Securing lethal means for suicide: a focus group study exploring perceptions and barriers among practicing veterinarians.

OBJECTIVE: Veterinarians are at higher risk for suicide than the general population, and 1 reason for this may be veterinarians' access to and knowledge of pentobarbital-a common suicide method in this population. One possible approach to reducing suicide risk is means safety. This study examined the acceptability and feasibility of means safety protocols in the veterinary workplace. SAMPLE: 43 veterinarians from a mix of specialty areas aged 26 to 53 years, currently practicing in the United States, recruited via social media and listservs. METHODS: Participants completed a 60- to 90-minute focus group with pre- and post-test surveys. Focus group content was qualitatively analyzed. RESULTS: Survey responses indicated that that 30% (n = 13) of veteriarians reported storing their pentobarbital unlocked at least part of the time. During focus group discussion, participants perceived work/life balance or being overwhelmed as the most common suicide risk factor in veterinarians, with normalizing mental health emerging as a primary way to improve mental health in veterinarians. Additionally, adding an extra lockbox for pentobarbital/firearms emerged as the most acceptable and feasible means safety method. Finally, at post-test, veterinarians increased in willingness to implement storage protocol changes (P = .02) and were more likely to endorse concern about a coworker's suicide risk than concern about their own suicide risk (P < .01) as a reason to change pentobarbital storage methods. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results from this study will inform public messaging campaigns and policy changes for pentobarbital storage and suicide prevention efforts in the veterinary workplace at the individual and organizational level.

Highly stressful events and posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms among veterinary professionals: Prevalence and associations with mental health and job-related outcomes.

OBJECTIVE: Explore the relationship between highly stressful events in veterinary medicine and mental health outcomes such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). METHOD: Using narratives of highly stressful work events from 359 veterinary professionals, we calculated the prevalence of PTSD using both the standard Criterion A from DSM-5-TR and an expanded definition of a traumatic event that included animals as victims. Bivariate correlations were performed to probe for relationships between exposure to highly stressful events and other negative mental health outcomes. RESULTS: Seventy-six (21.1%) veterinary professionals reported exposure to a Criterion A work-related event, and 141 (39.3%) reported exposure under the expanded definition. Further, 13 (3.6%) to 50 (13.9%) veterinary professionals screened positive for PTSD, depending on how the traumatic stressor was defined and whether PTSD symptoms were linked to the same event or multiple events. Screening positive for PTSD was positively associated with suicidal ideation, psychological distress, and burnout. Defining traumatic stressors broadly and linking PTSD symptoms to multiple events resulted in more robust correlations and revealed positive associations with depression, suicide attempt, and problematic alcohol and drug abuse. The number of exposures to highly stressful work events was also positively associated with depression, suicidal ideation, psychological distress, and burnout and negatively associated with job satisfaction. CONCLUSION: Future research should consider strategies to mitigate the negative consequences that result from unavoidable exposure to highly stressful events in the veterinary workplace. Moreover, the types of events specific to veterinary medicine should be considered when assessing for traumatic events and post-exposure symptoms in veterinary professionals. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

"The Damage Happens You Just Try Not to Dwell on It": Experiences of Discrimination by Gender and Sexual Minority Veterinary Professionals and Students in the US and the UK.

Data collected in a 2016 survey of veterinary students and professionals from the United States and the United Kingdom who identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, and asexual (LGBTQ+) indicated that 34.5% (152/440) had experienced difficulties related to their sexual orientation or gender identity at school or work. This study's objective was to examine narrative responses collected in the 2016 survey and utilize content analysis to explore the research questions: What are the concerns of the LGBTQ+ veterinary population, and how do they attempt to resolve difficulties at work and school? To address these questions, we developed two taxonomies that cataloged (a) the difficulties reported by veterinary professionals and students in the 2016 survey sample and (b) the outcomes of their attempts to resolve these difficulties. The themes related to difficulties that occurred most frequently were exposure to homophobic or transphobic language (n = 69; 45.4%), outness/staying in the closet (45, 29.6%), and negative emotional outcomes (32, 21.2%). The most common themes that described the outcomes of their attempts to resolve those difficulties were unresolved (n = 41, 27.0%), changed jobs or graduated (22, 14.5%), and found self-acceptance of acceptance from others (21, 13.8%). Our findings can inform the efforts of schools and colleges of veterinary medicine, professional organizations, and workplaces in targeting improvements to support LGBTQ+ students and professionals and the development of measures tailored to this population.

A survey of negative mental health outcomes, workplace and school climate, and identity disclosure for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, and asexual veterinary professionals and students in the United States and United Kingdom.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the prevalence of negative mental health outcomes among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, and asexual (LGBTQ+) veterinary professionals and students with the prevalence reported in a previous study of veterinarians; compare LGBTQ+ veterinary professionals and students in regard to access to LGBTQ+ policies and resources, workplace or school climate, and identity disclosure; and examine whether these variables were associated with mental health (eg, psychological distress) or work- and school-related (eg, emotional labor) outcomes. SAMPLE: 440 LGBTQ+ veterinary professionals and students in the United States and United Kingdom. PROCEDURES: Between July and December 2016, a web-based questionnaire was distributed through email messages to members of LGBTQ+ veterinary groups and announcements at general veterinary and LGBTQ+-focused conferences and in newsletters. RESULTS: Nonheterosexual cis men, nonheterosexual cis women, and transgender and nonbinary individuals all had higher lifetime prevalences of suicidal ideation and attempted suicide, compared with previously reported prevalences for male and female veterinarians in general. Professionals reported more welcoming climates than did students (eg, lower frequency of exposure to homophobic language and more supportive environments) and greater identity disclosure; however, students reported greater access to institutional resources and policies. Climate variables had a more robust relationship with negative outcomes than did access to LGBTQ+ policies or identity disclosure variables. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Comparatively high rates of suicidal ideation and suicide attempts among LGBTQ+ professionals and students and the relationship between climate variables and negative mental health outcomes suggested enhanced efforts are needed to improve the climates in veterinary workplaces and colleges.