SOS-VetMed) questionnaire and confirmed five sources of stress with adequate reliability and validity indices: "work overload," "work-family conflict," "emotional burden of work," "organizational factors," and "emergency problems." Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses verified a structure of five factors (Cronbach's alpha values ranging between 0.92 and 0.69). The five subscales of the SOS-VetMed questionnaire were positively correlated with two indicators of distress: "psychological complaints" and "psychosomatic complaints." The cut-off points indicated that 45.83% and 19.95% of the veterinarians surveyed had high and low levels of stress, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The results confirmed that the SOS-VetMed questionnaire could be used to determine the stress levels of veterinarians and to design intervention programs to improve their workplace health.

Graduate Student Literature Review: Perceptions of biosecurity in a Canadian dairy context.

The objective of this review was to outline current implementation of biosecurity, the impact of biosecurity on the industry, and producers' and veterinarians' perceptions of biosecurity, with a focus on the Canadian dairy industry. Biosecurity has an important role in farm safety by reducing the spread of pathogens and contaminants, improving animal health and production, and maintaining human safety. Implementation of biosecurity practices varies among farms and countries. Because Canada's supply management system is different than other countries, different barriers and perceptions of biosecurity may exist. Producers may have negative perspectives on biosecurity, such as it being expensive or time consuming. Producers are motivated or deterred from biosecurity implementation for many reasons, including perceived value, disease risk, and financial incentives or deterrents. In addition, because veterinarians are a trusted source of information, their approaches to discussions on biosecurity implementation are important to understand. Veterinarians and producers appear to have differing opinions on the importance of biosecurity and approaches to discussing biosecurity. Improving biosecurity implementation requires a multifactorial approach, such as individualized education and awareness for producers, further research into efficacy of and barriers to biosecurity, and development of strategies for effective communication between veterinarians and producers.

Attitudes and professional values of veterinarians and veterinary students toward positive welfare states for dairy cattle.

Research that involves agricultural animal welfare has typically aimed to improve welfare by decreasing disease, distress, and pain. Positive welfare does not necessarily occur with the absence of suffering but in combination with opportunities for behaviors or affective states desired by animals. Our objectives were to describe Canadian bovine veterinarians' and veterinary students' attitudes, professional normative values, and perceived ability to promote positive welfare for dairy cows, and to explore participants' provided rationale. With an online cross-sectional survey, Canadian veterinary practitioners (n = 78) and veterinary students (n = 148) were asked, on a 7-point Likert scale, about their attitudes, perceived professional normative values, and perceived ability of veterinarians to promote positive welfare for dairy cows. We used an applied thematic analysis approach within the qualitative description methodology to analyze participants' open-ended text responses. Quantitatively, participants had very favorable attitudes (mean ± SE; 6.3 ± 0.04) and perceived favorable values (5.7 ± 0.06) in the veterinary community toward positive welfare opportunities for dairy cows. Three themes were identified to explain the professional normative values: influences from within the veterinary profession, influences from outside the veterinary profession, and personal views of participants. Participants were confident that veterinarians could suggest positive welfare opportunities for dairy cows (6.1 ± 0.06) but were uncertain that the decision to suggest these opportunities to producers was within a veterinarian's control (4.3 ± 0.11) and were not confident that implementation of positive welfare opportunities was under a veterinarian's control (2.1 ± 0.07). Three themes were identified to explain the barriers to veterinarians promoting positive welfare opportunities for dairy cows: not practical to implement, resistance to change, and concern for the animal. Participants stated that many positive welfare opportunities were impractical or expensive to implement. We conclude that positive attitudes and positive professional values exist in the veterinary community toward positive welfare for dairy cows but that much uncertainty exists regarding a veterinarian's ability to influence change to current practices.

Ontario dairy producers' and veterinarians' perspectives: Barriers to biosecurity implementation.

