Veterinary medicine - between dream, depression and suicide!
"A study now published has compared the frequency of depression and suicidal thoughts as well as the risk of suicide among veterinary students in Germany, with that of the general population.
Most veterinary students have had the big dream of becoming a veterinarian since childhood, and when the eagerly awaited place to study finally arrives, they're ready to go. But for many it quickly becomes clear that the dream and reality are very different and that the pressure during studies is very high. Problems quickly arise and many veterinary students experience depression, excessive demands and even suicidal thoughts and intentions.
In many different countries around the world, the problem of veterinary students and their increased risk for depression and suicide is already well known. Several studies on mental stress have already been conducted and evaluated in the USA and England." (Thieme Vet). In Switzerland, such studies and results are missing so far. The following figures come from a study from Germany. However, the assumption is that these results are also transferable to Switzerland. You can find the whole study here.
"According to the study, among animal medicine students, depression occurred in 45.9% (compared to 3.2% in the general population) and suicidal thoughts in 19.9% (compared to 4.5% in the general population). The risk of suicide was 24% (compared with 6.6% in the general population). Accordingly, veterinary students are 22.1 times more likely than the general population to suffer from depression and 4 times more likely to suffer from suicidal ideation. The risk of suicide is 4.2 times higher.
The study shows the frequency of mental problems among veterinary students in Germany and draws attention to the issue. In the future, prevention will become more and more important, as the problems will also affect veterinary students who have completed their studies. There is an urgent need for a rethink in the professional field, starting with the studies." (Thieme Vet)
The Vetsuisse Faculty has already acted together with the GST, University of Bern, University of Zurich and the company GRAEUB and started the project "HappyVetProject". HappyVetProject gathers veterinary clinicians, academic professionals and opinion makers around the topic of burnout prevention in veterinary medicine with the help of self-help tools, testimonials, expert knowledge, articles, a special events program, free learning and honest sharing of experiences. Together, let's build a needed and missing mentality in the field of animal care and a protective work environment.
