VCA Animal Hospitals joins AAHA's Veterinary Visionaries

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VCA Animal Hospitals has joined Veterinary Visionaries—a collaboration launched by the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA)—as a founding member, supporting the partnership between veterinary organizations, academics, companies, and veterinary hospital networks to address systemic challenges in the industry.

According to a company release,¹ to find solutions particularly for complex problems plaguing veterinary medicine surrounding mental health and well-being, Veterinary Visionaries recently unveiled its first concept-solving event that is running May 1, 2022, through May 27, 2022. The group encourages the public to submit sustainable changes for promoting veterinary professionals' mental wellness by answering the question: How might we build systemic solutions and support for veterinary teams to continuously improve mental well-being?

"Today's profession looks a lot different from my first experiences in my dad's animal hospital as a kid. We've improved the way we practice medicine, and we've adapted to care for more pets. Our work has real joy and reward. Equally, we're experiencing challenges that we urgently need to solve—like how do we best care for each other, and how do we make the profession attractive to future talent," said Todd Lavender, DVM, president of VCA Animal Hospitals, in a company release.¹

"We're proud to join Veterinary Visionaries and collaborate on putting ideas into action to support veterinary professionals—present and future— everywhere,” he added.

At the end of the event, a panel of mental health and veterinary professionals will assess each submission based on feasibility, activation logistics, and cost, according to the release.¹ The top 4 innovators will be presented on July 1, 2022, and gifted cash rewards. Then, a committee will be assembled to create an action plan based on the winning solution.

"Veterinary Visionaries was founded to bring veterinary associations' and higher-education organizations' collective memberships together to share ideas, co-create solutions, and unify our profession's approach to solving shared challenges," said Garth Jordan, CEO of the AAHA and a founding member of Veterinary Visionaries.

"We quickly identified mental health as a major challenge in our field, and one that deserves more than a fragmented approach to solve. If we all get into the same space to collectively pool our thoughts, we'll ideate powerful solutions that can greatly enhance the field and those who contribute to it."

Reference

Solving for the future: VCA Animal Hospitals joins AAHA's Veterinary Visionaries to help support a brighter future for veterinary professionals. News release. VCA Animal Hospitals. May 10, 2022. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/solving-for-the-future-vca-animal-hospitals-joins-aahas-veterinary-visionaries-to-help-support-a-brighter-future-for-veterinary-professionals-301543927.html