Implementing biosecurity protocols is necessary to reduce the spread of disease on dairy farms. In Ontario biosecurity implementation is variable among farms, and the barriers to implementing biosecurity are unknown. Thirty-five semistructured interviews were conducted between July 2022 and January 2023 with dairy producers (n = 17) and veterinarians (n = 18). Participants also completed a demographic survey. Thematic analysis was performed with constructivist and grounded theory paradigms. Thematic coding was done inductively using NVivo software. Dairy producers' understanding of the definition of biosecurity varied, with all understanding that it was to prevent the spread of disease. Furthermore, the most common perception was that biosecurity prevented the spread of disease onto the farm. Both veterinarians and producers stated that closed herds were one of the most important biosecurity protocols. Barriers to biosecurity implementation included a lack of resources, internal and external business influencers, individual perceptions of biosecurity, and a lack of industry initiative. Understanding the barriers producers face provides veterinarians with the chance to tailor their communication to ensure barriers are reduced or for other industry members to reduce the barriers.

Attitudes towards surgical safety checklists among American College of Veterinary Surgeons diplomates.

OBJECTIVE: To examine attitudes towards surgical safety checklists (SSCs) among American College of Veterinary Surgeons (ACVS) diplomates and to identify barriers to implementation. STUDY DESIGN: Qualitative online research survey. SAMPLE POPULATION: A total of 1282 current ACVS diplomates. METHODS: An anonymous online survey was distributed to current ACVS diplomates via email. ACVS diplomates were identified using publicly available data through the ACVS website. A total of 1282 surveys were electronically distributed, and respondents were given 4 weeks to respond. The survey consisted of 34 questions examining (1) demographic information, (2) current use of SSCs, (3) knowledge and attitudes towards SSCs, (4) perceived advantages and disadvantages to use of SSCs, (5) implementation strategies, and (6) potential reasons for noncompletion of SSCs. RESULTS: Survey response rate was 20% (257/1282). A total of 169 of 249 (67.9%) respondents indicated using SSCs. Respondents generally agreed that SSCs were proven to reduce surgical complications (196/249 [78.7%]) and did not perceive any disadvantages to use (100/138 [75.2%]). Respondents not using SSCs were more likely to perceive them as a waste of time (p < .001). The most common reasons for noncompletion of SSCs were forgetfulness (21/52 [39.6%]) and time constraints (19/52 [36.5%]). Improved training (72/138 [52.2%]) and modifying the SSC based on staff feedback (69/138 [50%]) were suggested as methods to improve SSC uptake. CONCLUSION: Respondents currently using SSCs were generally satisfied. Time constraints and memory related issues were common causes for noncompletion of SSCs. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Efforts to expand the implementation of SSCs in veterinary surgery should focus on improved engagement of relevant stakeholders and modification of the SSC to suit local conditions.

Understanding psychological outcomes following exposure to potentially morally injurious events in animal care: development of the Moral Distress-Posttraumatic Growth Scale for Veterinary Professionals.

AIMS: To generate a taxonomy of potentially morally injurious events (PMIE) encountered in veterinary care and develop an instrument to measure moral distress and posttraumatic growth following exposure to PMIE in the veterinary population. METHODS: Development and preliminary evaluation of the Moral Distress-Posttraumatic Growth Scale for Veterinary Professionals (MD-PTG-VP) employed data from veterinary professionals (veterinarians, veterinary nurses, veterinary technicians) from Australia and New Zealand across three phases: (1) item generation, (2) content validation, and (3) construct validation. In Phase 1 respondents (n = 46) were asked whether they had experienced any of six PMIE and to identify any PMIE not listed that they had experienced. In Phase 2 a different group of respondents (n = 11) assessed a list of 10 PMIE for relevance, clarity and appropriateness. In Phase 3 the final instrument was tested with a third group of respondents (n = 104) who also completed the Short Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Rating Interview (SPRINT), a measure of posttraumatic stress, and the Stress-Related Growth Scale-Short Form (SRGS-SF) a measure of perceived posttraumatic growth. Spearman's correlation coefficients were calculated between respondent scores on each of the MD-PTG-VP subscales, the SPRINT, and the SRGS-SF to assess construct validity. RESULTS: A 10-item taxonomy of PMIE encountered in veterinary care was generated in Phase 1. Items were deemed relevant, clear and appropriate by veterinary professionals in Phase 2. These were included in the developed instrument which measures frequency and impact of exposure to 10 PMIE, yielding three subscale scores (exposure frequency, moral distress, and posttraumatic growth). Assessment of construct validity by measuring correlation with SPRINT and SRGS-SF indicated satisfactory validity. CONCLUSIONS: The MD-PTG-VP provides an informative tool that can be employed to examine professionals' mental health and wellbeing following exposure to PMIE frequently encountered in animal care. Further evaluation is required to ascertain population norms and confirm score cut-offs that reflect clinical presentation. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Once fully validated this instrument may be useful to quantify the frequency and intensity of positive and negative aspects of PMIE exposure on veterinary professionals so that accurate population comparisons can be made and changes measured over time.

