Veterinarians are facing a suicide epidemic due to the enormous amount of stress they experience and change needs to be made to reduce the number of veterinarians committing suicide. Veterinarians experience a lot of stress due to academics because they are expected to take too many credit hours and semester and vet students do not get enough sleep which affects their mental well-being. Veterinarians also experience a lot of hardships from their jobs because they are around death all the time and they do not know how to support their clients. This takes a toll on their mental well-being when being around death so often. Finally, veterinarians have a high suicide rate because of their financial situation. Recent graduates do not make a lot of money when the graduate and they have a hard time paying bills and their student loans. In conclusion, veterinarians have a high suicide rate because they are stressed in many aspects of their lives. Change needs to be made to reduce veterinarian suicide. Change can include improving access to mental health professionals, changing the stigma surrounding mental health, lessening the course loads expected for veterinary students, and increasing financial aid for these students. All of this will reduce stress and improve mental health thus reducing the number of veterinarians committing suicide.
Hyperlink: https://proxy.lib.ohio-state.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=82561604&site=ehost-live
The link is to an article used in my research paper. I linked this source because I think it is rather interesting because recent graduates of veterinary school were asked about their opinions and sources of stress. The reader can get a feel on how these students feel about their choices to go to vet school and how they feel about their decision to obtain a DVM and become a veterinarian.