We need to be better
As veterinarians, as mentors, as a profession and as people.
There is a trend in the veterinary profession to talk about mental health, work life balance and compassion fatigue. These are all very real issues in the profession it is likely that during your career you will experience one or more of these things. Its kinda the norm. But were talking about it so thats a step forward. I want to talk about how talking hasnt yet translated into action.
I'm a final year student currently on my clinical rotations, in years 1 2 and 3 we have had countless conversations about mental health from the uni, we even completed a mental health first aid course. Now im at the universities clinic and all those messages have gone out the window. Clinicians expect us to work 10 to 12 hour days regularly if not every day (let alone having to add work on the weekends to be able to pay bills and feed ourselves). Many of these days dont have lunch breaks. Any concern over this is met with "this is what youll do in practice" but isnt that exactly what we're trying to change?
Why are we training our profession into a poor work like balance before we even graduate? I think we can do better. Forcing students to work more than a 40 hour unpaid week should not be happening