When veterinarians treat plus-sized pets: Insights for veterinary practice.

Background: Obesity of companion animals in Canada is becoming a problem in veterinary practice. Cats and dogs, in particular, are increasingly overweight. However, prevention and treatment present challenges. Challenges in treating pet obesity, such as client nonadherence and animal welfare issues arising from obesity, also affect the well-being of veterinarians - especially given the coincident high rates of burnout and compassion fatigue experienced in the profession. Objective: This study investigated how practicing veterinarians perceive the treatment of overweight companion animals and how treating obese pets affects well-being of veterinarians. Animals and procedure: We recruited veterinarians who routinely treat companion animals in private practice to participate in focus group interviews. We also interviewed veterinarians who could not attend the focus group sessions, yet still wished to contribute. Through thematic data analysis, we generated key themes that illustrated how treating obese pets negatively affects veterinarian well-being. Results: Eighteen companion animal veterinarians contributed to this study. We generated 3 themes from the analysis that illustrate negative effects of treating obese pets on veterinarian well-being: i) negative feelings such as frustration and sadness associated with treating obese pets; ii) owners' lack of comprehension of the effects of obesity on pets, including early euthanasia; and iii) client nonadherence regarding treatment. Conclusion and clinical relevance: This study contributes to the veterinary literature on companion animal obesity by focusing on how treating pet obesity affects veterinarian well-being, especially given high rates of burnout and compassion fatigue in the profession. As pet obesity increases in society, obesity prevention and treatment is becoming central to companion animal veterinary practice. Our findings suggest that veterinarian well-being is negatively affected in connection with companion animal obesity. We recommend relationship-centered communication, increased nutritional expertise, and a focus on wellness in the workplace to improve veterinarian well-being while treating pet obesity.

Quand les vétérinaires traitent des animaux en surpoids : perspectives pour la pratique vétérinaire. Contexte: L'obésité des animaux de compagnie au Canada devient un problème dans la pratique vétérinaire. Les chats et les chiens, en particulier, sont de plus en plus en surpoids. Cependant, la prévention et le traitement présentent des défis. Les défis liés au traitement de l'obésité des animaux de compagnie, tels que la non-observance des traitements par les clients et les problèmes de bien-être animal liés à l'obésité, affectent également le bien-être des vétérinaires ­ en particulier compte tenu des taux élevés d'épuisement professionnel et de fatigue de compassion que connaît la profession. Objectif: Cette étude a examiné comment les vétérinaires en exercice perçoivent le traitement des animaux de compagnie en surpoids et comment le traitement des animaux obèses affecte le bien-être des vétérinaires. Animaux et procédure: Nous avons recruté des vétérinaires qui traitent régulièrement des animaux de compagnie en cabinet privé pour participer à des entretiens de groupe. Nous avons également interrogé des vétérinaires qui n'avaient pas pu assister aux séances de groupe de discussion, mais qui souhaitaient néanmoins contribuer. Grâce à l'analyse thématique des données, nous avons généré des thèmes clés illustrant comment le traitement des animaux obèses affecte négativement le bien-être des vétérinaires. Résultats: Dix-huit vétérinaires d'animaux de compagnie ont contribué à cette étude. Nous avons généré 3 thèmes à partir de l'analyse qui illustrent les effets négatifs du traitement des animaux obèses sur le bien-être du vétérinaire : i) les sentiments négatifs tels que la frustration et la tristesse associés au traitement des animaux obèses; ii) le manque de compréhension des propriétaires des effets de l'obésité sur les animaux de compagnie, y compris l'euthanasie précoce; et iii) la non-observance du traitement par les clients. Conclusion et pertinence clinique: Cette étude contribue à la littérature vétérinaire sur l'obésité des animaux de compagnie en se concentrant sur la façon dont le traitement de l'obésité des animaux de compagnie affecte le bien-être des vétérinaires, en particulier compte tenu des taux élevés d'épuisement professionnel et de fatigue de compassion dans la profession. À mesure que l'obésité des animaux de compagnie augmente dans la société, la prévention et le traitement de l'obésité deviennent essentiels à la pratique vétérinaire des animaux de compagnie. Nos résultats suggèrent que le bien-être des vétérinaires est affecté négativement par l'obésité des animaux de compagnie. Nous recommandons une communication centrée sur les relations, une expertise nutritionnelle accrue et une concentration sur le bien-être au travail pour améliorer le bien-être des vétérinaires tout en traitant l'obésité des animaux de compagnie.(Traduit par Dr Serge Messier).

