Compassion Fatigue and Suicide within the Veterinary Profession 

"Sometimes the healer needs healing and art heals" ~ Dr. Brown, Healer

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 

Dial: 988

 Veterinary professionals are a special breed that dedicate their lives to helping animals and their owners. Sadly, the rate of  compassion fatigue and suicide amongst veterinary professionals is one of the highest of all medical professions 

The protocols & boundaries Dr. Brown has set in place allow her to provide the best patient care possible, while protecting her own mental health and that of her staff & family  

Dr. Brown cares deeply for her patients and wishes for their well being at all times.  However it is not possible for Dr. Brown to offer unlimited direct phone or email access, 24/7 availability, emergency care or any sort of access via platforms where boundaries are not upheld such as text or social media messaging.  Appropriate boundaries & compensation for time spent on remote access patient care, communication, correspondence & general support given to pet owners outside of in person appointments helps to avoid burn out and compassion fatigue. Thank you for your understanding. 

 Read about Dr. Browns journey within the veterinary profession in the best selling book Healer

 Dr. Brown won the Rising Star Award for her contribution to the book from As You Wish Publishing

 Signed copies available upon request

Many reasons exist for compassion fatigue & burn out including but not limited to: 

 long work hours, case load & time demands

 lack of boundaries

 unrealistic expectations

 disrespect for veterinarians personal life & time

 contacting veterinarians on their personal time 

 contacting veterinarians outside of business boundaries & business hours i.e. text, social media, in public, etc. 

 taking on the emotional burdens of patients and clients

 toxic work environments

 cyberbullying

 high student loan debt

 mass corporate takeover of the profession 

 online pharmacies undercutting prices for less than the  cost offered to veterinarians 

 stress of being an essential worker during the Covid-19 global pandemic

 stress of dealing with aftermath of pandemic 

 expecting a doctor to offer free consults and complimentary "chats" to see if a "good fit" prior to scheduling an appointment

 expecting a doctor to be available via text message

 expecting a doctor to be available outside of set business hours

To learn more about compassion fatigue and suicide in the veterinary profession or donate to veterinary professionals in crisis please visit 

NOMV.ORG

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline  Dial: 988