How to Treat Compassion Fatigue in Veterinary Medicine
There’s a phenomenon in the ‘helping professions’ called compassion fatigue, or compassion exhaustion, and unfortunately this can be a shadow of veterinary medicine.
Compassion fatigue is the combined physical, mental and emotional toll that results from caring for another’s pain and suffering and it can lead to burnout in veterinary professions.
Often, compassion fatigue occurs from highly dedicated, empathic individuals neglecting their own self-care and mental health needs in order to care for others.
In fact, veterinary medicine has been facing the consequences of this epidemic. Of course there are other factors at play, like high costs of education, the great resignation and more, but if, in the last year or so:
- You have tried to get your dog or cat into the vet for a routine visit and told that the next available appointment is 6 weeks from now
- You have had to deal with an emergency situation and been forced to call multiple clinics to get in immediately
- Your vet has told you that they are having a difficult time finding help, whether that is in the front office or on the vet tech team,
You have experienced the after-effects of veterinary burnout.
Revel Vet Co-Founder, Dr. Kris Latson, shares her experience of compassion fatigue after years of working in a veterinary hospital:
“I’ve been there. The effects of working long hours, performing euthanasia on animals, emotional pressures, dealing with distressed clients and managing unrealistic expectations is incredibly stressful.
The strategy before was to stuff it right back down and keep going. But this is an unhealthy coping strategy that puts considerable stress on yourself and your family. It is not a sustainable way of being and will absolutely lead to burnout if not addressed.”
So what is the solution to compassion fatigue in veterinary medicine? How can we treat our beloved and essential veterinary staff?
Symptoms of Compassion Exhaustion
By trade, many of us reading this article serve others in a professional capacity. In order to treat a problem, you know that you first need to be able to recognize it.
First, it is important to understand that the daily activities of veterinary professionals can often be classified as trauma. Interacting with animals in pain every day, repeatedly coming in contact with euthanasia and viewing traumatic accidents and incidents is not normal or easy.
Some of the key signs of compassion exhaustion to watch out for in veterinary staff include:
- Exhaustion
- Lack of or inability to sleep
- Emotional dysregulation, that may exhibit as anxiety, sadness or apathy
- Digestive troubles, like an upset stomach
- Headaches
- Decreased sense of purpose or motivation
- Higher levels of irritability
- Difficulty concentrating
- Feeling numb
- Lack of self-care and hygiene
As Dr. Kris explains, “As veterinary staff, you are often giving everything you have, again and again, with no breaks and it has ripple effects on your life. Sometimes we don’t realize we are even at this point and it becomes our new normal. This is where the mental health discussion comes in and why it is crucial to develop mental and physical wellness strategies for our vets, techs and staff.”
New Levels of Expectations
The good news is that technology has improved. Who doesn’t love being able to receive their Amazon order at their doorstep in only 4 hours?
However, the other side of that coin is that consumers and clients now have a new level of expectations for care.
Dr. Kris explains, “The pressure for things like bloodwork ‘right now’ when it used to be a 24 – 48 hour turnaround has really impacted the time and space we have for ourselves.
Oftentimes, veterinary hospitals are operating with a relatively lean support staff and, in many instances, veterinarians are playing all the roles. In other words, we’re not just the surgeon, we’re also dealing with emergencies, internal medicine, pediatrics, all while playing air traffic controller for everything from prescriptions to bloodwork, medical record keeping and calling clients back.”
All of these roles are important and must get done, but being able to balance and take care of oneself is an underappreciated skill and one that must come to the forefront for the future of veterinary medicine.
Treatments for Burnout in Veterinary Medicine
We all want our veterinary professionals to be in this role for as long as possible. So what are some steps we can take?
It’s no longer enough to tell our veterinary staff to “eat healthy food and get enough exercise.”
The true treatment for compassion exhaustion is building resilience.
Resilience: a word with roots translating to “to rebound.” Clinical psychologist Ryan Howes defines resilience as “how quickly we get back to our ‘steady state’ after the air has been knocked out of us, when we must push through life circumstances that challenge our very being.”
How to find your way back to your steady state varies for each person. Some need to journal, some may find peace being out in nature, some seek outside assistance from a licensed mental health professional or coach.
Keeping in line with the rest of our treatment philosophies at Revel Vet, we believe resilience requires a holistic approach. One that touches our staff both inside and outside of work.
At Revel Vet, we’re trying out advanced treatments on our veterinary staff.
In our practice, this looks like:
- Comfortable break and meditation rooms for staff to regroup and relax
- Mandatory 30-minute breaks for lunch and 15-minute breaks throughout the day
- Social engagements with our staff that are ACTUALLY fun and help build a healthy team environment
- Providing nutritious snacks in our comfortable and homey break rooms
- Support for mental health and wellness
Our co-founders prioritize their wellbeing through a variety of activities, such as hot yoga, mindset and brain training, outdoor activities from hiking to skiing (ok, they leave Arizona for that!), spending time with their families and animals and more.
Veterinary burnout is a real phenomenon, but it is one we are working to change, one person at a time. Our animals need us to take care of ourselves so that we can care for them to the highest levels.
As Dr. Kris sums it up, “We want to make sure our staff is taken care of so that they can be at their best and care for the wellness of every pet that walks into Revel Vet, but also so that they can live up to their highest potential in every aspect of their lives.”
