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not about incompetence, but that doesn’t mean he or she won’t become incompe- tent and make errors when very sick.” “Addiction is usually a taboo sub-
ject. Bad people abuse drugs, and so on,” Shafford says. “But it is an illness, and I think we, as a profession, need to embrace this as a health concern.”
Case in point: Colorado Currently, there’s no umbrella
approach to addressing addiction and substance abuse in the veterinary profes- sion. Regulators’ response, access to care and pathways to returning to one’s job vary from state to state. “We’re fortunate to be able to say we
have resources available,” says Ralph Johnson, executive director of the Colo- rado Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA). “We had our sunset review of the Colorado Veterinary Practice Act last year. That’s a once-per-decade review of the practice act. CVMA advocated, and was successful in getting, a wellness component in the veterinary practice act. Beginning this fall, veterinarians who renew will pay an additional fee that will fund a provider to provide wellness services. “We wanted to see that formalized in
statute because it’s a recognition of the importance of addiction and substance abuse issues and because it’s a recogni- tion that veterinarians and their teams are not immune from the pressures of life.” Arizona veterinarians can self-report
addiction and seek treatment without fear, but Jerry Jenkins, DVM, co-owner of AAHA-accredited Alta Vista Veterinary Hospital in Phoenix, Ariz., and one of the most vocal advocates of that legislature- approved option, wishes his state had done more. “I wanted the state association to form
an ongoing committee of concerned pro- fessionals, but after we got the statute changed, that idea was dropped,” Jen- kins says. “I get the feeling that this is something people don’t want to look at or think about. Some may feel that this isn’t a problem.”
Think You Have a Problem? Read This. “Substance abuse is the use of drugs in such a way that they interfere with a person’s ability to carry out their daily lives in a responsible and competent manner,” says Donna J. Scott, PhD, of the Counseling and Wellness Services department at Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine. Scott, a licensed psychologist, warns that drugs interfere with perception. As a
result, very few substance abusers realize that they’re carrying out their daily lives less than competently. “People might think this drug or this drink just helps me relax or helps me cope in
some way. But it’s actually interfering and making you less capable,” Scott says. If someone has suggested that your alcohol and/or drug use is a problem and you are wondering whether or not this is true, Scott suggests answering the following questions:
Q: Can I get through the day without alcohol? Q: Can I have dinner at night without alcohol?
Q: Have I ever had to hand my work off to someone else because I felt I wasn’t steady enough physically or mentally to carry out my job responsibilities?
Q: Have people in my family suggested I might be drinking too much? Q: Have I ever been asked if I am using a substance I shouldn’t be?
Q: Do I hide alcohol or pills or in any other type of substance? Any kind of hiding at all is not a good sign.
Q: Do I ever tell myself, I’m just going to drink this or use this one more time—and then I think I should stop?
That’s not a perspective Jenkins shares. “Years ago, one of my dear friends,
a classmate and fellow practitioner, got addicted and killed himself. More recently, I dealt with a doctor addicted to Tramadol who I hired from a corporate practice,” Jenkins says. That veterinarian’s addiction began
when his physician prescribed the drug following an athletic injury. “He built up a tolerance. He started self-medicating. The corporate practice didn’t want to deal with it, so they just let him go,” Jenkins explains. “I needed someone at the practice. He had a great interview, so I hired him. Then, slowly down the road, it became apparent that addiction was a problem. The board put him on probation. He had to go through
Trends magazine, April 2013
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