Pulse - April 2022 - 11

" Veterinarians are very sensitive, and most
are empathic. Their mental health can
suffer, particularly in the first five to seven
years after graduation, " Brackenridge said.
" Veterinarians are very sensitive, and
most are empathic. Their mental health can
suffer, particularly in the first five to seven
years after graduation, " Brackenridge said.
" If a doctor wants to do an internship
and residency, hours are consuming. It can
almost be slave labor, and mental health
suffers there.
" But once veterinarians have decided on
a role and are doing well, have found their
coping skills, they can survive a lot better.
It's usually young adults in their 20s who
have a hard period of time. There are a lot
of compounding factors for people in this
profession. "
Brackenridge emphasizes that it's not
only DVMs who experience mental
health stresses.
" I don't like to leave out staff, " she said.
" They have the same personalities and
many probably wanted to be veterinarians
but didn't have the resources and support
to do so.
" I greatly value this profession, and
I want them all to know they're doing
something that is very, very important. "
Alisa Reniker, DVM, DACVECC,
FFCP, medical director of 1st Pet Veterinary
Centers in Arizona, first learned about
veterinary social work at an IVECCS
conference. In attending presentations on
hospice, she was struck by Marie Holowaychuk,
DVM, and Brackenridge's discussions
on difficult conversations with clients,
toxic staff and the value of veterinary social
workers for the practice.
" I immediately knew that we needed at
least one social worker, " she said. Eventually
we retained Sandra Brackenridge to
help us find our social worker. "
Dr. Reniker said she saw many potential
benefits of a social work program at 1st Pet.
" Our clients are very bonded to their
pets, " she said. " Especially in emergency,
they can be faced with unexpected intense
and stressful life-or-death decisions when
their best friend has a sudden severe illness
PULSE
APRIL 2022
or emergency. Understandably, they can
lash out or shut down.
" So not only is the veterinary team trying
to save the pet, but they are also trying
to support and counsel the client-something
on which most veterinarians and
support staff don't receive extensive training.
So having someone available who is
trained to deal with exactly those situations
is invaluable. "
In such cases, the social worker can move
in and talk with the client, allowing staff to
attend to other business.
As extensively reported, veterinary medicine
has one of the highest rates of suicide
among the healthcare professions.
" Wellbeing of our team is a significant
issue to us at 1st Pet, " Dr. Reniker said.
" Our culture and values are vital to our
success, and I saw the veterinary social
work program as being an indispensable
supporting piece for our culture--a way
to help every one of our team members
deal with the stress. From managers to
customer service
representatives, we all
need someone who is trained to help us
deal with the challenges, moral dilemmas,
burnout and compassion fatigue we face
on a daily basis. "
1st Pet is a chain of three emergency and
specialty veterinary hospitals in Arizona. It
has nearly 300 employees.
Dr. Reniker said the practice late last
year hired Lisa Hacker as its full-time veterinary
social worker to start its program,
oversee social worker services at all three
locations, establish and grow an internship
program, and eventually hire and train two
more licensed master social workers.
" The idea was to ease her into the role
at our Chandler hospital, helping clients
and talking to staff as needed, then gradually
expand, " Dr. Reniker said. " But she
was thrown into the fire soon after being
hired when one of our technicians died
from COVID and again when we had to
make a sudden transition from 24-hour
emergency to urgent care at one of our
hospitals.
" She has provided unprecedented support
to our team during these challenges
and others. She implemented a Kindness
Campaign and is working
Social Work Topics for the Practice
Sandra Brackenridge, LCSW, is a veterinary social worker who offers social work
consulting and counseling services for veterinary practices. She is a Texas state boardapproved
supervisor in the field and has extensive experience training veterinary
social workers.
Some of the topics she offers include:
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" Understanding the Human Animal Bond in Veterinary Practice "
" Grief Due to Pet Loss and Your Clients: What Are You Missing? "
" Stress Management for Veterinary Professionals "
" Self-care, Caring for Your Co-Worker: Recognizing Warning Signs "
" Understanding Compassion Fatigue, Burnout, Stress and Prevention
in Veterinary Medicine "
" Stress Management Techniques that the Veterinary Professional
Can Do at Work "
" Communication with Clients 101 "
" Prevention of Suicide "
" Satisfying Hostile or Angry Clients "
" Understanding Hierarchal Communication "
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con gtinued

Pulse - April 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pulse - April 2022