Moral distress in rural veterinarians as an outcome of the Mycoplasma bovis incursion in southern New Zealand.

AIMS: To gain insight into the world of rural veterinarians during the Mycoplasma bovis incursion within southern Aotearoa New Zealand by exploring their experiences during the incursion, and to understand the consequences, positive and negative, of these experiences. METHODS: A qualitative social science research methodology, guided by the philosophical paradigm of pragmatism, was used to collect data from an information-rich sample (n = 6) of rural veterinarians from Otago and Southland. Interview and focus group techniques were used, both guided by a semi-structured interview guide. Veterinarians were asked a range of questions, including their role within the incursion; whether their involvement had any positive or negative impact for them; and their experience of conflicting demands. Analysis of the narrative data collected was guided by Braun and Clarke's approach to reflexive thematic analysis. RESULTS AND FINDINGS: All six participants approached agreed to participate. Analysis of the data provided an understanding of the trauma they experienced during the incursion. An overarching theme of psychological distress was underpinned by four sub-themes, with epistemic injustice and bearing witness the two sub-themes reported to be associated with the greatest experience of psychological distress. These, along with the other two identified stressors, led to the experience of moral distress, with moral residue and moral injury also experienced by some participants. CONCLUSIONS: Eradication programmes for exotic diseases in production animals inevitably have an impact on rural veterinarians, in their role working closely with farmers. Potentially, these impacts could be positive, recognising and utilising veterinarians' experience, skills and knowledge base. This study, however, illustrates the significant negative impacts for some rural veterinarians exposed to the recent M. bovis eradication programme in New Zealand, including experiences of moral distress and moral injury. Consequently, this eradication programme resulted in increased stress for study participants. There is a need to consider how the system addresses future exotic disease incursions to better incorporate and utilise the knowledge and skills of the expert workforce of rural veterinarians and to minimise the negative impacts on them. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: To date, the experience of moral distress by rural veterinarians during exotic disease incursions has been under-reported globally and unexplored in New Zealand. The findings from this study contribute further insights to the existing limited literature and provide guidance on how to reduce the adverse experiences on rural veterinarians during future incursions. ABBREVIATIONS: MPI: Ministry for Primary Industries; PITS: Perpetration-induced traumatic stress; PTSD: Post-traumatic stress disorder.

An Investigation into Equine Nutrition Knowledge and Educational Needs of Equine Veterinarians.

