AVMA Future Leaders
I was very disappointed to see this article1 written without credit to the AVMA Future Leaders Class of 2015-2016 who researched and spearheaded the inclusion of the ProQOL survey into the AVMA annual survey that facilitated this wonderful research. I am a member of that future leaders class and task force, and a large amount of work went into determining a validated questionnaire that could serve the profession and individuals as an evaluative mental health tool. In addition, requesting permission to use the tool and then meeting with the AVMA Economics colleagues to include it into their survey was all due to volunteer time performed by a task force on the Future Leaders team. I would love to see mention in the article or credit via this letter to the AVMA Future Leaders team for identifying a powerful tool to quantitatively understand the mental health of our profession.
AVMA responds
Thank you for your letter to the Editor regarding our research paper2 published in JAVMA. This study couldn’t have been possible without the guidance and support of the many groups and individuals who dedicated their time and energy to provide us with useful inputs, and we truly appreciate the efforts everyone is making to bring changes to the profession. Mental health issues, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress disorders are serious challenges facing the profession, and the ProQOL appears to be a relevant instrument in assessing professional quality of life. We have arranged with the JAVMA’s editorial staff to publish a correction notice in the December 15, 2021, issue of the JAVMA, giving the Future Leaders Class of 2015-2016 the credit they deserve.
References
- 1. ↑
Ouedraogo FB, Lefebvre SL, Hansen CR, Brorsen BW. Compassion satisfaction, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress among full-time veterinarians in the United States (2016–2018). J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2021;258(11):1259–1270. doi:10.2460/javma.258.11.1259
- 2. ↑
Ouedraogo FB, Lefebvre SL, Hansen CR, Brorsen BW. Compassion satisfaction, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress among full-time veterinarians in the United States (2016–2018). J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2021;258(11):1259–1270. doi:10.2460/javma.258.11.1259
