Access to veterinary care and its impact on animal welfare

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A study conducted by Croney Research Group found a significant gap in scientific literature regarding access to veterinary care and its impact on animal welfare outcomes, particularly regarding animal behavior. Kayla Pasteur, a PhD student at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, presented the results of the study at the 2024 American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Conference on June 22 in Austin, Texas.¹

The research group also found that major access barriers in human health care systems are understudied in the veterinary health sector. In publications accepted by the study, only 17% reported on the impact that access to veterinary care has on animal welfare. “The disparities in accessing health care that are mirrored in both the veterinary and human health care sector could potentially be explained by a limited understanding of the factors that broadly contribute to health care inequality,”Pasteur concluded, after comparing barriers prevalent in both veterinary and human health care.¹

The research group’s objectives in the study were to gain an understanding about how “access to veterinary care” is currently defined in scientific literature, and whether there are additional factors, or barriers of access, that should be included in the definition. They hypothesized that the definition would differ according to different stakeholders, and that access to veterinary care is dependent on region, socio-economic status, and age.¹

“Access to veterinary care is suggested to be one of the most significant animal welfare crises affecting pets within the US,” Pasteur said, while introducing the study. “However, there’s no formal, generally accepted definition found in scientific literature.”¹

Barriers like economic limitations, socio-economic status, and proximity to veterinary care providers, were all well documented in scientific literature. Other barriers to access, including transportation, language barriers, physical ability, and mental/emotional resources of the owner, were not as thoroughly documented. “This indicated that there was a need to determine if, in fact, additional factors influence access to veterinary care, and, if so, should they be included in forming and defining the term?” Pasteur explained.

Of accepted publications, 13% offered definitions for “access to veterinary care.”1 The group found access to be broadly defined by 6 parameters: geographical proximity, affordability, service utilization, service availability, communication, and physical accessibility. Of the publications, 90% identified certain “barriers,” most commonly citing financial limitations, geographic location, and limited resources.¹

Veterinarian-client relationship was another common barrier throughout the publications, which, according to Pasteur, encompasses challenges relating to communication, mistrust, and poor past encounters.1 Similarly, the barrier of client identity includes challenges related to language and cultural barriers.

Pasteur explained the group’s methodology, which was conducting a scoping review targeting PubMed, Web of Science, and CAB Abstracts, using keywords related to animal welfare, veterinary care, and some common barriers to access. They determined the data’s relevance through established inclusion and exclusion criteria, and manually assessed each paper in either Covidence or Microsoft Excel.¹

The study covered 1,044 publications and determined that 77 met the criteria.1 Of those 77, 50% were published in veterinary journals, 26% were agricultural, and 13% were medical.¹ The publications came from 33 countries, dating back as early as 2002, although most of the journals were published in either the United States or Canada, in 2020 and 2021.¹

“There’s a need to further investigate the barriers to accessing veterinary care that are understudied, and also understand how they may impact different communities differently,” Pasteur said about next steps. “We must also explore the potential differences in the perceptions of access to veterinary care between the veterinary care providers and the clients that they serve.”¹

Reference

Pastuer K. Access to Veterinary Care: Evaluating Working Definitions, Barriers, and Implications for Animal Welfare. Presented at: American Veterinary Medical Association Convention; Austin, TX; June 21-25, 2024.