This study investigated equine nutrition knowledge and educational needs of licensed veterinarians in the United States who were exclusively or predominately equine practitioners. It found veterinarians regard their peers as an important resource of nutritional knowledge, ranking ahead of all other sources except a PhD equine nutritionist. Interestingly, only 21% of veterinarians felt good about their knowledge level in equine nutrition after graduating from veterinary school. Although veterinarians in this study reported equine nutrition to be an area of weakness, 75% had not pursued continuing education in the field of nutrition within the last year. Additionally, they devoted only 65 minutes per year on average to improving their knowledge of equine nutrition, yet the majority (82.2%) had been providing nutritional advice to clients. This study revealed that time spent practicing veterinary medicine increases (p < .001) a veterinarian's self-perceived knowledge level of equine nutrition, shifting from just below average after graduation from veterinary school to just above average at the time of this study. The majority (70%) of veterinarians in this study believe nutrition is very important in their practice philosophy, and 71% showed interest in taking online continuing education courses; thus, curriculum should be developed and offered in areas of need as identified by this study. These areas include insulin resistance, equine gastric ulcer syndrome, equine metabolic syndrome, performance horses, equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction, equine polysaccharide storage myopathy, and arthritis/joint pain, along with how to assess nutritional status during general wellness examinations.

Coalitions of touch: Balancing restraint and haptic soothing in the veterinary clinic.

This article responds to recent calls to further incorporate the study of animal health care into the sociology of health and illness. It focuses on a theme with a long tradition in medical sociology, namely clinical communication, but explores matters distinctive to veterinary practice. Drawing on video recordings of 60 consultations across three small animal veterinary clinics in the United Kingdom, we explore how clients and veterinarians (or "vets") fashion fleeting "coalitions of touch," that aptly position the animal to enable the performance of medical work, often in the face of physical resistance. Building on recent developments in the study of haptic sociality, we analyse how care and emotional concern for animal patients is communicated through various forms of embodied action; thus, how the problematics of forced care and restraint are mitigated through distinctive ways of touching and holding animal patients. Moreover, while prior studies of small animal veterinary work have highlighted the significance of talk within the clinician-animal-client triad, we reveal the fundamentally embodied and collaborative work of managing and controlling patients during sometimes intense and fast-moving episodes of veterinary care.

Danish cattle veterinarians' perspectives on antimicrobial use: Contextual and individual influencing factors.

The global risk for antimicrobial resistance (AMR) can be reduced by reducing antimicrobial use (AMU). Veterinarians are one of the key actors in relation to AMU in livestock, and understanding the dynamics of veterinary treatment and prescription is central to achieving AMU reduction. Veterinary AMU decisions are influenced by a complex pattern of both individual and contextual factors. In this study, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 16 Danish cattle veterinarians to investigate their perspectives on AMU and current practices in a national context with low use and extensive legal control. We found that personal experiences and emotions, rather than scientific evidence, guided some veterinarians when making AMU choices. Furthermore, less-experienced veterinarians felt pressure to prescribe according to colleagues' and farmers' preferences for certain antimicrobials. We found that changes in Danish legislation seemed to have introduced hesitancy and a lack of motivation within the veterinary profession, and that AMR was perceived as an abstract threat not applicable to the veterinarians' daily professional decision making. We concluded that the lack of field-generated research of local relevance nourished a culture in which AMU choices are built on personal experience rather than scientific evidence, which also diminished newly educated veterinarians' self-confidence in relation to their AMU choices. Future research should focus on developing locally relevant research on optimal AMU choices and AMR, and the implications of extensive legal control of AMU in livestock farming should be further investigated to find a balance on the path to reducing AMU.

Veterinary herd health management-Experiences and perceptions among Swedish dairy cattle veterinarians.

