Resilience of veterinarians at different career stages: The role of self‐efficacy, coping strategies and personal resources for resilience in veterinary practice

Abstract

Background:The aim of this study was to determine the effect of demographic and psychological factors on resilience in new graduate-, mid-and late-career veterinarians working in Australia. Method: An online cross-sectional survey of 800 veterinarians collected demographic and descriptive data in two stages from late 2015 to 2017, such as gender, average hours worked per week, type and region of practice and intention to leave veterinary medicine. Psychological factors were measured utilising the Brief Resilience Scale, the Veterinary Resilience Scale-Personal Resources, the Brief COPE and General Self-Efficacy measures. Results: Using a full-factorial univariate General Linear Model, no significant difference in general resilience was evident between the three career-stage groups (p > 0.05). However, higher self-efficacy, higher personal resources for resilience in veterinary practice, and lower problem-focused, higher emotion-focused and lower dysfunctional coping strategies were related to higher resilience. In the model for mid-and late-career veterinarians, a weak positive relationship existed between higher average hours worked per week and higher resilience, while intention to leave veterinary practice was also related to lower resilience in mid-and late-career veterinarians. Conclusion:This study supports the value of personal resources, rather than career stage, gender or region of work, as influential in developing veterinarian resilience.

A comparison between veterinary small animal general practitioners and emergency practitioners in Australia. Part 1: demographic and work-related factors

“…In light of the current workforce shortage of veterinarians, it is concerning that almost two thirds of respondents had considered leaving their principal area of practice within the past year, with a third wishing to leave the veterinary profession altogether. This finding was in line with a previous 2017 study that showed 27% of sampled experienced veterinarians were at risk of leaving the industry in the next 3 years ( 87 ) A study performed by Montoya et al ( 20 ) interviewed 26 former veterinarians on their reasons for leaving clinical practice. This qualitative study showed that there were a variety of interplaying personal reasons (negative personal thoughts, physical and mental health) and work-related factors (employment conditions including relationship with colleagues, remuneration, working hours and negative clinical outcomes) ( 20 ).…”

Veterinarians show resilience during COVID-19: challenges faced and successful coping strategies

“…Previous studies of general and veterinary populations have shown higher resilience (or reduced perceived stress) in males. 6,9,46,50 Age 6,9,46,50 and veterinary career stage 17 have also been found to have positive associations with resilience. Veterinarians who are younger and early to midcareer might benefit from additional support to help them develop skills to improve their capacity to recover from stressful situations.…”

“…12,16 Levels of resilience can vary for an individual over time and by circumstances. 12,16,17 Those who experience repeated environmental and psychological stressors without adequate recovery time can experience reduced resilience and broad physiologic changes associated with chronic stress; the cumulative burden of these stressors is referred to as allostatic load. 16,18,19 To develop a resilient veterinary workforce, it is important to understand effective coping strategies as well as factors that contribute to greater resilience and attend to issues of allostatic load.…”

Health Promotion for Students of Veterinary Medicine: A Preliminary Study on Active Microbreaks and Ergonomics Education

“…Researchers advocated allowing students to develop important resources, e.g., reflective skills, a pro-active attitude, and self-efficacy [28]. Another study investigating veterinary students also found that self-efficacy and coping strategies influence the resilience of graduated veterinarians [90], reducing veterinary-specific occupational stressors. Documented by the time-dose effect and possibly associated with the LOC item "Horse kick", participants became less confident about regaining their health after an animal-related injury (seen in a decreasing agreement to the item "In the profession of veterinary medicine, it is possible to be injured by animals while working (human-animal interaction): Given that, I am still confident of getting well again during my career as a veterinarian").…”