A 2021 survey of 2,600 veterinarians in Norway found that 27% felt life wasn’t worth living over the past year. This number can undoubtedly be partly attributed to the added tolls brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic which led to pet owner behavior such as:
- Ranting at vet staff about safety protocols and the pandemic being a hoax
- Refusing to wear masks
- Complaining and writing negative reviews about wait times
- Throwing tantrums about not being able to get nail trims
- Railing at vets and staff about treatment costs due to economic pressures not of the vets’ doing
- Increased workload due to the lockdown-induced surge in pet ownership
- Depression from increased rates of euthanasia for financial reasons
- Burnout from working overtime every day, often skipping breaks or meals
- And more
So, the pandemic affects all of us, the douchiest among us might argue. But it has affected some workers much more than others and exacerbated the already serious, existing mental health burdens of veterinary work.
While many of us have been working safely from home and watching Netflix after work hours, vets and vet staff have been risking their own health working 12-hour days to accommodate the endless flow of pets needing their help.
And, pandemic or not, there is no excuse for pet owners to treat vet staff (or the staff of any business) in the above manner.
I’ve created two graphics (1 vertical and 1 square) based on the Norvet study availalbe to download and share.
Please use the “Download” buttons to download the resources as the previews may not be the full-sized version. As usual, please tag @VetsArePeople2 on Facebook and Instagram and @VetsArePeopleToo on Twitter if sharing on social media, and link to VetsArePeopleToo.com if sharing on a website or blog. This would help my site’s search engine rankings and help people to learn more about the cause.
Vertical version of the 3 of the statistics from the Norvet Study conducted in 2021. More info: The Norvet Study: 27% of veterinarians felt life wasn’t worth living over the past year
Norvet Study Statistics: Vertical
A 2021 survey of veterinarians found
- 27% of veterinarians felt life wasn’t worth living over the last year
- 20% had had thoughts of suicide
- 5% had serious suicidal thoughts with work-related problems being a significant contributing factor
The Norvet Study
VetsArePeopleToo.com/norvet
(Short URL that redirects to the study)
Square version containing 2 of the statistics from the Norvet Study conducted in 2021. More info: The Norvet Study: 27% of veterinarians felt life wasn’t worth living over the last year
Norvet Study Statistics: Square
A 2021 survey of veterinarians found
- 27% of veterinarians felt life wasn’t worth living over the last year
- 5% had serious suicidal thoughts with work-related problems being a significant contributing factor
The Norvet Study
VetsArePeopleToo.com/norvet
