The Perils of A Pandemic in Veterinary Medicine

Global Veterinary Ethics Congress

Acting Chair-DH DeForge, VMD

email-DonDeForge100@gmail.com

13Feb2021

The Perils of A Pandemic In Veterinary Medicine

 

The Principles of the Global Veterinary Ethics Congress:

1] Integrity, honesty, and truthfulness for the betterment of the Animal Kingdom

2] Beneficence: Acts of charity, mercy, and kindness with a strong connotation of doing good with all interactions concerning the Human-Animal Bond

3] Respect, Justice, and Integrity within the Five Freedoms

4] Veterinarians shall continue to study, apply and advance scientific knowledge, make relevant information available to pet advocates, colleagues, and the public, obtain consultation, and use the talents of other health professionals when indicated as proposed in One Medicine

5] There will be on-going review of the techniques in the continued betterment of zoo species; aquatic species; farm animals; service and therapy dogs; and all other members of the Animal Kingdom.

The Epithet:

The epithet of the Global Veterinary Ethics Congress [GVEC] concerns the union of the Human-Animal Bond and Ethics.
It centers on total freedom for all Members of the Animal Kingdom to live a quality~~~ pain-free life!

Why is COVID-19 Making Me So Angry...

Like A Candle In the Wind

Like A Candle In the Wind

Veterinary Medicine in a Pandemic

Don DeForge, VMD

As we continue in this surreal pandemic, our lives are torn apart. Our families are not the same.  Our children suffer the effects of isolation.  Each day is a struggle. Finding the answers is not a small task.

We all must take time to whisper to those in pain inside and outside of our nuclear families! Giving of ourselves without asking or placing a condition on our action can definitely make the day better for someone else and add a positive point to our daily lives.

Pick up the phone or write an email to a person who is elderly or immune compromised and totally isolated.  A few words can change their day. 

Find an activity that makes your children forget their isolation.  Remember board games?.....they actually still exist and your kids might become surprisingly involved.

You can become the grace that places itself where lives are torn apart.  We cannot allow angry clients to make our days long and hard.  

We have to become Lady Diana-like and whisper to those in pain words of encouragement and help.  

We can provide wings of compassion to all members of the Animal Kingdom we meet and greet.  Our candle will not fade with the sunset if we provide empathy to those who seek our advice and counsel.  

We must carry this torch [many times at great expense to ourselves] and believe............... that the gift of being a doctor or nurse is also at times a heavy cross.  

Doing this will allow each and every one of us to help remove anger and decrease the fatigue of loneliness as we provide footsteps of love to our patients, clients, and  communities!

Why is COVID-19 Making Me So Angry...

Author: Travis D. Westbrook, PhD

Across social media, outside of state capitols and inside crowded grocery stores, we’re seeing regular outbursts of rage and frustration. You’re probably feeling it too—anger about a picture you saw on your friend’s Facebook page or the party you heard at your neighbor’s house. Maybe you find yourself snapping at relatives or having a shorter fuse with your children.

There are a lot of factors right now that contribute to us feeling more frustration and expressing this more readily toward others. Fortunately, there are ways we can better cope with our negative feelings during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Your anger may be fueled by stress

First and foremost, increased frustration and irritability can be a common reaction to stress. With the current pandemic, many aspects of our daily lives are more stressful than usual. For example, grocery lines may be slower, work tasks may require quick adaptation and time may be increasingly devoted to new roles or obligations brought about by social distancing measures, such as child care or homeschooling.

At the same time, many of us likely have decreased access to activities that help us cope with stress in healthy and familiar ways.

For example, if activities such as going to the gym, going out to dinner with friends or shopping with family aren’t accessible in their traditional ways, you may feel less able to rely on your typical outlets for stress. This may lead to coping with stress in other ways, such as lashing out at others.

There may be good intentions behind some of our frustration toward our loved ones. Often when we care for others and their well-being, we find ourselves frustrated if they engage in activities we perceive as unsafe. For example, if a loved one is taking social distancing measures less seriously than we’d like, we may feel angry and upset toward them because we care about their well-being.

Ways you can manage your irritability

During times of increased stress, it can be particularly important to check in with yourself. Take a moment to pause, notice how you’re thinking and feeling, and acknowledge that feelings of frustration are a normal reaction to increased stress.

It can also be helpful to use the social support around you. Through checking in regularly with a loved one or close friend or family member, we can learn how others are coping with increased stress while providing support at the same time.

These check-ins and activities are important, because they can help us maintain and take care of important relationships in our lives. Social connections are critical to our physical and mental health, and being mindful of how we interact with others can help us preserve the quality of these relationships over time.

Travis D. Westbrook is a clinical psychologist in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.

From the American Animal Hospital Association:

Veterinarians are known to be high achievers. During this health crisis, there is even more pressure on veterinarians who are required to adapt to this everchanging situation while still having to handle critical, emergency, and euthanasia cases.

Added pressure and stress could make veterinarians even more susceptible to internalizing unrealistic expectations of themselves and increase self-criticism.

Practice empathy and compassion for yourself, your colleagues, and clients. Try putting yourself in your clients’ shoes. Take a few extra moments to compassionately explain to clients the changes in procedures. This helps clients have empathy for you and the situation.

Remind yourself that you are doing the best you can during an unprecedented situation. Connect with trusted mentors and colleagues for support and ideas. Know that during this time, people are more stressed, more irritable, and experiencing a plethora of difficult emotions. Know that you are not alone in this!