Risk factors for suicide, attitudes toward mental illness, and practice-related stressors among US veterinarians

Details

• Personal Author:
  Campagnolo ER ; Carter KK ; Elchos BL ; Funk RH ; Holzbauer SM ; Kurkjian KM ; Musgrave, Karl J. ; Nett, Randall J. ; O'Leary DR ; Pride KR ; Vanicek CF ; Witte TK
• Description:
  Objective: To evaluate the prevalence of suicide risk factors, attitudes toward mental illness, and practice-related stressors among US veterinarians. Design: Cross-sectional survey. Sample: 11,627 US veterinarians. Procedures: Between July 1 and October 20, 2014, a Web-based questionnaire was made available through the Veterinary Information Network (VIN), VIN News Service, JAVMA News, and email messages to US veterinarians sent by a veterinary medical association, agriculture or livestock department, or health department of each state (except Maine) and Puerto Rico. Results: Of 11,627 respondents, 3,628 (31%) were male. Modal age category was 30 to 39 years, and modal range for years practicing veterinary medicine was 10 to 19 years. There were 7,460 (64%) respondents who primarily practiced small animal medicine, and 4,224 (36%) who were practice owners. There were 1,077 (9%) respondents with current serious psychological distress. Since leaving veterinary school, 3,655 (31%) respondents experienced depressive episodes, 1,952 (17%) experienced suicidal ideation, and 157 (1%) attempted suicide. Currently, 2,228 (19%) respondents were receiving treatment for a mental health condition. Only 3,250 of 10,220 (32%) respondents somewhat or strongly agreed that people are sympathetic toward persons with mental illness. The most commonly reported practice-related stressor was demands of practice. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: In this survey, approximately 1 in 11 veterinarians had serious psychological distress and 1 in 6 experienced suicidal ideation since leaving veterinary school. Implementing measures to help veterinarians cope with practice-related stressors and reducing barriers veterinarians face in seeking mental health treatment might reduce the risk for suicide among veterinarians. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Aging Agriculture Animals Demography Health Personnel Livestock Men Mental Health Morbidity Mortality Occupational Health Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Stress, Psychological Surveys And Questionnaires Veterinarians Women

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• Keywords:
  Age-groups Demographic-characteristics Humans Mental-illness Morbidity-rates Mortality-rates Psychological-effects Psychological-stress Psychology Questionnaires Risk-factors Statistical-analysis Stress Veterinary-medicine

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• ISSN:
  0003-1488
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Alabama ; Georgia ; Idaho ; Minnesota ; Mississippi ; Montana ; Nebraska ; OSHA Region 10 ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 4 ; OSHA Region 5 ; OSHA Region 7 ; OSHA Region 8 ; Pennsylvania ; Virginia ; Wyoming
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  OD - Office of the Director
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  247
• Issue:
  8
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20046842
• Citation:
  J Am Vet Med Assoc 2015 Oct; 247(8):945-955
• Email:
  rnett@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2016
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:ef9ecb94af3fbf90def79841aec94309031f54b0c42a73b7ed039a5f82a3b8ead2848db854ed04ccfaabe9116fb91fe69fd6aa108706b881a2ce33a8282325b2
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/202131/cdc_202131_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 211.62 KB ]