In offering a sense of purpose and opportunities to make a difference, working in the veterinary sector can be personally and professionally fulfilling.
However, by its nature, veterinary work can also be very demanding, with challenges including high workload, working with animal owners and exposure to animal suffering. In recent years, increased pet ownership associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, public debate about the cost of veterinary care, and labour market shortages of veterinary professionals have added to the demands of working in the veterinary sector.
Stress occurs when a person feels that the work demands they face exceed their capacity to deal with the situation. It is important to highlight that stress differs from work demands that we experience as challenging but with which we believe we can cope (for example, a looming work deadline). Challenges like these can be considered a ‘positive’ form of stress (known as ‘eustress’) because they can be motivating and help us to achieve our goals.
Sources of work stress vary across different sectors and jobs, but research by the Health and Safety Executive¹ has identified six principal types of work related stressors.
| Demands | These include a range of job characteristics such as workload, working hours and working with clients. In veterinary work specifically, demands include euthanasia, the risk of making mistakes in animal treatment, and ethical dilemmas and potential moral injury. |
| Relationships | The quality of relationships among colleagues and clients, as well as the organisation’s approach to supporting a positive working environment and dealing with any unacceptable behaviour. |
| Support | The extent to which colleagues provide practical help and emotional support to each other. |
| Role | This includes the extent to which people understand what their responsibilities are, and whether they have the required skills and experience to do their work well. |
| Control | How much autonomy people have in how their work is organised or carried out. |
| Change | The occurrence of change at work, as well as how change is managed by the organisation. |
The experience of work-related stress can be influenced by the intensity or frequency of a stressor, or by exposure to multiple stressors (including stressful events in our personal lives coinciding with difficult experiences at work). In addition, our personality characteristics and coping style influence how we respond to demanding situations at work and, in turn, the degree of stress we experience.