Cattle veterinarians have long been encouraged to take on a role as proactive health consultants. However, the process so far has been slow in Sweden and elsewhere, and only a rather small proportion of cattle work conducted by veterinarians involves veterinary herd health management (VHHM). The aims of this exploratory study were to explore Swedish cattle veterinarians' interpretation of VHHM services and to understand the factors that might affect the extent to which cattle veterinarians perform VHHM. Six focus group discussions with cattle veterinarians complemented with 5 individual telephone interviews with clinic managers were conducted in 2020. In total, 33 cattle veterinarians participated, all employed by the largest employer of Swedish cattle veterinarians: Distriktsveterinärerna (Swedish Board of Agriculture). Participants were chosen from 6 geographical regions with the aim to present variations in gender, age, country of education, proportion of dairy cattle work at the clinic, experience in the veterinary profession, and experience in work with dairy herds and in VHHM. The focus group discussions and interviews were recorded and these recordings were transcribed and analyzed thematically. Participants interpreted VHHM as work associated with the process of advising and included both ad hoc advising and more strategic forms of services. Prebooked visits per se were not seen as VHHM. We identified 4 different themes among the factors affecting the extent of VHHM services: (1) farmer trust and demand; (2) veterinary competence; (3) time available for VHHM; and (4) the individual veterinarian's commitment and motivation. To gain farmers' trust and to create a demand for VHHM services, the results of VHHM work and the veterinarian's competence were deemed central by the participants. The veterinarians' skills in communication and relation building were considered especially important. Some farmers were perceived as having little interest in, or lacking deeper knowledge about, VHHM services. The promotion of VHHM services was mentioned as an important factor to increase farmer demand. Participants described VHHM as work demanding high skills and continuous capacity development. Veterinarians' personal commitment and motivation were also described as important for the extent to which VHHM services were performed. This was in turn affected by the psychosocial work environment (e.g., workload, interest and recognition from farmers and managers, and acceptance, priority, and support by colleagues and managers). Clinic managers had a central role in the extent to which VHHM services are offered by an individual veterinarian due to their responsibility for staff scheduling, which highly affects the conditions for capacity development, intercollegiate networking, and cooperation. Lack of time was a major barrier for VHHM. On-call duty time and subsequent compensatory leave affected the total time available, and participants described time conflicts between VHHM and emergency services; moreover, it was perceived as challenging to find sufficient time for capacity development in several different species for veterinarians working in mixed practice. The slow development toward more proactive approaches for cattle veterinarians can be explained by the numerous different factors that together constrain the veterinarian to the traditional role of diagnosing and treating sick animals.

Veterinarian perceptions on the care of surplus dairy calves.

Both male and female calves that are not required in the dairy herd sometimes receive inadequate care on dairy farms. Veterinarians work with farmers to improve animal care, and farmers often view veterinarians as trusted advisors; however, little is known about the attitudes of veterinarians on surplus calves. This study investigated the perspectives of Canadian cattle veterinarians on the care and management of surplus calves, as well as how they view their role in improving care. We conducted 10 focus groups with a total of 45 veterinarians from 8 provinces across Canada. Recorded audio files were transcribed, anonymized, and coded using thematic analysis. We found that veterinarians approached surplus calf management issues from a wide lens, with 2 major themes emerging: (1) problematic aspects of surplus calf management, including colostrum management, transportation, and euthanasia, and suggested management and structural solutions, including ways to improve the economic value of these calves, and (2) the veterinarian's role in advising dairy farmers on the care of surplus calves, including on technical issues, and more broadly working with farmers to better address public concerns. We conclude that veterinarians are concerned about the care of surplus calves on dairy farms and believe that they have an important role in developing solutions together with their farmer clientele.

Reducing occupational distress in veterinary medicine personnel with acceptance and commitment training: a pilot study.

AIMS: To determine whether an educational programme targeting the reaction of veterinary personnel to difficult client interactions reduced burden transfer, stress and burnout in veterinary staff. METHODS: Employees of three small-animal veterinary hospitals in the south-western United States of America were recruited and randomised to intervention (educational programme; n = 16) or control (no intervention; n = 18) groups. Participants of this randomised, parallel arms trial completed pre-programme assessment including the Burden Transfer Inventory (BTI), Perceived Stress Scale, and Copenhagen Burnout Inventory. Assessment was followed by two, group-format educational sessions, based on acceptance and commitment training, tailored to reducing reactivity to difficult veterinary client interactions (intervention group only). After training was completed, both groups were assessed using the same measures and the intervention participants provided use and acceptability ratings. RESULTS: Intervention participants rated the programme as useful and appropriate, and reported that programme techniques were used a median of 43 (min 9, max 68) times during the 2 weeks prior to retesting. Relative to pre-programme scores, median post-programme scores for reaction (subscore of BTI) to difficult client interactions decreased in the intervention group (33 vs. 54; p = 0.047), but not in the control group (51 vs. 59; p = 0.210). Changes in median scores for stress and burnout from pre- to post-programme were non-significant for both groups. CONCLUSIONS: This pilot and feasibility trial showed high rates of acceptability and use by participants, as well as promising reductions in burden transfer. A larger scale clinical trial with follow-up at extended time points is needed to more fully examine the efficacy of this novel programme. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Preliminary findings suggest this programme may be a useful approach to reducing occupational distress for individuals working in veterinary practice.

