Embracing Patient Safety Culture in Veterinary Medicine Could Save Money and Time for Veterinary Healthcare Workers

Details

• Personal Author:
  Hale C ; Tomasi S
• Description:
  Thank you for the Viewpoint article, "Patient safety culture is needed in veterinary medicine." This article highlighted how embracing patient safety culture (PSC) could improve veterinary healthcare professionals' mental health and well-being. We agree with this important benefit and would like to comment on additional benefits of embracing PSC. First, positive PSC would help reduce nonfatal injuries among veterinary healthcare workers. In 2022, the US veterinary profession had the second highest nonfatal injury incidence rate, 10.2 injuries per 100 full-time workers, compared to 2.5 in all industries (per 100 full-time workers). Furthermore, the veterinary profession has had a nonfatal injury incidence rate in the top 5 among all private industries since at least 2013.2 The majority of the injuries reported in our industry are animal bites, kicks, and scratches. Embracing PSC would include adopting low stress handling to reduce animal anxiety while receiving veterinary care, making veterinary visits less stressful and safer for animals. Low-stress handling is also safer for veterinary staff because less anxious animals are less likely to bite, kick, or scratch. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Animals Health Personnel Mental Health Nervous System Occupational Health Safety Veterinarians
• Keywords:
  Health Care Personnel Injuries Mental Health Patient Handling Veterinary Medicine
• ISSN:
  0003-1488
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 8 ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  RHD - Respiratory Health Division ; WSD - Western States Division
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  262
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20069284
• Citation:
  J Am Vet Med Assoc 2024 Mar; 262(3):313
• Contact Point Address:
  Suzanne Tomasi, DVM, MPH, DACVPM, Veterinary Epidemiologist, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, CDC, Morgantown, WV
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2024
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• 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:efed273b719cbdbc38e56b8fd44744c55732ec0a5550e786955f7471ee6b4ab723578ba0166c0c3c5a3923968257252f2b2627770a4c8e5a70f4f2fe343f0265
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/207788/cdc_207788_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 72.16 KB ]