Exploring Valued Personality Traits in Practicing Veterinarians.

We examined differences in valued Big Five personality traits of small animal veterinarians between members and nonmembers of the veterinary medicine community. Between fall 2019 and spring 2020, data were collected from an online survey sent to eligible persons across a US midwestern state. Eligible persons included veterinary office clients (i.e., pet owners) and persons practicing/training in veterinary medicine. Participants completed demographic questions and 10 Likert scale items about which Big Five personality characteristics they prefer in a veterinarian. Descriptive data were determined and checked for assumptions of linearity and normality. Data for the primary analyses were analyzed using Spearman's correlations and Kruskal-Wallis H tests. Participants who were members of the veterinary community of practice valued the characteristic openness more than clients but valued emotional stability less than clients. Moreover, tests revealed that young adults (aged 18-24) valued extraversion more than all other age groups but least valued agreeableness. Last, participants aged 55 and older valued agreeableness and emotional stability more than the 18-44 age groups. Findings indicate individuals from different membership and age groups have varying preferences in what personality traits they expect in a veterinarian. Clients care more about their veterinarian being able to handle adversity. Older adults want their veterinarian to be trusting and creative. These findings encourage veterinary medical education to spotlight the development of skills congruent with these desired personality traits. Gaining such skills will be useful for veterinarians who seek to grow or build lasting relationships with clientele and colleagues.

Evaluation of the Attitudes and Confidence of Veterinary Undergraduates toward Working with Cats in the Veterinary Hospital Environment.

An understanding of feline behavior is required to successfully handle cats in the hospital environment and avoid triggering escalation to fear-aggression due to heightened anxiety. Some veterinary students appear to misinterpret feline behavioral cues, resulting in frustration and poor success when performing basic handling. This article investigates the following in regard to veterinary students and feline handling: (a) attitudes toward working with feline patients in the hospital environment; (b) experience of working with feline patients; (c) satisfaction in acquisition of feline handling and examination skills; and, (d) confidence in feline handling skills; and to explore influencing factors. An electronic questionnaire was circulated to fourth and final year veterinary students (May 2012) and final year students (June 2013) for anonymous voluntary completion. One hundred and seventy-three of 293 students completed the questionnaire. Of final year respondents, 87/115 (75.7%) indicated that they enjoy interacting with cats in veterinary hospitals; 95/115 (82.6%) indicated that they were satisfied with their cat handling skills; 105/115 (91.3%) felt confident handling quiet and wriggly cats; significantly fewer 63/115 (54.8%) felt confident handling unpredictable cats (p < .05). Factors significantly affecting confidence in handling unpredictable cats included: frequency of examination practice during extra-mural studies (p < .05), enjoyment of interacting with cats in veterinary hospitals (p < .05), self-perceived understanding of feline behavior (p < .05), self-perceived ability to interpret cats' behavioral expressions (p < .05), satisfaction with cat handling skills (p < .05), and perception of feline versus canine handling ability (p < .05).

Exploring the Factors that Affect the Happiness of South African Veterinarians.

Happiness is a new field of study in various fields, including health care and veterinary science. Workplace-related happiness, or subjective well-being in the work environment, has become a prominent research field. The happiness of veterinarians has gained academic interest globally over recent years. Previous research indicated that increased happiness levels of employees have social, personal and possible financial gain for employers and employees. The objectives of this study were to determine the factors that affect the happiness of South African veterinarians and develop a conceptual model based on the identified factors. A cross-sectional study using a quantitative survey was conducted using a standardized questionnaire. Of 2,182 registered veterinarians, 360 practicing veterinarians completed the survey and the results were statistically analyzed using exploratory factor analysis. The results indicated that the factors influence in the workplace, social relationships, satisfaction with work-life balance, purpose, optimism, work satisfaction, work stress, and leisure were identified as having significant statistical relationships with the happiness of veterinarians. Managerial recommendations are provided based on the research findings. This study is the first known study to examine the factors that affect the happiness levels of veterinarians. The study forms the base for similar research to be conducted in other countries.

Challenging suicide, burnout, and depression among veterinary practitioners and students: text mining and topics modelling analysis of the scientific literature.

BACKGROUND: Worldwide, veterinary practitioners and students are reported to be at higher risk of suicide, burnout, and depression compared to other occupational groups. The aim of the current study was to apply text mining and topic modelling analysis on scientific literature regarding suicide, burnout, and depression among veterinary practitioners and students to extract meaningful and synthetic information. These statistical approaches can be used to comprehend more in deep the phenomena involving veterinarians and veterinary students and to suggest the potential changes needed in admission to veterinary school, veterinary curricula, and post-graduation initiatives as preventive actions. RESULTS: A systematic search protocol was set up to identify scientific literature that published on the topic from 1985 to 2019. Two-hundred-eleven records were selected with abstracts/texts submitted to text mining and topic modelling analysis. Student, stress, work, anim*, and euthanasia resulted the most frequent terms. Topics modelling allowed to differentiate groups of words and papers in 3 areas of interest: 1) students' difficulties encountered during their studies that increase stress and anxiety impairing their psychological health; 2) exposure to death and euthanasia as risk factor for mental health; and 3) need of support among those providing medical and health care, and of supportive group work to cope with such profession. CONCLUSION: Based on the most frequent words included in the clouds and on the contents of the papers clusterised in them, some suggestions are interfered. It is emphasized that the veterinary curricula should include courses that prepare them early to deal with animal death and post-death grief of pet owners, to handle ethical dilemmas and moral stressors, to communicate with clients and staff members, to work in team, to balance work-family life and to promote individual and team resources. Specific courses for veterinary practitioners could keep them updated on their new roles and ways to handle them among functioning as potential feedbacks to monitor their psychological wellbeing.

Practices, preferences, and opinions of New Zealand veterinarians towards continuing professional development.

Aims: To describe the current practices and preferences of New Zealand veterinarians towards continuing professional development (CPD), explore factors acting as perceived barriers to CPD engagement, and identify opportunities for reforming the current CPD regulations. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of all veterinarians registered with the Veterinary Council of New Zealand (VCNZ) was conducted in October 2019. Descriptive statistics were provided for all quantitative study variables and thematic analysis was performed on the free-text survey comments to identify key issues regarding the current CPD regulations in New Zealand. Results: Complete survey responses were provided by 222/3,484 (6.4%) registered veterinarians. Most respondents (153/222; 68.9%) were satisfied with the amount of CPD completed and spent a mean of $2,511 (median $2,000; min $0; max $20,000) on CPD activities each year. The most popular CPD formats were those involving collegial interaction including conference and skills training workshops. The choice of CPD activities was most commonly influenced by interest in the topics and the desire to become more competent in their work while the main barriers were difficulties fitting CPD around work and family commitments. There were 164 (73.9%) respondents who cited at least one occasion in the previous 12 months where participating in CPD caused them to modify their existing practices. Thematic analysis of the free-text comments revealed several major themes related to the administrative burden of recording CPD activities under the current regulatory framework, and the need to develop CPD plans tailored towards the unique circumstances and goals of individual veterinarians. Respondents also expressed concerns over the reliability of using CPD record audits for evaluating professional competency. Factors identified as being the most helpful for improving the current CPD framework were simplifying the CPD points categories and developing a mechanism to record and share CPD activities in real-time. Conclusions: While most respondents felt there was significant value in completing CPD, the current regulatory framework was perceived to be administratively burdensome and inflexible in allowing them to tailor CPD activities to match their unique employment situation, learning style and professional goals. Clinical relevance: Providing resources that could assist veterinarians to design and implement tailored CPD programmes may improve professional and personal outcomes. However, further research is needed to develop more effective mechanisms for identifying veterinarians who are not performing competently without placing excessive administrative burdens on those who are.